** Pics below **

Hi, all! My name is Cliff and I'm from Dallas. I come from the M3 scene having a 1997 M3/4 and a VF-supercharged 2002 M3. My handle on the M3 Forum is Plano M-Pire, for those of you who may remember me.

I too have recently reeled in a Porsche, due to the economy: a 2006 TechArt 997 S with 9k miles.

It's currently got a custom TechArt alcantara interior and TechArt exterior with a GT3 RS nose. It's got some sort of black material on the roof and the gunny flap of the Type II spoiler...looks cool to me...now I want to do the bootlid that way but need to know what it is exactly (3M?). It also has an adjustable HR suspension with Cargraphic headers, cats, and mufflers, along with TechArt's DME programming and air filter.

I've come to the forum to look for some V1 hardwire instructions and have found them! This will be the first of many trips here now.

Future plans call for a TechArt nose-lift system and maybe a RUF conversion (engine) later on now that we're lucky enough to have them in Dallas.

Boy, I have been spoiled by the front engine 50/50 M3...this car feels totally foreign to me . I was accelerating hard and changing lanes and it felt like the nose was try to get air...but I'm sure I'm wrong and just not use to the light nose. I'll take it to Motorsport Ranch in the fall to learn how to drive it.

Anyway, below are a few pics of my 2002 M3 and a pic of my 2006 997S in my parking garage at work. I'll post better pics when I take them.

Nice to meet you all,
cdw

 

welcome to the 6...sorry I had to pop your tagged images...your 997 is sweet...enjoy in good health...

 

Very nice . You will adjust in a very short time and once mastered it can become a long term thrill ride until the next Porsche and the one after that ... etc. The M3 is a very nice car too . I always liked them but never loved them --just not like Porsche .

The five dials . precision gearbox, intoxicating sound, and seamless acceleration are a product of decades of engineers and enthusiasts who appreciate this car . And you have it .. your first one . Congrats and welcome.

 

very nice set up ! enjoy the 997!

 

Congrats!!! I like you, had a E46 M3, and still have a track/street E36 M3. You know I honestly can't really feel that the engine is in back in general. The only difference I know is how beautifully, precisely, responsively the front end turns in. My E36 M3 really turns in better than the E46 M3 and once I got lightweight wheels on the E36 M3, under 13 pounds each, the front turned in even quicker and it felt effortless/light to turn in . With that though, you get more response and more feel of what is going on up front when driving spiritly; jerking the steering is not cool with this type responsiveness. I know the E46 M3 has to be even heavier upfront in addition to the supercharger and it definitely not as responsive; that's the difference I think you feel. I added the M3 CSL quicker steering rack upfront on the E46 M3 and the responsiveness was way better, but still not like E36 M3 or the iconic Porsche .

The feeling of the Porsche is sensational; I definitely feel more involved in the experience; I tell people its like a little go-cart when I try to eplain the difference in that versus the M3. I didn't even have a learning curve based on the different setups on the different cars, but I attend a few track events throughout the year, and I know the basic dynamics of handling, smoothness, throttle input. These skills really keeps the car at its max traction at all time, allowing you to enjoy the car more from a performance aspect in a normal driving environment. It's all about providing smooth inputs, so that you don't upset the balance of the car. I'm really loving the feel of the Porsche.

Congrats! The M3 looks so mean! The Porsche looks ridiculous!

 

Very interesting car, not too many Techart Modded cars around here.

Welcome to the 997, once you get use to driving it, you won't want any thing else.

 

Thank you all very much, and thank you Ced for all the good info!

And thanks to everyone listing their mods in their signatures...that's very helpful to us Porsche-newbs.

Take care!
Cliff

 

Enjoy man. My lil Red is in the garage awaiting a wax job. I claybar'd her the other day. She can't come out until she's waxed now. It's been cold here the last couple of days, so I couldn't get the wax job knocked out. They are talking 20s tonight but 70s tomorrow. Tomorrow will probably be the day she get waxed. I hope so, so that she can come out for the weekend.

 

Nice car and welcome to the 6! Is that a vinyl wrap on your roof? Looks pretty cool.

 

Nice cars! Welcome to the 6!...although I dont have an "M"...I do know what youre talking about with the 50/50 balance of the 3 series....and having a '88 911 sans all the computer safety devices of the newer P-cars its quite interesting going from my 3 series daily driver to the '88 P-car....enjoy....you'll love it after a short while..afterall "There is no substitute"...

 

Welcome. And that's a totally amazing car you have. If I had a coupe, I'd want it to look much like yours. Alcantara, wings, carbon. Wow.
Sounds like you'll have the dynamics well understood in no time. It isn't the perfect driving machine. Just much much better than almost anything else...

 

Fierce! Like the E46 too....darth Vader w/ Angel eyes!

 

Good luck with the waxing, Ced...you'd better be out there doing it now instead of reading the boards!

Thanks for the great welcome, everyone.

Yes, I'm guessing it is black vinyl wrap on the roof and gurney flap...it's definitely not paint and it's tape-like. I'd like to find more to try making the bootlid black as well. I believe someone posted in another thread that it was some 3M material that is applied like window tint.

Thanks, Jakester, and I'm glad to know "there's no substitute"...lol...time to get me a shirt with that on it, plus the "Two Syllables" one...you'd be surprised...even here in Dallas...

Thanks, Verde, I really appreciate it. I'd love to have a convertible too! I love how agressive this car looks on the street and in person...pictures don't really do these cars justice, do they?! Time to add a positive displacement supercharger to the mix so performance will match the looks.

Thank you, Risker! Yeah, my license plate is actually "M-Pire"

Take care,
Cliff

 

Haha. Gots to play catch up!!!

She's in the garage waiting for me to rub her down . I can't wait! hehehe

 

Welcome, car looks good!