DDK - Die Deutschen Klassiker

Ferry Man wrote:The settings weren’t precise and it wouldn’t matter because I planned to visit Center Gravity and get things sorted properly.
However, I’d encountered issues with the ride height (i.e. grounding) and that would need a remedy.
So, I set about ‘bedding in’ the new suspension components before approaching Chris Franklin up in Atherstone.
The car had already covered nearly 2,000 miles before going up on the ramps.

Here’s a ‘before’ picture.
You might like it but I thought it looked like it had been subject to an extreme Photoshop ‘cartoon’ exaggeration.
Slammed rather than subtle.

By now, I had an idea of the ride height I wanted (using just a glance from the kerb plus an attempt at inserting a finger between tyre and top of the arch) and Chris too had an idea of the appropriate ride height for the type of driving I intended (using very precise measurements of torsion bar heights and rear arm angles).
There was also the stock factory settings to consider. Back in 1973 Porsche set the car for fast road use and that would probably suit me fine.

So, I’ll spoil the end of the story by telling you that between the three of us we’ve ended up with a standard ride height.
Yep, what Chris thought would work best, what I thought would look best and what Porsche used 40 years ago were pretty much exactly the same….

Chris started with a test drive and we talked through my expectations.
He then set about checking things out.
As you can imagine all the bushes and ball joints were fine. Brand new factory parts and well within tolerance..
The shock absorbers were also verified and pronounced good. No wonder considering they are freshly rebuilt dampers.
They are firm but standard, nothing too extreme, less 'race car' and more 'sports car'.
After a thorough spanner check and full investigation Chris found no fault with Nick’s work. Everything was rebuilt correctly.

Most of the work undertaken on my Center Gravity session involved setting the ride heights.
Early911 had only set them very roughly and I’d since added a little mischief with a ring spanner which upset things further,
I knew that setting the ride heights would require work.

Ferry Man wrote:I knew that setting the ride heights would require work.

I didn’t know how fastidious Chris would be and how many times he’d be prepared to take the rears apart and reset the splines.
He ended up re-indexing both front & rear torsion bars.

I paid a quoted fee and I’d been advised that cost at the outset. It may be you can buy cheaper but I’ve not heard a bad thing about Chris and I was happy to cover his charges. I didn’t understand then just how precise and meticulous he was. It took all day and then some.
In fact Chris went on well into the evening, considerably past the time I’d have said "that’s near enough" and gone home.
It meant a late night for me after the drive home (arriving home early the next morning) but there were no extra charges from Center Gravity.

The corner weights were checked and set with a driver in place.
Chris decided to load the seat with a generous 100 kilos! Can’t think why….

You can see how carefully Chris works when he’s fighting with front & rear axle cross weights and diagonals across the car.
It demands quite a juggling act to balance everything evenly.

The actual setting and adjustment of the geometry was surprisingly quick & easy after all the earlier work.
Mind you some fancy technology and many years of experience helps with that.

And, yes, of course things are improved.
To my eye the car sits better. It certainly drives a lot better.
The steering is now light & communicative (it wasn’t before).
I had a very slight pull to the right at speed (a little unnerving) and now it runs true with a slight track toward the kerb.
The car is stable at speed and there’s no wander, no tram lining, no floating, it sits steady and safe.
The traction is solid and acceleration is straight and true.

I’m delighted with the handling.
Before this work my car had a wonderful ride, coupled with a fabulous engine & gearbox.
It now has superb handling & steering too.
I bloody love my car.

Here's that 'before' shot again, followed my a couple of 'afters':

Another shot showing the current ride height, it's pretty much exactly as Porsche standard spec.
With a nice one degree rake too.

Sitting pretty!

Bloody fabulous car, I love it.