So with all this talk about horsepower and everything. There's Ruf, Gemballa, PES, EVO, IA, Protomotive etc. My question is which is the best tuner out there in general? Guess most bang for your buck as far as HP?

Thanks

 

FYI - PES, EVO and IA all sell the same kits which to my understanding they develop together...

 

if there were an answer to your question there wouldn't be so many tuners around

 

I for one would choose Ruf, if all things were equal(price), over all others simply because of their customer service and proven reliability. They also warranty any work that Porsche may deny because of the aftermarket mods. There is that little thing about price though.

-Lou

 

WARNING: This is a semi-rant inspired by your question. It is not meant to be a direct attack on the poster of this original thread.

FWIW --

I am starting to get sick of this whole quest for HP thing. HP alone does little for a car other than, I guess, bragging rights. And then who knows if the car will work and how long it will last. There are cars that have been under modification for almost two years on these boards, and in that time someone like Ruf could have built you a car from the ground up that will be better than any car assembled from a hodge-podge of ideas and tuners...

The design of a great car is all about balance and integrity of function. It is a combination of HP, TQ, handling, comfort, communication to the driver, reliability, ease of repair...

Porsches are the best sports cars on the planet to me. Tuned Porsche's RARELY actually improve the car. They improve one area of the car, but almost always at the trade off of another...

There are cars out there that are better to tune if massive HP is what you are after...

Please note, what I am trying to say is the Turbo is already damn fast even in its lowly non-x50 stock mode. And people who spend big$$ on cars, I think would get better use and return out of their money going to racing schools or doing open road races in their lowly "stock" cars.

I know I may get flamed for saying all this, but so be it. Somebody has to speak up. Guys are paying tens of thousands of dollars to gain HP they have no idea how to use when they already have MORE HP than they know what to do with?!

Go enjoy your car. People tease Watt every now and then, but the guy has spent the last 12 months putting over 10K miles in his GT2's including racing over the desert at 165 MPH! So what if his GT2 is (gasp) under 500 HP. Watt, how do you live?!

I guess what I'm saying is... There are people who customize their car out of love for the car. They personalize it -- and that is the real reason they are doing this -- I think that is great. Awesome hobby. If THAT is why you are doing it. Cool. I hope it doesn't cost you too much time not driving the car.

But if you are on a quest for HP... (again, not saying you are, but some people are)... well... I hope the satisfaction of reading that dyno does for you what driving fast would.

Flame shield ready

Dean

 

I do it for the hobby, and love of cars (but I don't quest JUST for HP, but to make the car the way I like it)....period!

hey, to each his own!

Some of us members have pursued the QUEST for HP, and hell, I am learning on their nickel. I am interested to know what the potentials of the motor is. Dont' think for one minute, that PORSCHE built a "perfect" car - I think its short of what the rest of the market is offering for the cost. With a little bit of tweaking (or a lot) - we get VERY content with the purchase. Like I said, to each his own.

 

Dean,

I have to agree with you. I plan on keeping my new TT relatively stock. I am proud to be stock

But to stay on topic, I think Ruf is likely the best bet but very expensive. (maybe too expensive).

 

Shank--

I hear you. I guess one of my points is I think the potential of the motor is NOT NECESSARILY best measured by a dyno. And I feel that many people who go on the quest for HP are on a fool's errand because they don't understand this.

I agree and never meant to say Porsche built a perfect car. A perfect car is different for every driver. My point is, I think the ratio of posts devoted to HP as opposed to say devoted to handling, is way off balance here. (No pun intended)

Moreover, I am alarmed at the number of HP posts that come from people who hardly track their cars, thereby not really even knowing the trade-off's they may be making.

I too am interest in knowing the potential of the motor, in theory, I guess. But I want an engine that will run 100K miles. Anything else is a waste of a good Porsche engine as far as I'm concerned.

More importantly, drivers getting more HP who aren't qualified to drive what they have already, and who can't really tell the difference besides at their 1/4 strip (where the launch is more important anyway) scare me.

Moreover, I am alarmed at the way people seem to become "experts" by default on this board.

Dean

PS - Shank, I never congratulated you on moving up to the GT2. Awesome!

 

Dean

I really disagree. Tell me how improving the power output by bolting on a different cats and exhaust hurts the car but may add more than 20+hp and some torque. It may not be noticably louder.

A huge portion of racing is properly tuning your car. This is primarily why I am tuning my car. A properly tuned car dramatically outperforms the stock untuned car. It is measureably better and while some people might not like a tighter suspension, others (like me) do, so the car is dramatically helped and not hurt in any way.

I do not understand the peak HP fascination but if they enjoy it, great. I'm an area under the curve guy, thus my desire to go with Stage 4GT engine tune.

Tim

 

ColorChange,

I don't know why you disagree. I totally agree with what you are saying. You are tuning your car because you are racing. You are an educated consumer. Perfect.

BTW -- I too am an under the curve guy, hence my rant.

 

I am planning to keep my GT3 stock for the most part at least for now for I feel it is a refined and perfectly balanced automobile right from the factory...Maybe I will look into a different exhaust down the road when I get sick of the current "note" which I doubt will ever happen...Any mods for me will probably be limited to GT3 seats, factory roll bar. Current mods about to happen include: cargraphic aluminum GT3 logo pedals and clear side marks. That's it...
Happy Motoring!!! :-)

 

If you are enthusiastic about Porsches and want to deal with someone that's the same way and who can actually tell you what's what and what's not, I'd go with Stephen and imagineauto.com. A while back the community came up with the idea of an after market exhaust shoot out and the question was asked, who would be the best and most knowledgable person to do a fair and unbiased test. Stephen's name kept coming up, so don't just take my word for it. Obviously modding these 996TTs is NEVER cheap but at least it can be chearful.

 

Honey, where did you put the flame throwers?













Seriously though, I both agree and disagree with Deanger and Shank. Not everyone is looking for bragging rights. Case in point, I could have chose 700hp but instead went with 600hp. I will speak for myself only. I have a great deal of track experience and have ascended the Porsche ladder to my current car (280Z>944T>993>996TT). With each step I have both, sought better performance in the car and sought an improvement to my driving skillset. I purchase and have purchased Porsches for two reasons. First, they are great performers right out of the box and second they can be driven everyday if so desired. There are other cars with more horsepower and that have a sexier appearance but often times one or more of their other aspects suffer as a result.
With regard to my driving experience.....
I have driven my 944Turbo to the limit, invoking full drifts at 80mph in the dry at the track and taking it up to 165mph (with harnesses) (Bought it with 5,000 miles and sold it with 250,000 miles).
I have routinely traveled at 140mph to 150mph in the Gumball in the 993 and experimented with kicking the tail out in both wet and dry conditions.
I am currently learning the turbo and intend to take my skills to the next level accordingly. The limits are extremely high. My upgrades were suspension and aero first, then adding the power. I do intend to live near the limit on occasion with this car and intend to do it responsibly.
I think I represent a good mix of real world use and part time hobby.
Regarding upgrades and tuning, I say "To each his own". As I said before, I bought the car for its performance and not its posing ability. If someone wants this car for its posing abilities or as a hobby in the search for horsepower, why not? It is a free country last time I checked.

I am sure bragging rights comes into play with some people, but that is also their perogative. It isn't my intent. I applaud Watt, and probably you Deanger (I assume you "use" the car) for your use of the car.

I guess the use of the car literally separates the men from the boys as the old cliche goes.


Regarding tuners, different strokes for different folks. Each tuner has their own set of fors and againsts. Only the customer can determine what will work for them depending on their specific needs.

 

Way back when, the question was asked about who was
the best bang for the buck among tuners. The closest to
an answer so far was "ruf, except for the 'buck' part"...

I think the answer depends on how much more power you want.
If it has to be X00 hp, then the answer may differ depending on
the value of 'X'.
However, if you want to find the maximum hp increase per
dollar spent, I believe, from what I've read, that the Upsolute
reprogramming will be it. For $500, they reprogram your stock
chip for more boost (and the required A/F ratios), and get you
something like 80 hp, and significant improvement all across the
rev range.
Joe

 

Deanger,

I hope you don't include me in the poser, who does not drive his car in the ultimate quest for hp group. I just completed a 1500 mile roundtrip in my tt and the clock currently reads 18,000 miles on a 2002 turbo. I have attacked not only hp, but have a KW coilover suspension, upgraded brakes, clutch, flywheel, harnesess, track tires, etc... I also am fully qualified to handle the stock car and much more. I have raced in the skip barber formula dodge series for several years, too many DE events to mention and raced ASA stock cars professional for 2 years. I am not worried about my driving ability but I do agree with what you have said.

If you do not have driving skill that should be your first "mod". Take your stock car and go to a Porsche DE event and learn. Then try one of the schools, I am partial to Skippy and learn somemore. Then and only then should you make a leap in real hp mods to your car.

This car at "only" 600 hp is way, way too much for most people. I can't imagine 700 and in the hands of the inexperienced it is a receipe for disaster.

Enough said, I mod because I can and want to and I do it for me and no one else. I am not into who has the most hp or blah, blah, blah. My car will be the ultimate expression of what "I" want the Porsche 996 turbo to be.

Amen, halleleulah (sp) and thank the good Lord for giving us Porsche's!!