Ger's 2003 Porsche Boxster S

[geraintthomas]

After that, I couldn’t stop staring at the gap beneath the radio



So I tried to make a temporary fascia to fill it.

Found an old drawer that I was throwing out and it was the same thickness











Sprayed it matte black





Voila!



It’ll do for now!

[geraintthomas]

After this, I decided to take the plunge and spray the exhaust tips and diffuser area matte black, so that of a 987 black edition. The diffuser fins on mine were the part I hated most. Stainless steel exhaust tips, grey exhaust surround, with black paint?

So I was going to spray the diffuser and tips matte black, so the rear looks more purposeful (like a diffuser), separates itself from the bumper, and to give a clean look for the exhausts.

Decided to do the tips separate from the fins.



Underneath of them weren’t too clever



And after:





Masked them up to do the fins and exhaust surround



And here, ladies and gentlemen, is the final result.









So much better.



What do you guys think?

[BruceH]

The strip under the radio and the exhaust tips look great, very nice! Of course the rest of your work is also first rate

[geraintthomas]

Originally Posted by BruceH

The strip under the radio and the exhaust tips look great, very nice! Of course the rest of your work is also first rate

Appreciate the kind words thank you

[alex.rhodes]

Is the diffuser a factory option or was it added on later? I like the look of it.

[geraintthomas]

Originally Posted by alex.rhodes

Is the diffuser a factory option or was it added on later? I like the look of it.

It was added on the facelift model as standard, but you can buy them to fit pre-facelift's.

[TrumpyAl]

Hey, it worked! I've been waiting to see how this one would come off and, whilst it's hard to see in the pictures, I think it's modernised the rear without looking at all out of place. How does it look in person?

[geraintthomas]

Originally Posted by TrumpyAl

Hey, it worked! I've been waiting to see how this one would come off and, whilst it's hard to see in the pictures, I think it's modernised the rear without looking at all out of place. How does it look in person?

100x better.

I'm tempted to film it, just to see it from all angles at the same time as the photos really don't do its justice. It looks so clean and new!

Which has got me thinking...

Newer Porsches (Boxsters, GT3RS, Turbo, etc) have matt black side vents. I'm tempted to pull them, spray them and fit them back in. I imagine they'd look really, really nice contrasting against the glossy paintwork.

[TrumpyAl]

It's barely relevant given that it's a yellow car, but this guy did it.

And check out that interior!

Pics of my speed yellow Boxster S will All leather interior

[geraintthomas]

Originally Posted by TrumpyAl

It's barely relevant given that it's a yellow car, but this guy did it.

And check out that interior!

Pics of my speed yellow Boxster S will All leather interior

Seen that, it's beautiful!

You know, about a year ago I did a 2-stage paint correction on the car, and while people think I'm nuts using three buckets (one for wheels), two grit guards, two detailing brushes, a sheepskin wash mitt, wheel woolies, drying towels and a lot of patience just to 'quickly' wash the car, this is the result after a year's worth of daily driving a 14 year old car. Not a single swirl mark - the paint still looks new.



Also the hydrophobic coating on the roof still working a charm

[BRAN]

Originally Posted by geraintthomas

After this, I decided to take the plunge and spray the exhaust tips and diffuser area matte black, so that of a 987 black edition. The diffuser fins on mine were the part I hated most. Stainless steel exhaust tips, grey exhaust surround, with black paint?

So I was going to spray the diffuser and tips matte black, so the rear looks more purposeful (like a diffuser), separates itself from the bumper, and to give a clean look for the exhausts.

Decided to do the tips separate from the fins.

So much better.



What do you guys think?

Looks really nice! No worries, that it might bubble?

[geraintthomas]

Originally Posted by BRAN

Looks really nice! No worries, that it might bubble?

Nah it's seemed to have held up in previous applications, but if it does I'll just do it again - no biggie!

And in case you guys weren't aware of how clean the car is...



















...sorry

[Jgkram]

Simply outstanding! Unless you have a black car, no one truly knows how utterly hard it is to make it presentable. Every other color hides so many blemishes but black will not only show, but highlight the smallest defect. To look this good is beyond remarkable. Well done......

[geraintthomas]

Originally Posted by Jgkram

Simply outstanding! Unless you have a black car, no one truly knows how utterly hard it is to make it presentable. Every other color hides so many blemishes but black will not only show, but highlight the smallest defect. To look this good is beyond remarkable. Well done......

Appreciate the kind words, thank you

I was a little skeptical about buying the car, but have learnt a lot about car detailing and what not since owning it!

[Werner]

Beautiful car, excellent condition!

[geraintthomas]

Originally Posted by Werner

Beautiful car, excellent condition!

Many thanks!

[geraintthomas]

So I had an eventful bank holiday... almost crashed the car!

Driving at 30mph (luckily) and the rear left suspension collapsed. The track arm had sheered its bolt that goes into the hub, allowing the arm to break free completely, resulting in my back wheel turning in completely and kicking the back end of the car out. Was absolutely fine, I didn't hit anything and pulled over safely and inspected the damage.

Luckily it was just the arm that had been damaged and no other parts, but thankfully I was only doing 30mph. If I had been doing 70mph+ (like I had been moments earlier), it would have been a different story. But no biggie, could be worse! I intended to replace the arm and get an alignment done, and have it back on the road.

Called for the recovery, and in all fairness they were exceptional and took good care.



The next morning, I took the damaged part off. Now there should be a bolt on the end of this where the nut screws onto, but that's broken off. What's more worrying is that there's only clean metal through a small part in the centre.



Was this all that was holding it on? Perhaps a design flaw from the factory, or maybe it had been cracked a while ago? Either way, it was only a matter of time before this failed.

Anyway.****I popped over to EuroCarParts and picked up a new arm for £60 (bit of a deal made). Went back and fitted the arm, all was well.



Took it for a quick test drive and the car was handling horrendously, with the back end twitching over every bump. Completely expected this as the eccentric bolt that I took off to get the arm off completely controls the toe and can alter the camber of the wheel, so the wheel was miles out.

Took it straight to a very reputable garage to have it put on a Hunter system to get all four wheels aligned back to factory spec after the accident.



Incredible bit of kit, using lasers and pattern boards to identify the wheels caster, camber and toe.



No bolts were seized, the whole process was a doddle.



This was the alignment before (expected to be horrendous due to the new arm fitted)



This was after:



Now the reason why the rear left camber is slightly out is because of my own wrong doing. When I changed the part, I had to take off the eccentric bolt and put it back - the bolt with the egg-shaped washer that, when turned, pushes and pulls the arm to adjust the toe. Well this has two washers, and I think I've put them on so they don't match with each other, which isn't a problem, but****results in the bolt being completely useless to adjust the toe properly unless I take it all off and re-fitted it correctly. The guy managed to get it as close as possible and adjusted the camber so that the toe was in but camber slightly off, as it's a lot better to have the camber off than the toe off.****

Even so, he assured me that the amount that it's out will make absolutely no real world difference as it's only 0.07 degrees out of the limit. I'll probably re-fit that bolt in the future but it'll just be for the sake of it as it wouldn't really make any difference.

Car was finished! £60 for the part that I fixed myself, and £60 for all of the alignment. Car was back on the road the day after the accident. Cheap and cheerful!



Took it for a drive. WHAT A DIFFERENCE! The alignment must have been out previously, as I'm blown away by how confident the car feels in turns, and how it feels like it's on rails in a straight line. Nothing upsets the steering, it doesn't budge going over any bumps in the road. Just feels like a new car. Any car I buy in the future, I'll be taking it there to get a full alignment done. I wish I did this before.

Also, on my drive, this happened!



100,000 miles!

Very pleased with the car at 100,000 miles. Aiming for the next 100,000 now!

[Nine8Six]

Originally Posted by geraintthomas

Was this all that was holding it on? Perhaps a design flaw from the factory, or maybe it had been cracked a while ago? Either way, it was only a matter of time before this failed.

No, not a design flaw. That is the result of a poorly torque joint. A quality torque wrench and official specs are paramount for vital links like these. Sorry if this comes in harsh but it is what it is mate.

Glad you and the car are both okay. Congrats on your 100k!

[geraintthomas]

Originally Posted by Nine8Six

No, not a design flaw. That is the result of a poorly torque joint. A quality torque wrench and official specs are paramount for vital links like these. Sorry if this comes in harsh but it is what it is mate.

Glad you and the car are both okay. Congrats on your 100k!

Not harsh at all, I've never touched the bolt so must have been a previous owner/mechanic I've got two torque wrenches that I use when working on the car.

And thank you!

[TrumpyAl]

Speaking of not having touched that bolt - how has the driveshaft boot worked out for you Ger?

I recall that you used one which didn't required the shaft to be removed, which I'd have avoided but I'm curious to know how that's panned out for you so far as it's quite a time saver...