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Le Train Bleu

pierrebear

Well-known member
Joined
27 Sep 2017
Messages
387
I've been loitering on the forums asking newbie questions for a while now (thanks for indulging me!) Given I've just got the 993 back after some serious fettling from none other than Christian Sanger (or colt as he's known around these quarters), I thought I'd do justice to the car and start a thread to journal its journey and put pen to paper (or whatever the cyber equivalent is) of the journey so far. Given the car's colour, I've decided to christen her as Le Train Bleu...perhaps giving an inkling of the fact her life is to be one of grand touring, rather than lots of track days.
It all started off with a 1995 Carrera 2. Bought from Northway, bone stock (except for a horrid aftermarket radio and boomy Dansk Sports mufflers) on around 85,000 miles. The car has aircon and hard back sports seats. Pic of the car as I collected it below – still on its UK reg number. For those interested re exhausts, I got Gert to RSR my Dansk mufflers. Having seen them off the car, they are actually deformed somehow which makes me seriously question their quality of manufacture. They are no longer boomy, and it makes a great noise (which I would describe as RSR++ as it is louder than normal RSRs). As and when the mufflers give up the ghost, or sooner if I get bored(!), I will likely switch to either Cargraphics or Fisters – almost certainly going with 200 cell cats at the same time.
 
delivery day
 

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As part of the deal, I negotiated to have the Porsche Classic Radio installed. It works very well for me, although I will concede that the period correct OEM options do look a tad better. I personally love having the ability to have Spotify in the car and GPS in something that looks quite retro.
First job was to get her re-registered in Jersey. So without further ado, a number plate was registered – even managed to get 993 in the reg!
 

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The nice thing about Jersey is that it is a relatively small place. So as luck would have it, I found my old car in a car park early one morning and managed to get a graphic depiction of my Porsche journey so far
 

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I've got a brilliant detailer over here who is a real petrol head and has become a mate over the last couple of years since I bought the 993. He really treats the car like his own and gets brilliant results from good old-fashioned washing and polishing. I've considered a 'proper' detail followed by a ceramic treatment of some description but resisted it to date. Grateful for others' opinions on this for a 993?

I was lucky enough to be invited to join the 70-year celebrations for Porsche last year. Quite special to get the chance to see my own car taking pride of place in the Jersey Porsche Centre showroom with a bunch of other classics (many belonging to local PCGB members).
 

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Jersey, especially on summer days, does lend itself well to some half decent pics (even on an iPhone). Here's my depiction of 'little and large" ...
 

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Last autumn, after having spoken to Porsche GB randomly to chase my certificate of authenticity I suddenly realised that the engine wiring harness recall had not been carried out. It was slightly stressful driving around in the meantime (I forgot to note that the 993 is my only car, and Jersey public transport is not exactly reliable) but I managed to get it booked in to OPC Swindon who soon sorted it out.
 

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Whether Swindon really sorted it out 'properly" is another question though...Christian informs me that the loom has not been fitted in all the right ways. Whilst I'd been at Swindon, the alarm had gone off when they reconnected the battery which only served to highlight just how pathetic the PA100 system (not a typo, mine didn't have the 1000) was. Suffice it to say, that in addition to fiddly 1990s immobiliser malarkey, it really wasn't fit for purpose – the alarm itself was so feeble and non-descript that one could have been standing next to it whilst it was being stolen without realising what was going on...unless you happened to see the flashing indicators.
So, that had to go. This was the first time I met Christian and I was immediately blown away by his attention to detail, passion for 993s, and integrity – he actually restored my faith in mechanics and is without any shadow of a doubt not only a commensurate professional, but also a thoroughly good man who is a pleasure to do business with.
 
September 2018 saw my gf and I take part in a local charity road rally which always starts from Jersey and goes through Europe. That year, it was Monaco – and it was tremendous fun. I just missed out on being the oldest car in the whole rally to a friend's gorgeous 964 Turbo 'S" – a modified, lightened beast of a machine that spat out flames and humiliated far newer 'supercars".
 

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The rally did highlight a major flaw in Le Train Bleu, however. I had been told by a couple of mechanics that the suspension 'didn't look in great shape" and that I might need some springs and dampers in due course. That manifested itself in the car's behaviour – in town it crashed through potholes and juddered, on open roads which were anything other than French-autoroute-smooth, it was sloppy and a serious handful. I had thought that was just part and parcel of having bought a near-25-year-old car...maybe that was 'evolution' and it was unfair to hold the 993 to modern day standards and compare it to my old 997.

So in 2019, I decided to bite the bullet and go in for some suspension work. 911UK (Sundeep) had some Koni FSDs for sale which, having read the forum, I determined were the right choice for me. Having dealt with Christian before, and spoken with him regarding various suspension related points there really was nowhere else I would have gone...bit of a trek from Jersey, but another excuse for a longer run for the car (a 9x5 island with a 40mph maximum speed limit has serious limitations!)

The report was not good. Christian noted that once he put the car up on the ramps, the car was 'very original". Purists might say that's a good thing, but not (as Christian pointed out) when the car has done 100k miles and is 24 years old. The updates I got informed me that many of the suspension parts either needed replacing or re-bushing. The scrap pile was a large one...
 

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But progress was soon made under Christian's guidance. Other than having provided the Koni FSDs and asked for a set of M033 springs, I left everything else to Christian's discretion.
I got sent a couple of pics of new shiny parts whilst the car holidayed in Wiltshire with Christian...

The one thing I forgot to mention was that I threw caution to the wind and decided I would also fit the Carrera RS aerokit (M002 package). I've long been a sucker for a whaletail, and this kit always looked good to me. Now, I know that the RS replica thing has been done numerous times before and probably by people more committed to creating a faithful replica than I am. My approach is that I want a Carrera with the RS aerokit on...it could have been optioned from factory and so, this retrofitting of the kit to my mind is me simply having amended the factory specification as if I were its owner...some 24 years after the event. Whilst I am not therefore going to strip out the interior or buy a set of Speedlines, I might be tempted to get rid of the stock steering wheel (Momo MOD.07?) and go for 18" wheels of some description...maybe BBS LMs, or Sports Classic IIs if I can find decent looking ones.
Christian has set the car up at RS ride height +10mm and, to my eyes at least, the stance on the car is gorgeous. She sits beautifully and the RS aerokit gives it some seriously menacing looks without looking like a track machine.
 

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The plus point of picking it up last weekend, and having various errands to run around the south of the UK was that I was able immediately to drive a few hundred miles to explore the car's new handling (Wiltshire to London, London to Hampshire, Hampshire to Poole and Jersey). To say that I am delighted with the end result would be the understatement of the year. Whereas before the car had been crashy over potholes (whilst simultaneously, perhaps confusingly, being quite comfortable), it is now composed and calm. At a pace, I now have huge confidence in the car – as much, if not more, than I did in my 997 Carrera 4S which had been pampered prior to my ownership. You can really lean in to corners and know the car is going to behave itself beautifully. Whilst it is firmer feeling in town over potholes, it is not at all uncomfortable and there is no shuddering or crashing whatsoever. All I can say is a huge, massive thanks to Christian. The car is transformed and I am hugely grateful to him for all his hard work in making me fall in love with my 993 all over again.

One other hugely important thing that Christian did was look into some oil leaks. Whilst the consumption of engine oil never seemed huge, I was hugely embarrassed when waiting for a ferry that someone came running up to me to say they thought my car was about to catch fire. Sure enough, it was smoking. I rang my former mechanic (a well-known indy in the South East) who reassured me that it was just oil dripping on to the heat exchangers. They advised, at a previous service, that I should consider getting the lower gaskets replaced.

The reality, though, was that the lower covers were old and in very poor condition. To make matters worse, it turned out that the originals had NEVER been replaced in the car's lifetime. Christian tells me that they have a date stamp on them and so these were factory fresh and 'as hard as wood". Having replaced both, the engine is virtually bone dry...a tiny drip from the join between transmission and engine, but nothing that is going to be sending plumes of smoke billowing out from the wheel arches! Ultimately, I can live with a tiny drip of oil...

That's all for now, folks...
 

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I don't know how to get the pictures rotated...HELP!!
 
993

Lovely looking car. Love the RS kit and stance and I think a set of gold centred BBS LM's would be a fine finishing touch!
 

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