TMAC- I had them on my 02 C2. Bad azz, great ride all around. Don't even think twice just get a set of the KWv3's. Will be putting them on my 997 as well. Check the group buy forum section for current member discount on KW's.

 

I have them on my Carrera 2, sooooo perfect. Consider that Manthey-Racing (the winners of the 24hr-Nurburgring race and overall tuning Gods) chose the KWv3 as the basis for their tuned suspension set up, only slightly modifing the internal pistons IIRC.

 

Nice, I like knowing that people do like them for the P-Car. That will be the system I go with for sure. Thanks

 

I went to Pepboy & bought some spring clamps. $5.95 a pair.
The car corners like it's on rails now. ;o)

 

Oh suuuurree... do it the hard way. Just get under there with a torch and cut off a few coils. Easy-peasy.

 

I just got a set of PSS10's from Damon at Tirerack for just over $2000 shipped. I was just about to switch over to the KW's when I got the call that mine had shipped. This is the price for the 2003 996 NB units listed on their website. At this price they are a bit less than the KW's group buy price. From all the research I did, IMO you can't go wrong with either set up for a DD. If the extra $700-900 dollars for the KW's is within your budget the KW's seem a little stronger and allow for a more personalized setup. I am having my PSS10's installed on Tuesday and will post my impressions once I get a few miles on them.

 

996 = ROW M030 = less than $1,000 and keeps you happy!

 

I've installed both PSS9's and 10's and both are awesome. Well worth the $.

 

Good answer considering the title of the thread was about not spending a ton of dollars; I think 2,000 anythings inclusive of dollars qualifies as a ton Pss9s are $1800-2000, Pss10s are $2700, KWV3s are upwards of that and Motons even more all minus the $450-600 install costs and the recommended/needed/complimentary upgraded GT3 F/R sways with droplinks/ adjustable droplinks for another $800-$1000 or the H&R sways for $450. Granted the listed systems are probably better than the M030 systems, but they are probably 2.5 - 4 times the price of the US/Row M030 systems.

I am definitely not knocking any of the systems, but $3,000 - $4,200+ may not be practical for everyone considering the fact that both the Mk1 and Mk2 cars are depreciating and the market is "soft". The average sale prices are probably in the low 20's to mid 30's+ depending on year. The ride will be better, but ~2/3 of the suspension upgrade money will be dead money on the back end at sale time IMHO. Even if you pull it, you still have the r&r time which defeats the purpose. Now if your suspension is worn, then those systems, the M030/M095 kit or the Bilstein HDs w/ either H&Rs or Eibachs springs and sways may make more sense then. If money is no issue, then time to upgrade to a 997. My $.05.

HC

 

AGREE TOTALLY

 

AGREE TOTALLY

 

I agree too but the original deviation onto more expensive options was to mention that doing it cheap could result in more money in the long run. A cheap springs option on mine caused early failure of top mounts, control arms and dampers...
The M030 option does not actually lower that much, I had it on my old C4. It's a good improved performance option but don't expect to be running at close to GT3 height, it's more Turbo if not a little higher. The big benefit is it's OEM so could retain some value to the car. All other aftermarket options are effectively dead money.

 

The ROW M030 may not be that big of a difference for those in the ROW but is a pretty significant ride height drop from the US Spec suspensions, esp. the standard non-M030. I was very pleased with the change from the US M030, which came on my car originally, to the ROW M030. Good value and a well engineered "total package".

 

Oops, yeah, forgot about that, still can't figure out why Porsche did that... On the plus side though your cars and fuel are cheaper and your women are hotter...

 

Bilstein HD's are designed to work with OEM springs. If you were to use shorter springs (Eibach / HR / TA) you would need Bilstein Sport shocks.

Let's look at the cost of this:

Avg. cost of aftermarket sport springs: $450+
Avg. cost of Bilstein Sport shocks (4): $900
Avg. installation cost: $500
Add another $150 to the install cost. (Expect to pay a bit more for labor since this setup takes longer to install than coilovers).
Rough total: $2000 > and HOPE it is now at the ride height and firmness/softness you need, because it is not adjustable.
Of course, it would certainly be an improvement over stock.

However- IMO it is completely worthwhile at this point to spend the extra money on a proper set of coilovers. If you are on a tight budget, hold out for a used set of Bilsteins, HR's or (preferably) KW's.
-Or, go with the ROW/M030 kits. Good bang for the buck.

If you come across a set of used springs cheap and can get them installed cheap, sure- from an aesthetics point of view it's a decent stop-gap until coilovers can be purchased. But remember, that is money that could have gone towards coilovers- which do make a drastic and noticeable improvement.

Upgrading to a 997 will be the same situation. Non-S suspension is way too soft, and car sits too high.

Swaybars, drop links etc are not needed as a casual mod. Only beneficial to the track crowd or totally hard-core street driver. A Porsche with stock sways / drops typically handles better than most drivers abilities.

As for value... I really can't see driving my pcar everyday worrying about how much I'll get for it come sale time. Just drive it, make it the way you want it, and enjoy!

My 50c..