997.1 Turbo Model 2008 Year April 2015 Acquired 996.1 GT3 Model 2000 Year January 2018 Acquired
It was recently my birthday month, so following some advice on my last track day I decided to treat myself to some safety equipment in the form of an FHR device. As I am harnessed in to the car the only loose item in the event of a crash is my big noggin.
I was recommended the Simpson hybrid, which is both comfortable but also fits a variety of harness and seat combinations. I went for the quickrelease system recommended for people who are in and out of the car a lot during a day. Luckily the next track day was just around the corner, and so an ideal opportunity was presented to test it out with a day in the seat.
Prior to the track day I felt it was time to give the GT3 a mid-season service and some upgrades for the rest of the sessions I have booked. First up was a full fluid flush, including differential oil. I went with Millers Lsd-specific gear oil, as recommended by Matt at ZRS and many others. The car also had new oil and a filter and I replaced the perished castor bushes in my lower arms (below) with Powerflex black items.
With that all done it was off to Donnington. The weather was perfect and it is simply one of the most fun tracks I have driven to date, although I had a bit of a moment at the chicane trying a bit too hard.
I had also ordered a BMC air filter for the GT3 from porscheshop.co.uk. After two-and-a-half weeks it finally arrived, only to be the wrong part. The customer service and communication from them has been appalling and I will not be using them again. Luckily Eurocarparts were able to supply the correct part next day so that has been installed – review to follow next month!
It has been a relatively quiet month for the Turbo. As I rolled back onto my drive from ym euro trip the brake pad warning light came on, so off I went to see my brother at ZRS Engineering. While there we also spotted a coolant leak; luckily it turned out to be a shoddy Jubilee clip and an easy fix. A 150-mile work trip confirmed that was sorted.
The Turbo also hit a kind of milestone this month in clocking over the 80,000mile mark. I have been fortunate to drive just over 32,000 of these and it never fails to feel special – roll on the big 100,000!