How original are you?

[Photogirl]

Much is made of the importance of keeping some Porsche models as original as possible, since this is seen as a way to help maintain overall value.

That’s certainly backed up by some of the excessively modded 986s I’ve seen - once personal tastes have been imposed on virtually every inch of the car it can be hard to find a like-minded buyer and these cars are usually cheaper as a result. My question for you isn’t about these extremes, but more to do with how original you keep your 986.

My 986 is absolutely original - I do have a fancy hardtop but that is OEM fit and requires no changes to the car. The only other thing which isn’t totally original would be my shiny new wheel bolts (the Porsche ones corrode too easily and are dull). Anyway, I was at Goodwood the other day talking to a very knowledgeable Porsche 986 owner and he seemed horrified when I said I was thinking of painting my wheel calipers. He felt that would be a deviation from ‘originality’ on what is now accepted as a classic car.  

I don’t like the factory finish on my wheel calipers, it’s boring and dull. I thought I might paint them yellow. I have a 987.2 Cayman with yellow calipers and they look really pretty. If I don’t paint my calipers yellow I would have to paint them in a high metallic graphite (if I could find the right paint) which would be similar to the original finish but with a bit of bling. I’m not sure what to do.

What are your feelings on the subject of what is or is not an acceptable ‘mod’?

[Scubaregs]

Did he have a pipe, slippers and a very boring monotone voice?

[Photogirl]

1 minute ago, Scubaregs said:

Did he have a pipe, slippers and a very boring monotone voice?

I don't want to say, because he might be a member of this forum ....... or perhaps not. 

He was very nice though.

😆

[r1flyguy]

Don’t paint your callipers yellow, it’s for cars with PCCB, you will only be subject to ridicule or wannabe brake envy! Other than that yellow callipers are cool  😁

[ANL]

I have owned a few of classic cars and have always liked to keep them as they came out of the factory. I also like the sound of the original exhaust system . To my mind that's what a Porsche sounds like. Each onto his own as there are lots of options out there.

[edc]

My car looks very original but isn't underneath. 

[½cwt]

Aiming to keep mine standard rather than original to match my budget.  For example Spyder Performance suspension arms and Koni rather than Bilstein OE replacement shocks. I've added cruise control with all factory parts except the loom for example and I've replaced the head unit to modernise it.  Oh and I've put an '01 MY interior light in to replace the broken rubbish standard offering up to '00 year.  I ahve fitted 18" wheels but kept the original 17" ones may be for all season tyres after I eventually get them refurb'd.  When the exhaust box goes I have found that the replacement for Porsche is not a whole lot more than many after market once so will probably go with that for a few more pennies.  Budget balance but not aiming to modify it as such.

[Photogirl]

Interesting answers - thank you.

I'm still thinking about my calipers though so will ponder on that one.

Has anybody done their calipers and if so what colour?

[½cwt]

I have the paint to do mine red this winter after stripping back to bare metal (I have an S so original).  You can get pretty much what you want if you go to the caliper refurb specialists like these: Brake Caliper Painting Service with an incredible Lifetime Warranty (bcs-automotive.co.uk)  I note this page shows a graphite type finish for Jag calipers.

 

[Photogirl]

Yes, the graphite looks nice - I'd love a more iridescent/sparkly version with a sort of basalt vibe to it. 

Unfortunately I don't have the facilities to take my calipers off and send them away, so I could probably do it myself. Hopefully I can get decent decals which won't peel off. 

The chap I was talking to at Goodwood suggested I simply give them a good clean and a light sand on the edges where there is a bit of dulling, then give them several coasts of laquer - he felt that would make them come up nicely. 

[Nobbie]

I have yellow callipers on my Zenith Blue 2.5 and really like them. Luckily I don’t attend Porsche Club GB events or they might all faint when they realised that they weren’t PCCB brakes😲. Generally I leave mine fairly standard visually (apart from the rust😢) mostly because I prefer driving it to messing with it.

[Ninesomething]

I think there's clear blue water between painting calipers and adding ridiculous bodykits, slamming the suspension, giant rear spoilers etc. If you feel you have good taste then a few judicious personalisations is fine. Those who claim it's only a Porsche if it has OE wiper blades and original air in the tyres are in my view taking it just a little too seriously.

[½cwt]

7 minutes ago, Photogirl said:

Yes, the graphite looks nice - I'd love a more iridescent/sparkly version with a sort of basalt vibe to it. 

Unfortunately I don't have the facilities to take my calipers off and send them away, so I could probably do it myself. Hopefully I can get decent decals which won't peel off. 

The chap I was talking to at Goodwood suggested I simply give them a good clean and a light sand on the edges where there is a bit of dulling, then give them several coasts of laquer - he felt that would make them come up nicely. 

Try these for decals: Porsche Modern Brake Decals (brakecaliperdecals.co.uk)

 

[Photogirl]

5 minutes ago, Nobbie said:

I have yellow callipers on my Zenith Blue 2.5 and really like them. Luckily I don’t attend Porsche Club GB events or they might all faint when they realised that they weren’t PCCB brakes😲. Generally I leave mine fairly standard visually (apart from the rust😢) mostly because I prefer driving it to messing with it.

It was actually a Porsche Club event I was at (I'm not a member) and they did seem to be into absolutely original looks. I was surprised at how badly received my thoughts on painting my calipers were  😝

[EXY]

Wifey and I were committee members for Region 27 PCGB when we had the Boxster MY04 2.7 986 and didn't get many problems with fellow members regarding non originality and our car regularly won PCGB Concours competitions.

Our car had 18" wheels which were genuine OEM Porsche but were not original to the car, similarly our PSE was modified to emulate an OEM part but wasn't original. 

The BOXSTER  boot badge was an Anniversary chrome unit, again OEM but not original. 

I repainted the calipers in RED, IMHO  the colour they should have been from the factory.

Your car your choice and the buyer of ours liked all of the modifications. 

 

[edc]

12 minutes ago, Photogirl said:

It was actually a Porsche Club event I was at (I'm not a member) and they did seem to be into absolutely original looks. I was surprised at how badly received my thoughts on painting my calipers were  😝

You're amongst folk who will look down on you if you dare change your white socks to another colour with your sandals 🤣

[Clivescoobydo]

I have red callipers on my S and I think, without checking, they were a factory option. I replaced the hood same colour as original with a glass back window as I found the original plastic one split and a PITA. Also fitted Zunsport front grills as that made sense after fitting new condensers. Other than that mines pretty much standard as I like the ambers, original stereo etc. Would like more exhaust noise but would like it switchable like PSE but is expensive. At the end of the day it’s your car I would do whatever mod makes you enjoy your ownership of it even more.  I do have a couple of motorbikes which generally are heavily modded however I do box up the original parts when I sell and it’s never affected resale price. 

[GmanB]

The decals here are brilliant, had mine on a year with no sign of peeling. If I recall correctly I used 4 inch on the front and 3 inch on the rear. 

https://www.ccdecals.com/porsche-high-temperature-brake-caliper-decal-set-38411-p.asp

I think most mods are ok, but if it looks like it's been plastered in halfords stickers, it's a no from me. Noticeable non original changes I've made are LED interior lights/side lights. dark smoked LED front wing indicators, dark smoked third brake light, SS wheel bolts, after market Porsche crested centre caps. All stuff I can reverse. I'm sure some might think mine looks disgusting, but hey ho.

Edit: Oh yes, mesh grill fixed to the inside of the front bumper. Honestly, it should have come out of the factory like that.

Edited October 20, 2021 by GmanB

[Photogirl]

19 minutes ago, GmanB said:

All stuff I can reverse. 

Edit: Oh yes, mesh grill fixed to the inside of the front bumper. Honestly, it should have come out of the factory like that.

I think reversible mods are fine, you can change your mind when it suits you without consequences for the car. I've seen so many mods which would be very expensive or damaging to undo.

Agree about the mesh - I've got Zunsport grilles on mine, they just pop on and off and are vital in my opinion. I don't think mesh grilles are considered to be a modification, for that reason.

[Topbox]

Going non-original is seen by many  as low rent and the results often look that way. I personally don't like mods that try and make a car look more modern than its is. I really dislike the LED rear  lights you can fit to 986s for example. However you can always change them back, just like you can always repaint your callipers. Before you repaint do give them a good clean and try Polytrol on them to see if they come up any better, but the sparkly graphite sounds great, black can look good too if you have the right wheels I think. Me I thought yellow callipers would look pretty with blue too, i painted my vents body colour too, which gives me a chance to post a gratuitous picture of my car for your consideration 😃

Edited October 20, 2021 by Topbox

[Photogirl]

It's gorgeous  💛

Edit: I think it would be a boring world if all our cars looked the same. Tasteful, subtle, reversible mods can be lovely in my opinion. As you say, if the mod is from a different era it will look iffy.

Edited October 20, 2021 by Photogirl

[Mattman42]

Agree with the majority, subtle mods to your own taste can work well. Covering everything in carbon fibre or adding blingy wheels and big spoilers make a Porsche look a bit chavvy and very Halfords/eBay cheap. 
 

keeping the originals and reversing the mods if you want to sell is the way to go imho. End of the day though, it’s your car, do what you like

I know yellow callipers are really for PCCB, but if the colour works for you and you like it, go for it - could you go for a yellow that’s not that close to the Porsche yellow or has that extra sparkle you are looking for?
 

 

[Ol' Shatterhand]

Some mods are more sympathetic and discrete than others and do not necessarily detract from the car, compared to its original specification. The calipers on my S were faded when I bought it, so I had them re-painted red for around £30 at a local wheel repair shop. They even had Porsche decals to hand. I could not have brought myself to have them painted any other colour and certainly not yellow. 

A hood with a heated glass rear window is also not a garish or try-hard thing to do to the car, indeed it is a practical necessity as the plastic window inevitably perishes eventually. Admittedly the letterbox window doesn't look as good or offer the same visibility as the original, but I still prefer it to the 986.2 three-hoop canopy, or the hard-top.

I also have the Zunsport grilles, they are subtle, practical and removable.

When my Becker head unit display failed, I replaced it with a Continental unit which has DAB and Bluetooth. It was important to pick something that didn't look out of place in the car. Couldn't bring myself to install a double DIN unit, never liked the original PCM option either. 

I also had cruise control retrofitted, but I'm not sure that counts as a mod, if you didn't look at the option codes sticker you wouldn't know it wasn't installed at the factory.

I hate aero kits, gt3 bumpers, speedster humps, side skirts, spoilers, naff decals, retro letter badges and chintzy LEDs. I could take or leave the de-ambered headlights, but I don't like the clear rear lights. If I was to switch to clear fronts and sidemarkers, I'd paint the amber parts of the rear clusters red, like the 550 anniversary car.

Spacers and lowering kits should be avoided unless it's a track car and is being set up as such by someone who knows what they're doing.

Wheels should not be larger than 18". I would have preferred my car to have had 993 turbo twists, or the original 17" 'Boxster S' alloys, but I have grown to like the Turbo II replicas it came with. 9*7 lobster claws are OK too, I suppose, but something like classic 911 Fuchs or filigree cross-spoke BBS wheels are just wrong for this car. 

And any exhaust that doesn't look standard, drones on the motorway and actually robs the car of torque really cheapens a car in my eyes, no matter how much the owner has spent on it.

In the interior, if you need a loud aftermarket stereo system, you bought the wrong car to begin with. I wouldn't change the steering wheel / shifter for non-Posche items, but I can see why someone who doesn't have the three-spoke wheel or chromeline knob would want to upgrade. The seats, well, if you genuinely can't get on with the standard ones, I wouldn't blame you for upgrading to 987 or gt3 ones, if you can afford them. Me, I might swap mine for 9*6 sports seats some day, and add heater elements, but only if I can connect them to OEM switch buttons on the console with no visible evidence of non-standard wiring.

Now, under the skin, it's a different story. Appropriate upgrades to the ims, rms, thermostat, oil pan, cam chain tensioner guides, water pump, engine mount, brakes, suspension, shifter, induction, manifolds, engine map? Check... A slammed chassis, turbo engine / LS swap? Hell no! Get a different car, don't ruin a 986 just because you bought it cheap.

 

Edited October 20, 2021 by Ol' Shatterhand
Typos

[Menoporsche]

Patt put orange calipers on his blue 986, search thread title for “Molly”. 
I put orange calipers on my orange car…

Edited October 20, 2021 by Menoporsche

[Photogirl]

Brilliant and very helpful answers, thank you!

I thought about doing my calipers in red, because red looks gorgeous and is classic Porsche, but I think people would accuse me of trying to pretend I'm driving an 'S'. So I thought yellow would be a better choice. I'm still slightly undecided though.  @Mattman42 has got me thinking about a custom yellow, perhaps with a bit of shimmer or pearl to it. The yellow calipers on the Cayman I have are a slightly warm yellow (rather than a citrus yellow) which works beautifully with the rear lights.

 

Edited October 20, 2021 by Photogirl
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