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1986 951 UPGRADES ?

hesketh

New member
Hi all,

I will be taking delivery in the next week of a 1986 Porsche 944 Turbo
Guards Red
111k Miles

i want to upgrade a few things in the car, the list is as follows

LR BOOST ENHANCER
WASTEGATE
LR ECU CHIP
HAYWARD & SCOTT FULL STAINLESS EXHAUST
AIR INDUCTION KIT

Has anybody done anything similar ?

Also which good air induction kit is available in the UK to buy for the 951 ?

Many
Thanks Hass
 
Hi Hass

First, welcome to the group and congrats on buying your 951, may you have a very long and happy ownership.
I think you'll find that most 951 owners have modified their cars in one form or another, so you'll find plenty of help here on this forum.
Your list is a good start although don't bother with the 'boost enhancer', it's ok as a first stand-alone mod but totally redundant once you fit a DPW wastegate.
I would advise beginning with the DPW, manual boost controller and new chips, personally I would choose a custom written chips rather than 'off the shelf' options. Get someone like Wayne Scolfield (Chipwizards) to tune it for you and you will see approx 270 to 290bhp at the crank and a similar amount of torque.
This will transform the car, you'll be able to redline in all gears, something not possible in a standard car. A word of warning, if your car is still on its original head gasket you may see this fail with the higher boost. If you decide to change the HG for safety, someone like Wayne would probably suggest this anyway, buy a 'Cometic' metal layer HG, this will withstand the extra boost and much more and thus will last for many years, if not for the life of the car depending on the tune.
At this level of modification I'd be inclined to fit a K&N filter in the original airbox rather than a new system, if you do more mods later and fit a MAF then yes you need to change the intake setup.
If you decide to fit one anyway, you'll find something suitable from Piper or K&N under their 'universal intakes. If you do buy one try to get one that takes it's air directly through the hole in the wing where the original airbox snorkel fits, the hole is large enough for a 3-inch tube. Avoid fitting a cone filter within the engine bay, you'll be sucking in hot air. We have all done it, my first intake mod was a large cone filter stuck in the middle, not a good idea, but hey, we all learn along the road, it did sound good though...:)

Good luck with your purchase, have fun, they are truly terrific cars...

Pete
 
congratulations on your 951/952

excellent advice from Pete , can’t add much to that good advice , other than make sure you go through the car and all its rubber bushes, rubber pipes, make sure cam belt and waterpumps up to date suspension , brakes are in good order before spending all your money on mods,new plugs leads , dizzy cap, air lines.....only as these things really add up getting the car into good nick and need to be fresh and are important to take the extra power. give things a good going over and make sure it’s healthy before starting mods would be my advice.....then enjoy your journey of power mods . these cars are amaizing and would never sell mine !!!

PS i’ll warn you now , you will never stop wanting to mod the power once you start!....ask any of us that have started ??

great choice of car ??

Daniel
 
Dear Pete,

Many thanks for your kind wishes regarding my new 951 and all the valuable information you have shared with me, much appreciated.

Okay cool i shall scrap the boost enhancer for now.
I think like you said first start with a DPW and a custom race chip - from Chipwizards
Have you used a Chipwizards chip set ? how much are they and have you seen an improvement in BHP & Torque ?

Yes the car is fully stock with no upgrades - only one interior upgrade being the Porsche Classic Stereo.

Oh yes pull the cold air through under the wing - i've seen a few people do this

do you have a link please for the universal k&n or piper as there are so many ?!

Also i will be installing a turbo bade panel to make it look a little more mean ! pic attached

Thank you so much again Pete, I can't wait for it to be delivered !

 
Dear Dan,

Many thanks for your kind words.

When the car gets delivered - i will be taking it to my friends garage (D Unsworth) @ white bear garage - Who will be doing a full belt change and a once over of the car to check everything is in order.
Your very right get the car healthy and sound before any modifications.

Yes i've wanted a 951 for a while now and i don't think i will get rid of it ! i just love them !

Thanks again buddy !

H
 
Welcome!
Please be aware that if that's a genuine 924T badge panel then it's a different shape and wont fit without leaving a gap at the front unfortunately.

 
If you ask 5 different people, you'll probably get 5 different opinions. AFAIK Chip wizards don't sell chips, they're mapping specialists. And that is usually more expensive than off the shelf chips. The likes of JMG Garage are well respected and sell chips. The vented front badge panel is generally reckoned to be counter productive on a 944 turbo, I wouldn't fit one.
 
Thank you Mr.Empson !

And many thanks for pointing that out

here is the one i have ordered -

the previous pic was just a generic google search i should have been more specific !
 
Dear Blade7,

Many thanks for you information you have told me.

Yes i've heard of JMG and their great reviews of them.
Do you know much one of their chips are ?

With the regards to the Turbo Badge Panel - i've heard that too but i just love the look of the car with one fitted !

Thanks

H


 
No idea what JMG charge, try and speak to Jon Mitchell if you call them. Understand fitting the badge panel for looks, just don't expect any performance benefit.
 
Yes i will do thanks - once i have got the car i will ring him to discuss what JMG can offer.

Yes i understand that too. I just love the look of when its fitted.
 
Hi Hass

I would bow to Peter's superior knowledge on the fitment of the nose panel and agree with Paul on it being detrimental to the overall performance of the car. The 951 is a very sophisticated design, much more than many realise, that nose section is the lowest pressure point on the body, it helps with the efficiency of the intercooler ducting below, some have found that nose panel to reduce power so best leave alone.
Chipwizards write custom chips, this involves some time at their shop on the dyno, yes you can buy ready-made chips from other sources but they will never be as good or develop as much power. It's simply a matter of the safety built-in to the chips, a mass-produced chip has to allow for many variables which are found on these cars and the different octane fuels that they may be running on. A custom written chip is designed to match the actual car that it's being fitted too. Wayne is the master of these things but his time isn't cheap, Dan can probably give the best idea on price as it's more than a decade since I last had my car on Wayne's dyno which cost IIRC £550, that was for 8 hours tuning though.
For power figures/details, take a look at my thread 'Building a 400bhp 2.5ltr 944 turbo' it's on the first page of this forum.

As for universal air intake, the thing is the Porsche air flow meter needs an adapter for you to fit an aftermarket filter, most universal kits have a 'round' fitting. These adapter plates used to be made a decade or so ago, not sure about today? I may have my old one sitting around somewhere which you are very welcome to have, I've not seen it for years so can't guarantee that I still have it.
Where in the country are you situated, if not too far away from me in North London I could meet up and pass it on to you, no charge. I will remind you that I haven't seen it for some time, it could well have been thrown out but I don't recall doing so, so you never know, you could be lucky.

Pete


 
Hi Hass

Agree on ditching the nose panel, counter productive as the lads have already explained. I have the LR chipset, badged as Promax L2 when I got it. Promax ain't around any more. There are various maps on it for wastegates and bigger injectors. With UK super unleaded the fuelling is safe for about 21/22 psi (I only use V power which is 99 ron) which is more than you'll ever need. Always use super unleaded after chipping it. I've got more or less what you want at this stage. LR DPW, LR chips, MBC, K&N panel in original airbox. Was also lucky enough to pick up a SciVision MAF a few years back, it's kind of a half way house affair and fits perfectly on to the original fittings. It flows air better than the original AFM and spools boost quicker. I've got about 310bhp, still running stock exhaust which is fine up to a wee bit more than that. Get yourself a wideband AFR gauge and a proper aftermarket boost gauge to keep an eye on things once you leave the land of stock performance! I've got mine installed where the cubby hole under the stereo once was. And yes, get the HG changed before commencing. A standard Victor Reinz one will be good for 10 years+ (what I did) or go the cometic route if you plant to go daft like Pete!

Also you will need a 3 bar fuel pressure regulator for these mods and worth having a look at the health of your fuel pump. I went for a Sytec Motorsport one at around £90, which is a Bosch 044 equivalent and pretty much a straight swap for the original.

Edit to add, you will have the smaller K26/6 turbo. Probably see about 290bhp with that maxed out. The later cars have a K26/8 which is what I have. 310bhp is pretty much that one maxed out. Standard injectors still good at this point, but worth having them ultrasonically cleaned for best performance.

Great choice of car and all good advice you've had here so far.

Cheers

Stuart
 
Dear Pete,

Thanks again for the reply.

I guess the nose panel is a no no then unfortunately.
I just spoke to my good friend Mike Pollock which he advised the same as it is a negative effect on the car - but he said i could block off the vents and it should be okay then.
What do you suggest ? I just love the look of the turbo nose panel but if it effects the car severely i will not install it.
Yes I will deffo speak to Wayne once the car is here and had a full service and belt change.

I have just seen your thread ! Its insane what a car you have built Pete, simply outstanding !!

Im based in Cheshire near Manchester,
Yes please can i buy that off you if you find it ?

Many Thanks

 
Dear Stuart,

Thanks for the great reply.

Yes i think the nose panel will not be fitted anymore as much as i love it !
Gosh your car is just like i want mine !
Very true about super unleaded fuel i use it on all my cars. So will be only using it in the 951
Is this your panel filter -

https://www.porscheshop.co.uk/porsche-performance-parts/porsche-944-performance-parts-1982-to-1992/porsche-944-engine-induction-1982-to-1992/k-n-air-filter-944-tbo.html

Luck you on the - SciVision MAF where did you mange to get it from ?

Oh yes i have read i will also have to upgrade the fuel regulator to a 3 bar and thanks for reminding me - do you have a link for your one ?
Was it easy to swap ?

Ahh yes okay i completely forgot about getting the injectors cleaned - ill try find someone locally who can do this for me

Thanks again Stuart

best

H

 
Hi Hass

Yes that is my panel filter. I was lucky to get my SciVision from someone who was putting a car back to standard to sell it, about 9 years ago, for £400 iirc. I've killed the element (big puddle) once but now have a few spares, Bosch HFM5 I think. It has been a lucky find and good enough for my needs. Worth checking eBay or the likes, you might get lucky. They were £800 new back in the day.

The Bosch 3 bar FPR is a pretty standard affair. Lots available. Your car will have a 2.5 bar screw fit. The 3 bar one is push fit and jubilee clip, so you just need to make that mod then it goes straight on. I may have a spare somewhere if you are stuck. Cost me about £20 a few years ago when I was doing some fault finding.

You will also need to disconnect the cycling valve when fitting the chips and DPW. Your chips will come with instructions to do this. You will lose KLR overboost protection by doing this, hence the need for a good boost gauge to keep an eye on as well as the AFR gauge!

Good luck.

Stuart
 
Hi Hass

I found the adapter, it's yours if you want it, no charge. It bolts straight on, requires a large cone or cylinder filter with a 5" neck. IIRC it puts the filter in the centre front of the engine bay so plenty of space for a large filter, not an ideal position as explained before but it did sound nice.

Anyway, here's a picture...

IkSpypi.jpg


Not sure how to get the adapter to you though.. currently going to the post office for me is a big 'no-no' due to COVID and myself being at high risk. If in the future you are coming further south I may be able to meet you somewhere.

I'm not sure about blocking off the 931 nose panel, might look odd? If you really want the nose panel fit it, others have and it's your car so unless you want a super quick car with big mods I doubt if it will make a noticeable difference.

Kind regards

Pete

 
As Pete said, if you want a vented badge panel fit it. The intercooler is ducted from the front bumper anyway. So the vents won't draw any airflow away from it.
 
hesketh said:
thanks ill upgrade to this panel filter when i get the car, but in the long term will want to fit a induction system in the wing.

I checked ebay straight away not around at the moment but will keep an eye out for one.

i got this from a RennList post and people said this will work fine -

https://www.paragon-products.com/Porsche-944-Fuel-Pressure-Regulator-p/13.53.1.711.541.htm

Thanks for the tip re - disconnecting i never knew that !

Best

H
Hi H

Yeah that is the correct FPR. Get a note of the part number and search eBay via that.

Edit - You can see the Bosch part number on it, 0 280 160 249

Just checked, loads on UK eBay. About £30 second hand and £77 new.

Cheers

Stuart
 

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