Hi All,

I have a 2007 Porsche Turbo 997.1 and am in the process of making a few upgrades. Here is what I have done and my impressions, and what is coming.
On the car now:
Fabspeed sport cats and mufflers. They are lighter than OE, flow better, and have a great sound.
APR Stage 1 testpipe 91 octaine tune. This took the car from 480hp/503 ft lbs torque to 524hp/637 ft lbs torque. It is very smooth, linear, and drivable...but also a huge power difference.
BNC air filter...I felt it made the car's intake breath easier.
Torque Solutions turbo inlet pipes. These really open up the fresh air to the turbo s and made a noticible positive difference throughout the rpm range.
What is coming in January 2020:
AWE intercoolers kit in late January. This will improve intake air temps, increase air flow, and reduce about 1 psi pressure loss compared to OE.
DO88 Y pipe. This is almost as light as the OE Y pipe, but it has more internal volume and better air flow to enhance the air intake post boost. Fyi. DO88 is in Sweden, but have amazing customer service, ship faster than many USA based firms, and make great products.
I will update you later, but feel free to message me if you have questions.
pic of car attached

 

looks great! Enjoy in good health!

 

Nice list of add ons. I have been hesitant in a tune, mainly based on the reported wear and tear on a stock pressure plate in a MT car. Is your car a TIP or MT? If a MT is your clutch still stock?

After pinning pipes and cams, replacing hoses, installing a Kline exhaust and installing a GT2 clutch slave, next steps are performance based to add to the sways, coilovers, bump steer, trans/motor mounts already on the car. I have a set of .2 IC's coming and need to decide on piping (both the pipes from the turbos and Y pipe aren't cheap, so I will have to prioritize, probably the turbo pipes first to go with the IC's). Any reason you chose Torque Solutions over Do88? They seem similar and without the Euro (and shipping) the Torque Solutions may be less expensive.

I have to do some more reading on the tunes and see how many have tuned their car running stock clutches and the effect on them. When I pulled the engine this summer, I saw the clutch had recently been replaced, so I don't want to waste a new clutch. My Audi S6 has been "chipped" (the only way to tune the 20v Turbo I5's) and it makes a marked improvement, I can only imagine how much of a difference your tune made.

Ed

 

Hi Ed,
I have 33k miles on it now, but at 31k, I too had coolant system addressed (BBI fittings welded, Sharkwerks kit, and anything rubber replaced), I also pinned cam sleeves, replaced the cam sensors, solenoids, and adjusters, and then did a bunch of other maintenance (coils, plugs, water pump, fuel filter, thermostat, all hoses, I rings, etc.) since the engine was down. The clutch looked fine, but I put in a new OE plate and throw our bearing. I don't think a person must replace the clutch...in particular if you rev match when down shifting and are not hard/speed shifting too much. Maybe if you were going to track the car? As for the turbo inlet pipes, both the DO88 and Torque Solutions are made overseas....possibly at the same place? They look identical, and the write ups are very similar. Not sure who is copying who there. The price is very similar. I was really impressed with how fast DO88 shipped. I ordered on a Monday and had the Y pipe by Friday of the same week. So, send them an email...say Hi to Isak. Yeah, we all sort of need to $ pace our upgrades and prioritize. The APR tune is really nice, and it can be transferred with the car if you ever sell it. COBB makes a nice option too. You just have to research. As for the Y pipe upgrade, I went with the DO88 Y pipe because it is lighter than the IPD Y pipe, is less expensive, and flows more air...which sort of covers my interests. Best of luck with your build, and for sure message anytime.

 

Hey great list done. I know how you feel now that you have addresses all the shortcomings of the platform. My mileage was similar, Picked it up at 31K, popped the passenger turbo coolant rubber elbow at 41K, dropped and refit pretty much what you did. You learn a lot about these engines when they are in pieces in front of you.

That's a good perspective on the clutch. I am not a dragster racer, and I pride myself on clutch longevity (350K miles on my Audi CQ before getting it done) so I think I can spend the grand or so on a tune. I like what Kevin at UMW has to offer and it seems that there are a few guys out there who do right by tunes for these engines.

Yes, the turbo pipes did seem very similar, and I agree about the Do88 Y pipe being the better choice. Now just to stash about $2k and get it done. Did the engine have to be dropped to fit the turbo air pipes in place of stock?

Enjoy your new found horses!

Ed

Ed

 

Hi Ed,
Some people lower the engine 4 to 5 inches, to make more space to remove the OE inlet pipes, and then install the larger ones. But there is also a way to do it without lowering the engine. You need a mechanic with some muscle. Go to the DO88 website, but log in as a business....then go to the turbo inlet pipes. You will find a PDF you can down load for how to do it without lowering the engine. We used that method on my 997.1 last week. It works. Took 3.5 hours, really tight squeeze on the passenger side, need to follow the DO88 procedure exactly! Good luck!

 

Good news on not having to drop it out. I can drop it down but I will look at the Do88 info.

I am pretty impressed with the aftermarket stuff available for this platform (mechanical and body). I just wish I was independently wealthy!

Thanks!

Ed

 

Sounds good! The larger turbo inlet pipes are really important. What people forget as they are always talking about boost pressure with turbos, is that for lower and at times mid rpms, the turbo fan is moving air through the system, even when not under boost as all air goes through that inlet system. Think of a naturally aspirated engine which only processes our normal atmospheric pressure. The better the air flow in terms of efficiency, and the better the quantity of fresh air in terms of volume, allows the ECU to mix more fuel with that air for more power. So improving air in, and air (exhaust) out of any engine helps It breath and perform better. This is true for a turbo both in non pressure mode, and clearly relevant under boost. After adding the bnc air filter and turbo inlet pipes, I was able to cruise at 80 mph in 4th gear, turning about 3200 tpms, with no boost on the gauge. It not only helps the car under boost, it helps the car when not in boost mode. I then slowed to 50 mph, still in 4th gear and got on it up to 4700 rpms. The car went from 50 to 80 so quick, it spun the tires. Simply, the engine had more air readily available to mix In more fuel, to make more power. In any event, good luck with your installation.

 

Good stuff ..
any Vbox or dragy 100-200 km?

 

you did everything right with hardware except the clutch. You left yourself with almost 0 headroom, unless you drive it like a stock car

 

Is this what I have heard with wear and tear on stock pressure plates when you tune a 997?

If you have good meat on the friction plate, would changing the pressure plate buy you some time, or am I being penny wise and dollar fool considering dropping the trans and only doing the pressure plate (if they are even sold separate from a clutch assembly)?

Ed

 

I would warn you about the BMC airfilter. I ran one for a few years and the red seal disintegrated into what looked and felt like crushed candy cane pieces. These got sucked into the MAF sensors and wreaked havoc until I cleaned it out 2-3 times.