My 986 Project (slowly but surely)
 

In 2 weeks time when my parts arrive from pelican (engine mounts, tranny mounts suspension bushing, basic maintenance etc) i will have the 986 in tip top condition.

Will slowly update it when the budget permits (e.g. New bumpers, skirts, litronics and led tail lights, wheels)

First stop, the wheels
Was thinking of replacing my wheels with wheel dynamic's 808 series.
18 x 8.5 F and 18 x 9.5 R

What offset should i get so it will clear the struts and etc.?

Also do you guys think i should go for 19 inches?

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01...1373242230.jpg

Below is how it looks in a 981, cant find a 986.

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01...1373242323.jpg

Below is my car

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01...1373242812.jpg

Option 2:

The narrowbody porsche gt3 mag wheels which i really like ( if it will fit)

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01...1373243598.jpg

Would like to have the look below with the red wheels and side mirrors. Your inputs will be very much appreciated ;)


http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01...1373243669.jpg
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01...1373243700.jpg

I would go with the 808's....
 

not sure how they would look on a 986 but they look good on the 981. Only down side I see is that if you got them in black (which I like), they do not have a polished or silver lip to delineate the tires from the wheels (which I do not like). I'd do 19's if they would fit and the car had the right stance (maybe lowered just a bit).

No contest, 808's. Powdercoat them any color you want.

808
 

I vote for the 19 inch 808's. Are you thinking black? Post pics when you get them installed. I am thinking of doing black 808's on mine when I am ready for new tires.

I'd love to have the gt3 wheels

I have those Wheels from my Wheel Dynamics. Love them and get tons of compliments.

http://986forum.com/forums/show-tell-gallery/43078-1998-boxster-project-complete-restoration-4.html

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01...1363573987.jpg

Doc, are those 19's?

Hi doc

Yeah i remember! In fact i pm'd you for the specs of your wicked wheels!

Is it clearing the fender and struts? Even in very fast cornering? Wouldn't want the boxsters driveability suffer because of the wheels.

Would anybody know if the gt3 wheels will fit the box? Theyre 18x8.5 and 18x10 the problem is i dont know the offsets for the narrow body ones.

Yup, doc's 808's are 19

19x8.5 & 19x10 (45) Fronts & (50) Rears

As for the correct offset, look in the owner's manual. It's listed there.

personally I'm not a fan of those GT3 color schemes. And I'm really not a fan of those rear quarter panel graphics on the RS. I'm not sure what Porsche's design guys were thinking when they came up with those. They must have just gotten out of Fast and Furious Part 9 or whatever. When the Subaru STI Rally Car looks subtle in comparison to your Porsche, you know something is off. The best looking GT3/GT3 RS I've seen, imho, are the very stealthy looking ones with 'graphics delete'. Like a black GT3 RS with gun metal GT3 wheels.

speaking of which, I had my Carrera 4 spoke wheels redone in the BMW 'Shadow' gun metal color. With new rotors they look great. And the PORSCHE door decals are a great mod for $80.
At some point I'll get around to painting the GT3 Tek Boxster Spyder rear bumper cover (goes over the stock one with a couple of screws). I also added the smoked LED tailights. Those are three great mods that can be done for well under $1K.

Thanks for your comment perfect lap, would love to see pictures of what you are doing

I need to get my photo sharing account up again. The size limit for attachments here is too low.

By the way, you should consider the Forgestar F14 wheels. They are as light as the 18" factory Carreras, (important if you don't want your car to go slower with a harsher ride), actually come in 18" (giving you more tire tire choices at better prices) and I've seen them sell for under $1400. They come in gun metal just like my repainted Carreras.


so these wheels (gun metal) with my PORSCHE decal stripes (below) would look great on your car.
Just skip my replica 997 Turbo wheels, a.k.a. 30Lb. boat anchors I only use in winter.

http://www.acgautomotive.com/product...unmetal_03.jpg

997 Turbo Replica wheels (too heavy)
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01...1325572324.jpg


Here's the Boxster Spyder bumper cover for the 986

http://www.gt3tek.com/products/pictures/mboxrd1.jpg
easy installation:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekH2ZPBN9N4

smoke LED tail lights
http://www.speedstersource.com/WEB/PRODUCT/TL_POR_BOX_97_DP_LED_RS_E.JPG

You need a set of Champion RS98, one piece forged wheels ! 19lbs for the rears 17.5lbs for the fronts ! :)

808s are a favorite of mine. The silver ones are just stunning!

Perfectlap, what rims do you normally run?

^What he said. There is no substitute for forged, sub 20 lb. wheels! Anyone have $5,000 to help a brother out?

Heli guy,
winter: 997 Turbo replicas (heavy)
rest of year: 996 Carrera (light).
I also have 17" OEMs that I will use for Autox/DEs, more rubber.

word of caution about cheap wheels (like my replicas). These are heavy thus they can crack easily over rough roads.
Most vendors only sell Porsche replica wheels in sets of four and will not break up a set if you need just one. If they do they will charge full price which is about half the price you paid for all four. Sure you can try welding but if the wheel cracks again and the tire goes down (side wall shredding) you're buying a new tire which can easily cost as much as the wheel. Or multiply times four if the tire has been discontinued....
So you ended up buying all four replicas, plus an expensive replacement and another new tire. $1,300 down the hole and you still have to re-weld that cracked replica wheel a second time. Moral of the story consider forged or make sure your pressure cast wheel can be replaced on a per wheel basis. and if its neither forged nor pressure cast its probably way over-priced (unless free or bought used)... it WILL dent or crack eventually, the higher the weight the sooner this will occur on bad roads.

now im really confused hehehe!

@perfectlap - thanks for showing the forgestar f14 its now option 1 for me. Are 18" better for the 986? my fear of 19" is the driveability of the car to suffer because the wheels are too big that rubs everywhere in sprited driving; nor don't want to drop the suspension so it will look proper

What will be a good offset that clears everything (wheel, struts etc) for an 18 x 8.5 Front and 18 x 10 Rear (10" are the only available for deep concave)

sorry for asking too much. its because i will have no chance to try it because i will just order online. The 808 and Forgestar F14 are very similar looking eh?

@JD - that champion rs98 is very very nice.. though the price ($5000?) made it unatrractive for my wallet :)

These 19" wheels have no issues with rubbing. And my canr is lowered 1" with Eibach springs.

@perfectlap - is the gunmetal f14 on the black 987 in the above photo 18 or 19 ?

Pedrof,

Once you've decided, do share the overall price including shipping to Manila. I was looking at Victor Zehns but those Forgestars are growing on me.

good luck, bro! :)

Honestly, I think a lightweight 16" with top shelf rubber are the best size for the 986 if you want your car to go fast, turn faster, and ride smoothly -- definitely if its a non-S engine. But few companies makes 16 or 17 wheels, in Porsche fit, that really fill out the wheel well in a way that looks natural. So 18" is the best "in-between" consideration. A light weight 19", not requiring rear wheel spacers, is also good but im my opinion makes the car look out of proportion without a larger front bumper and skirting. That's my one big complaint about all the new 981 Boxsters, the wheel well opening is now so big that anything but a 19" or even 20" wheel looks like the car is on training wheels. And these SUV sized wheels on a car that has not really swelled in its size like the Carrera has looks like one of those Match box cars with the bling bling wheels. You can practically see right through the whole wheel to the other side of the car. More rubber is better for sports cars. Skinny tires are for Hot Import Nights car shows.

"Forgestar F14 in 19x8.5 47mm and 19.x10 33mm on Nitto Invos 235/35 and 285/30. The weight was 22.5 and 24.x for the rears."

Heavier than I thought in the rear for 19". Personally I think the car would look great in 18" and total cost with tires would be less.
With skirting the car will look lower without having to actually lower the car. I have had bad experiences lowering cars for street driving,
everything takes a pounding and with a convertible the rattles and squeaks of things getting loose get louder and louder over time.

@perfectlap- if i get say an 18x8.5 ET47 and an 18x10 ET33 with 235/35 and 285/30 nittos, the wheels in the 987 will sit the same as my 986 but with smaller diameter, no rubbing, and proper looking for my car?

Sure! Hey i think there's a victor zehn in wheel gallery san juan.

Are you really running a 19 x10 +33 with a 285 on the rear ?

I would defer to the expert on issues of spacers and rubbing.
Call the TireRack.com or email damon@tirerack.com
They're a Rennlist sponsor so they know these cars well.

by the way, if you're going to be doing some track driving I might consider something a little sturdier, the Forgestar is a nice lightweight street wheel but its not meant for racing. You'll definitely want a set of dedicated track wheels like the OZ Ultraleggera.

http://media.supercharged.fr/2013/05...01-673x342.jpg

No that's a quote from the 987 guy with the Forgestar F14's.

holy ********************, nice bumpers, i was looking at something similar below from design911 with the front drl's. do anybody have this bumper alread? how's the fit and quality of the drl

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01...1373448633.jpg

perfectlap, i will email damon of tirerack. i would go for the 18" f14's, my wife gonna kill me when the packages arrive lol

Does anyone know how much Carrera Lights weigh?

+1 on heliguy's question - be interesting know the weights of 18"
Also i'm sure there must be quite a difference in the weights of different tyres? given they are the furthest extremity of the rotational mass, the lighter the better - is there a published list anywhere by size and brand that provides this?

Unfortunately, they only have 11s for the rear. Ain't gonna work. :(

I think I weighed them myself when they came in at 20.25 lb. front 21.5 lb rear.
But still they're only cast wheels and well dent easily if you hit them at the wrong angle. I've had to straighten at least two. I only point this out because the asking price for Porsche factory wheels is a bit too high if you ask me for what you're actually getting. I picked them up for $1,300back before the Eruo spiked at . Good timing on my part. I had to replace one of them recently and the best I could find for a factory used wheel was $500 and wheel still needed to be repainted. If you're going to spend that much you should consider a forged wheel. I think CCWheel.com makes a decently priced one. Or at least consider the OZ's where only the inner part is cast the flange is forged. Smart.

Very true. The weight of the tire is of more consequence. Better to have a heavy wheel/light tire than a light wheel/heavy tire. But unless you're trying to set the fastest time of the day at your local track, the weight of a Boxster-worthy tire isn't going to be a huge issue. And its a much less complicated decision to opt for a light wheel since unlike the tire there aren't as many factors to consider like wet traction, wear, warm up time, etc. A wheel is a pretty simple proposition: strong, light and cheap. You must pick two of the three.

If you're roads are rough and you intend to drive a lot I would stick with the factory 996 GT3.1 bumper. These upgrade bumpers sit low to the ground and are very easily scratched or cracked if you are not driving really carefully all the time.
I have the GT3 bumper and it's going to be repainted for the fourth time, but luckily there is still no cracking because its polyurethane. I once had a fiberglass rear bumper on another car and after the first dingbat drove into the back of me, the repair never really lasted for too long. Going over a big hole in the ground or a light tap by another car would split the paint right where the repair was. that'a a problem for a car that shakes a lot like a convertible. My fiberglass side skirts have held up well but its pretty hard for another car to crash into those. Fiberglass front and rear bumpers are good for cars that see very little mileage.

p.s.
GT3tek make some polyurethane aftermarket bumpers. The Boxster Spyder rear bumper cover was folded into a box so small that I had no idea there was a bumper in there. They also run holiday sales with a 25% discount. I'm not sure if the fit of front bumpers are as good as the factory though. You might have some of those annoying gaps where the bumpers meet the fenders, side marker lights, headlights,etc.

Thanks PL, always great getting feedback from you.

If she survived seeing Pac-Man hitting the canvas that won't be too bad. :D

bish bash bosh that's how we roll.