Kyle:

It is. The only thing that makes it difficult is that the OE battery cable is inside a sleeve that Ys off with the alternator wires. I wound up cutting the old cable in half right where it Y's off and leaving the alternator wires the way they were. I then got under the car and disconnected the cable at the starter and pulled the cable down and out of the sleeve. I cut the battery terminal end off the new cable and fed the new cable up from the bottom (not through the old sleeve as that looked impossible). I'm sure you could buy the entire thing from Porsche for some outrageous amount but why? I replaced the OE tie wraps after routing the new cable where the old one was. I got new solid brass battery terminals and then also replaced the other connectors on the positive side. I took the ground off and used a Dremel w/ a wire brush to clean the ground connection to the body. A little dielectric grease and back together w/ everything. It was amazing how the car spun faster to start. The alternator light is totally out and I am probably imagining it but I had a kind of hesitation in second gear if I really did WOT. That is now gone also. It's probably the best $40 total I ever spent on the car. Make sure you put a couple layers of heat shrnk on the new connector where it attaches to the starter as the connection is pretty close to the body and would obviously make "maximum smoke" if it touched.

Steve

I'll think about it... although I lopped off about 2 inches on each the + and - wires going to the battery to get the corrosion off, every time i cut a little more, green powder came flying out.. I've already done half the job of replacing all the connectors, big and small, on the battery.. might as well do the other half and replace the whole bloody wire...

any benefit in replacing the battery>alternator lead?

Place "penny" somewhere next to battery connectors, it
will slow down the wire oxidize lol . I used to work
for a guy who was doing it to every customer car...
hehe. Well hey it works :)
Anyway lots of ground points go bad after years ,
Especially the main batter ground and gorund point
under front bumper ( fan headlight harness ect..) There
is general rule for the gauge size , if u alternator
is stock, standard battery then there is no need for
Beefier gauge wire between them two. Install platinum
or silver terminals that might smooth the amp flow :)
hehe .
Steve crank it pretty good deal by replacing some of
main feeds. Starter wire /connectors sucks lots of
amps ,plus the fact of starter located way down
exposed ... yeah 40$ well invested, i would silicone
the ends too:)


This charts has proven to be very helpful for some
individuals....
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploads9/11164854810.jpg http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploads9/21164854824.jpg http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploads9/31164854843.jpg http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploads9/41164854853.jpg

wow, good info there! haven't seen a couple of those charts since college.. (ok ok.. only a couple of years, but still! :P)

hehe sorry i didnt mean to sound so official lol . I dont know i guess i got sucked into long post replay lol hahah hey how is the weather btw?

Battery cables
 

Here a a few shots of the kind of sloppy but effective battery and light thing.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164858321.jpg

The new 2ga cable and battery terminals. The fuse in the background is for the stereo. The red rubber cover for the terminal is folded up in the picture.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164858376.jpg

I ran it along the old route and just replaced the old tie wraps. It looks decent and is out of the way for sure.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164858447.jpg

The H4s w/ 55/100 and the associated relays behind them.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164858483.jpg

High and low beams are fused seperately at the alternator connection to the battery.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164858527.jpg

I picked up a VDO cockpit white clock to match the oil pressure gauge. I have removed any evidence of the supercharger episode. I have decided that I like a clock, cig lighter for my cell phone charging, and a no hassel car that actually runs really well and handles incredible. I am presently looking for something with go-fast so that my wife will no longer make me feel inadequate in the car power department. I will get something over the winter:

current possibilities include: another E36 M3 except a 5 speed cab. an E34 M5, A really clean 968 (I don't know why I have an aversion to the 951s), maybe another 911, possibly even a Jag XK-R. I know I'm all over the map but each one has merrits and I loved our XJ6 that we had for a few years.

I plan on keeping the 44, unless some maniac sees it and has to have it and offers me over $10K cash.
Steve

hehe u shooting way allover the place if comse for the possible car choice hehehe 5 speed M3 sounds lovely , great touring machine , lots of potential , lots of aftermarket goodies and it looks good:) lol another 911? man u know : to own one 911 its pritty impressive , to own two 911's that is spoiled!!!!!!! nahh i wouldnt mind lol . Nice RS mmm yumie! What u dont like about the 951 ? I noticed the H4's set up , how long the bulb last? just wondering(i had some bad expirience with it in different car ) anyway long time ago this was going thru my mind to do h4 but kinda couldnt make my mind .btw nice clean job on those wireing:) So i guess no more S.C or LT/LS swaps ???

I figure I'm going to stop the bleeding on the 44 / no V8 in this one. I got to looking at the VW Rabbit suspension and kind of freaked out. I could keep it and buy a killer M3 for the price of the conversion alone. I really like my wife's (except for the automatic). I really don't know what I don't like about a 951, I just don't have a big desire to own one. I have had 5 911s and 7 BMWs over the years and I really did always like them all, back to my 73 2002.

Steve

my god 2002 what a car , few months ago i was crying to buy one (my wife got on the way) There was one for say localy in such a great shape yeah.... lovely car , nice history behind. Yeah the conversion sucks $$$ and kinda ruin porsche emblem. But hey lots of power ,lots of broken difs:) So u are looking for more powerfull car or just for how to say it :something to keep you in very joyfull mood. :) hmm u know i love power but im not sure if that would bring the long lasting joy . funny if i had to chose between for example newer bimmer vs older hmm triumph!! i would go with the old triumph. Maybe im getting old haha .Hey good luck with making the choice . Either one on the list u mentioned is bad azz

steve, think you could write up (or PM me) some details on the building of the new headlight harness in layman's terms? I've read the websites, but it'd be nice to say "get this... and this... connect these here.." etc.. lol

Dorsche:
Triumph? What great cars. Seriously, I had a TR6 and also a Spitfire. I did about the same kind of thing to the Spitfire that I have done to my 44. I did a frame-off and redid it with a little balanced motor w/ 2 side draft Webers and these really cool little headers, I sprayed it Mecedes smoke silver and anodized every piece of trim black. I then made a mahogany dash and mahogany runners for the luggage rack. There used to be an old boy in St Clair. MO that had every part you could ever want for them. I got it done and went to my first Triumph club run. The guys absolutely blasted me for not having an original car. I could not believe it. The car was killer. I drove it for 4 years and then sold it to a girl that worked @ Roxie's over on the East side. Let's just say she was a "professional dancer". I literally got paid w/ a shoebox full of 5s and 10s. I still see it running around the West End every once in a while. Some dude has it now. Its probably one of the few still running. The 2002 met it's demise when one of my employees rear ended a Laclede cab with it. That also was a gret car, the A/C even sort of worked. I drove the TR6 for a couple years and a guy offered me more than I had in it and we needed the garage space as I had picked up a VW Thing I wanted to redo so off it went to a new home. The Thing had been used in the VP fair to haul the Queen through the parade route in 1973. VW then auctioned it off for $1 raffel tickets. I got it in 83 from the original owner w/ 22,000 miles on it. What a cool car?? I used to take the doors off, fold the windshield down, and strap both my kids in the back and cruise around. Mine had the gasoline heater in it and was a blast to drive around in the snow. I am leaning towards another M3 as they are definately fast and I kind of want a true convertible again. I have had some fast BMWs to include a 76 Alpina B9 that I bought gray market in Germany and shipped home. That thing was bad a***. It was a dark Jade Green w/ all black trim. I used to keep it at my store on North Lindbergh and people would stop in just to see it. That one was BMW 5 series # 5000284 No A/C, no sunroof, manual windows, superfast. It did not even have a regular VIN #. Well enough rambling and lamenting over old cars,l got to go to work.

Steve

Kyle:

The lights are really pretty easy to do. The big expense is the H4s. The rest of the stuff is probably $40-$50 tops. If you get the lights I'll shoot you up the parts at cost. As long as you can solder (I hate crimps) and you don't mind cutting the headlight wires right by the lights it's pretty straight forward. The difference in light is amazing. It is well worth it.

Steve

Steve,

Funny fact about the VW Thing, the 924 uses the VW Thing axle shafts. Gotta love a "parts-bin" car!

Chrenan

thanks steve... yea, i'm no fan of crimps either.. dont really trust 'em to hold a lot of the time.. I'm sure they're quite fine, but there's always that "what if his wire falls loose and starts touching stuff around it?"

anyway.. i'll look for the lights.. have you got a source? or am I looking at the same expense no matter where I go?

I just used the same way to find the lights the pioneers did...Ebay. I think they were around $100 w/ the new 55 / 100 bulbs. Let me know when you get them and I'll premake the relays for you for my cost. It only takes a few minutes. The installation essentially is just cutting the yellow and white normal supply wires to the low and high beams and using the old supply side to trigger a 30 Amp Bosch relay that connects the new 10ga power wire to the old load side. That and running a new ground and you are gold. I like the idea of taking the time to run two seperate power wires, 1 for high, 1 for low in case something goes wrong with one and it blows a fuse, at least you will still have lights.

Steve

I'm gonna need to source out a new turn signal and/or wiper switch first.. my car is stuck on high-beams, and has been ever since i took the steering column apart to fix the ignition switch last year.

I can't believe I did it but the car is on EBAY. I need to free up some space and if I get my reserve it's gone. It will be missed. I am going to free up some serious cash and look around for something in the next couple months to have ready for Spring. I drove a friend of mine's Dinan supercharged 98 M3 5-speed and it is exilerating to say the least. I would imagine that one of the little M roadstsers would be a rocket set up that way. If I don't get $10K I'll just keep it.

Steve

noooooooooooooooooooooo!

Well, I'd sell mine if 10K$ came my way also.

Your car sure is a sweet thing though. I still think you have one of the best wheel/paint/body combos, with the cup rims, the front and rear bumpers redone, and that beautiful guards red...

Find yourself a Z3 and supercharge it. There is a fun little project. I like the M3's but the styling isn't there for me. On the other hand, the Z3... well... that's just sexy. I still say 944's look more aggressive than almost any BMW out there though,.. but if you're going to speed...

i think we all just died a little inside... :P


good luck with the sale regardless!

I agree...this was a fun project to watch. Hope everything works out for what's best for YOU. Regardless of what happens to the car, just know that you have become quite a good friend to many of us here. I know two people that are at the top of that list. I will be by to hang out for a weekend probably during the St. Louis drag races or maybe a baseball game next year.