Model 993 Carrera 2 Year 1994 Acquired December 2014

Ever since I bought the 993 I’ve been pondering what to do with the stereo. The old head unit, a Porsche-branded CR 21 Becker cassette player, looks fine, and the radio works, but it lacks any sort of modern connectivity. I’m still a bit old-school; not old school enough to have cassettes, but I’m still a buyer of CDS, so I’ve long been on the hunt for a period CD player which I could also add ipod connectivity to via the changer control.

The thing is, they’re expensive. Browse ebay and you’re looking at the thick end of £700 for a Porsche-branded CD player, which is just daft. What I really needed, suggested the people at Porsche UK, was Porsche’s Classic Navigation. It’s not cheap at a little over £1,000 and, full disclosure here, it’s on loan for me to review for a while, but given the price of a second-hand CD player it’s a bit of a bargain.

Having fitted a DIN stereo in my old 205 GTI a few years ago I figured it couldn’t be too much trouble, but Richie Payne at the press garage said he’d help. I say help, what I mean is ‘do’, though I did my bit holding wires, torches and trying to be useful.

More than an ordinary stereo fitment, the Classic Navigation needs a GPS sensor, Payne positioning it behind the front bumper and routing the wiring up behind the headlight, though the boot and behind the dash. Popping the headlight out is a cinch, it also revealing the Xenon conversion on the back of the light, Payne saying it’s the neatest, smallest conversion he’s ever seen – having seen a good few. Another plus in my 993’s box.

Additional wiring was also required to put the microphone for the Bluetooth telephone connection in, which is positioned neatly on the steering column cover, Payne pushing out the instruments to route the cabling so none of it is visible. Likewise, the unit containing an aux socket and twin USB ports for charging and connecting smartphones, ipods and suchlike has been secreted away in the glovebox.

The result is fantastic, and the unit itself looks absolutely spot on.

Touchscreen technology in a 993!

You wouldn’t have believed it back in 1994, but it works beautifully. The mapping is decent – particularly given

the screen size – the operation simple, too. As I use it more and more I’ll reveal how I get on with it, but first impressions are overwhelmingly positive. Indeed, every time I get into a pre-996 911 without it, or fitted with some period aftermarket item, I wince.

The next job was to ready the car for Goodwood, where I’d be driving a few choice historics up the hill – some of which you’ll have read about on these pages. I figured as I was there for a few days I’d take my bike to escape and enjoy the countryside, and fitted some Thule roof bars to do so. I’ll go into more detail about these next month, but in the meantime here’s a picture…