fbpx

More 964 thoughts

I was chatting to another 911 enthusiast yesterday and he said he fancies a 964, but has been put off by ‘experts’ telling him the cars are rubbish and are dull to drive.

This is silly – dangle a 964RS in front of the same experts and they’d go all weak at the knees.

Yet the RS is fundamentally the same car as the standard 964.

To get a 964 to handle sweetly, the first thing to do is lower the ride height (if it’s not already been done – many have). Get some decent progressive springs (I used Eibachs on mine) and you’ll retain a comfortable ride. Change the dampers at the same time, as there’s a far chance they’ll be past their sell-by date.

Now get the car’s geometry set-up properly by someone who knows about 964s. The usual thing is to use RS settings. You’ll now have a car that’ll be a peach to drive. Yes, a Carrera 2 is better from a handling point of view, but even a Carrera 4 can be coaxed into cornering nicely.

What about that troublesome engine? Well, the issues with 964 engines were sorted out very early on in the car’s life. Yes, you’ll find 964s out there with leaking and smoking engines, but that’s because of age and mileage rather than any inherent flaw in the design.

Because the 964 is relatively cheap to buy at the moment, many have fallen into the hands of people who can’t afford to have them maintained properly, so there are plenty of tired examples out there. Get a good one, though, and you’ll have a cracking 911, that combines classic looks with modern (ish) technology.

_mg_1058

Comments (2)