Soon-To-Be GT Limited Wagon Owner

[rporter]

I signed up for this list back in February, after I saw thew new Legacy at the Detroit show. I was looking at WRX wagons last year, then considered the Forester XT, but seeing the new Legacy at the show did it for me.

Last week, I ordered a Regal Blue Pearl GT Limited Wagon, with the performance stuff (pedals, short-shifter, Momo knob), subwoofer, and all of the cargo nets/tray. I like the woven cloth interior, but I miss the moonroof, so I went with the Limited.

I have had Taurus SHOs as my daily drivers since 4/1989, and am one of the "old timers" with the SHO group, having done 10 of the 12 SHO Conventions, as well as numerous track (road course) events and dragstrips. Since my wife has a Del Sol Si ('95 with only 40K miles!), we need one car with 4-passenger capacity. The SHOs have met my needs over these years, but they are getting too old to be a dependable daily driver. I have been considering a used ('97-'99) BMW 540i 6-speed, but my commute for my consulting job means I need to get to the airport dependably.

To me, the new Legacy will be my "Swiss Army Knife", in that I can do track events, the dragstrip, and still have a useful daily driver.

On a side note, my summer car is a 49K '84 911 cabriolet that I've owned for seven years. In hindsight, it isn't suited for track events unless I get a rollbar (which I won't do), so the daily driver is the vehicle of choice for the track.

i have done Blackhawk Farms (2x), Mid-Ohio, Road Atlanta, Hallett, Summit Point, Gingerman, and Thunderhill (two weeks ago), and I fully expect to do track events with the Legacy. And yes, there is enough clearance under the moonroof for me to fit with my helmet!

There is also an '88 Fiero GT that I have in storage that my brother bought new in southern CA, as well as a '79 Yamaha XS11 Special (1100 CC.....first cycle to run in the 11s back in 1978) with 13,600 miles in storage that I haven't ridden since getting the 911.

Ron Porter

[axis008]

Congradulations on your purchase! Hope you will enjoy it as must as almost, if not everyone else has!

[Gumby]

Ron, Please tell us more about the 911, is it an SC? The late 80's Carrera was my dream car, 231hp in euro spec but I think less in US spec due to emissions.

Thanks!
Dave.

[rporter]

Ron, Please tell us more about the 911, is it an SC? The late 80's Carrera was my dream car, 231hp in euro spec but I think less in US spec due to emissions.

Thanks!
Dave.

I was looking for an '84-'89 Carreara, and more specifically an '87-'89 due to the G50 tranny, better a/c, etc, but I came across the '84 (long story) with 32K back in late '96. The SCs were '78-'83, and were less desirable for a number of reasons, IMHO. Black cabriolet, black (original) top, burgundy leather. Factory options are a/c and cruise. The PO installed (stuff I would do) '92 5-spoke C2 wheels, '89 CHMSL (3rd stop light), Momo wheel in matching burgundy leather, and a Blaupunkt stereo with CD. I then added a Weltmeister short-throw shifter, as well as a Weltmeister chip to primarily increase torque and throttle response below 4K (which it did).

FWIW, the best 1/4 mile time is a 13.98 @ 102, with my 200# fat ass driving. And the car has no limited-slip (bitch to launch). It is a standard 200 HP 3.2 engine otherwise. It is also the heaviest '84 available, since it is a cabriolet.

911s engine are good for 200-300K with proper maintenance. You can virtually build a 911 from mail-order parts! If you can do most of your own work, older 911s can be relatively inexpensive to own.

To me, the 911s up to '89 were the "classic 911" design, and that's what I wanted. I was also considering a targa. I did my first track event 6 month sbefore buying it, and if I knew that I liked doing tracks so much, I would have bought a targa, since it doesn't need a roll bar for the track. There is a Das Sport rollbar that uses existing body holes, and can be removed, for $800, but I don't really want to do that.

Ron Porter

[NUTZO2309]

Congrats on your new purchase, rporter!!! Enjoy the ride and post some pics! :D

[Gumby]

FWIW, the best 1/4 mile time is a 13.98 @ 102, with my 200# fat ass driving. And the car has no limited-slip (bitch to launch). It is a standard 200 HP 3.2 engine otherwise. It is also the heaviest '84 available, since it is a cabriolet.

911s engine are good for 200-300K with proper maintenance. You can virtually build a 911 from mail-order parts! If you can do most of your own work, older 911s can be relatively inexpensive to own.

To me, the 911s up to '89 were the "classic 911" design, and that's what I wanted.


Thanks Ron, I must confess to looking on autotrader.com immediately after reading your original post but then the reality struck that my 5 and 1 year old kids would never fit behind my 6"3' tall seating position. Do you know why the US 911's are 30 or so horses short of the euro models? The ones that I have had the oportunity to be around sound quiet in comparisson, perhaps it's a Cat plus more restrictive exhaust? If I remember correctly the SC was more likely to visit the scenery ass end first as well as being 30 horses worse off (euro spec). I agree with your "classic 911" design opinion, the best looking by far as well as being air cooled and without all the unneccessary electronic gadgetry.

Cheers
Dave.

[rporter]

Thanks Ron, I must confess to looking on autotrader.com immediately after reading your original post but then the reality struck that my 5 and 1 year old kids would never fit behind my 6"3' tall seating position. Do you know why the US 911's are 30 or so horses short of the euro models? The ones that I have had the oportunity to be around sound quiet in comparisson, perhaps it's a Cat plus more restrictive exhaust? If I remember correctly the SC was more likely to visit the scenery ass end first as well as being 30 horses worse off (euro spec). I agree with your "classic 911" design opinion, the best looking by far as well as being air cooled and without all the unneccessary electronic gadgetry.

Cheers
Dave.

Right off the bat, the Euro 911 had 10.3/1 compression, versus 9.5/1 here in the states, and I'm sure that there were other differences in the exhaust & such, as Europe didn't have the emissions standards that we had. The compression alone would virtually make up the difference.

In '87, the U.S. HP went to either 214 or 217 (can't recall), mainly due to pcm tweaking. My Weltmeister chip basically replicates these changes.

The SC was basically the same suspension setup as the later Carreras, so had no more tendency to swap ends than the later cars. SCs were very popular, with good resale for a lot of years. Lot's of folks love them, but I never wanted one, mainly due to the bigger Carera motor (3.2 vs 3.0), the better DME engine management & EFI, as well as the standard oil-fed chain tensioners (an absolute MUST upgrade for every pre-'84 911!). Carreras also have the intergrated foglights, rather than the bumper-mounted SC setup. And the later 3.2s are easier to modify (with the DME & EFI setup) over the former CIS.

Actually, your kids would probably fit fine at that age! FWIW, I'm 6', but with shorter legs (32-33 pant length), long body, and long (37" sleeve) arms. I have to sit with the seat way up to get the full travel on the clutch, with a LOT of seatback rake to stretch my arms out. I have had older kids in the rear before, and although it ain't comfortable, they did OK.

[Gumby]

Thanks Ron, much appreciated.