911SC - Build Update #7

We're now in the final stages of the build where 90% of the work is done but as everyone who's embarked on any major build knows, the last 10% with all the little details is always the most tricky. The boys at Speedsport Tuning have been putting work in.

Getting the ride height finalized and aligned - 4-9-2020

Getting the ride height finalized and aligned - 4-9-2020

With all the suspension work done, it was important to get the car aligned before heading out on the road for the first time. I specifically got the KW Classic suspension with 19mm raised spindles so the car could be lowered properly without upsetting the geometry. I'm not a big fan of super slammed cars so the goal was always to go with the euro ride height.

You'll also notice how the rear decklid seems to be lifted a bit on the driver side. Since the ducktail is fiberglass over a gutted OEM decklid, it weighs less than stock, so only one decklid strut is hold it up to prevent it from shooting up when you open it. The downside of this is that it applies pressure on that side alone resulting in this weird flexing. If you know me, then you know that needed to be addressed so we're fixing this by installing Rennline mechanical decklid struts in lieu of the hydraulic struts. Not only does that eliminate the upward pressure on the driver side but it should also be more reliable in the long run.

Sitting pretty on her new ride height

I think one of the happiest moments for me during this build was getting the video of the car firing up for the first time since it arrived at the shop in early January. It sounds so proper with the SSI heat exchangers and Dansk sport muffler. It's such a raw sound you can only get from an aircooled Porsche.

First Startup - 4-9-2020

Of course, that also means that the car needed to be taken out for a full test drive and to double check the tune. I've gone through enough builds and rebuilds of my cars to know that it ain't over 'til the fat lady sings and this was no exception. What should've been a nice long "installation" drive, resulted in a fairly short 2 minute drive. The tape you see on the driver side is for holding the wires going to the wideband o2 sensor in place so they could make sure the car wasn't running lean and sure enough it was, so the drive had to be aborted.

Shop test driving the car - 4-15-2020

Two of the six injectors were acting up causing the lean condition. Upon further inspection, it turned out one of the injectors was DOA and the other injector issue was attributed to a bad solder in the wiring harness provided in the EFI conversion kit. I had a second set of injectors shipped out to them and the replacement worked just fine. They also fixed the soldering and other less than ideal things with the wiring to make sure everything was no longer going to be an issue.

The car is now running strong and sounding pretty excellent. She's still getting the tune adjusted and most of what's really left are all electrical such as the replacement of the entire front fuse box to one from Classic Retrofit, fixing the broken light switch, putting in the custom tach and getting the new Blaupunkt head unit installed. We're a little less than 7 weeks away from the artificial deadline I set for myself to get this project completed and we still have a respray after I get the car back so it's going to be close. My seats from GTS Classic should be complete in the next 2 weeks so hopefully if I can get the car painted in May, the final pieces can be put in for a mid-June completion.

911SC - Build Update #6

When I went to Speedsport Tuning 3 weeks ago to check on the car's progress, I didn't know that would be the last time in weeks that I'd be able to do so. The boys over there have been continuing to work and be busy on a number of projects including Scarlett. After they had re-assembled the transmission, they were not content with the tiny bit of play in the input shaft and took the it apart again to redo the shims and make sure it was perfect. This unfortunately delayed the project as we had to wait for new bearings to arrive. They finished getting everything together and today the engine and transmission were reinstalled into the car for the first time in 3 months.

Engine and Transmission Remarried - 4-6-2020

Engine and Transmission ready to go in - 4-6-2020

There was a bit of a clearance issue with the newer exhaust piping coming out of the Dansk sport muffler so a bit of "tweaking" needed to be done on the rear bumper. This isn't too surprising of course as this entire exhaust system was really made for an older mid-70s 911.

Exhaust pipe won't clear

Perfect fitment now

It feels really good to see all the mechanical bits come together.

Transmission

I also got some better pictures of the KW Classic suspension installation including the new, beefier, Turbo tie rods.

KW Classic front strut with raised spindles +
Turbo tie rod

Rears shock

Although the car's physically back together, there's still a number of things to do. Most importantly, the wiring for the EFI conversion needs to get finished and the engine needs to get running on the tune. There's also a number of electrical odds and ends that will get worked on once we know all the mechanicals are working as expected.