180mph Speedo

[Cocacolakidd]

A friend gave me a 89 Turbo 951 speedo cluster and it is the 180mph model. It has very close to the same mileage as my 85.5 so I was wondering what would be necessary to install it in my car. I would love to have the 180mph speedo there...Would there be re-pinning of the plugs going the the back of it - Or ?

Have fun all...

[944 Ecology]

Direct plug in replacement.

[Cocacolakidd]

Thanks 944 Ecology that IS great news...

Have pfunn

[mattdavis11]

SOB, I need to get a newer 944. Mine only goes a tick past 160 and sees it all the time.

[flash968]

hmmmm - sounds like you need to have it calibrated - flat out, even a 951 will only do 161 indicated

don't feel bad though - most porsche speedos tend to read high, and by more than you would think - for example, the 968 speedo has been known to read about 11mph high at top speed

before anybody gets all wound up in power vs speed, and starts posting "my car would go this fast with that much power", let's all remember that it takes geometrically more power to go faster - aerodynamics are the enemy here, both above and below the car

also, 1/4 mile speeds are much easier to hit than sustained high speeds - you could blast a car to 190 for 1/4 mile, but have it flip over out on the salt flats

so, for the gauge, i prefer to have a gauge that only reads as high as i need it to, thereby making the rest of the gauge easier to read because less information is crammed into the same space (i.e a full sweep gauge vs a half sweep) - if the car does 160, i don't want a gauge that goes to 180, which would mean that the 160 is crammed into a smaller space, making it harder to read the difference between 157 and 158

[porsche4life]

Flash I am 99.99999% positive that Matt was joking...

[mattdavis11]

I was. Mine reads 10mph slower because I ran the drill backwards one day after a plastic gear adjustment on the odo. I bet it can't get to 110mph now. Not that I'll try, just saying.

[flash968]

lol - no worries - i counted that as a possibility, but without the benefit vocal inflection, it was hard to know,so i erred on the side of caution in case somebody else thought it was actually possible

[mattdavis11]

I think with the right drill in the right direction, it's possible.

[flash968]

lol - too funny

"ferris - the miles aren't coming off"

[Cocacolakidd]

Even if I never get to go the speedo speed limit it's still nice to have it say I could - it's all in the style of it.

Remember back when the speedos only read 85 and there were the bright red or bright yellow "55" on them - They were so stuffy...

Eastern Montana still has the main interstate that has no limits and is not patrolled - but that is where the deer and antelope roam.

[flash968]

i do remember that - made me nuts

[piperporsche180]

My 1987 944 Turbo (mildly modified) and my old 1988 944 Turbo (400hp) have the 180mph speedometer cluster. I'm sure the 1988 could bury it, I don't know if the 1987 could. Its nice to think they might be able to climb that high, I'd rather not find out.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

I believe the gearing on the 951 precludes it from going much faster than 180, but it's been a while. I know you need to seriously modify the gearing to see 200+

[Cocacolakidd]

and don't tell piperporsche180 what comes after 200 - lol

[ernie9944]

Lol
[img]

[piperporsche180]

Hahah Cocacolakidd your killing me, I have no desire to go that fast, Nor the wallet to fund modified gears. Another factor would be creating enough down force to keep the car on the ground.

Id like to make a trip out to Road America and see what my 1987 951 will hit in the 1 mile straight. I'm hoping to make around 350rwhp by then. Lets hope they dont install the second traffic meter in the above photo. Haha.

[flash968]

i seriously doubt any 944, turbo or otherwise, could sustain 180mph - the aerodynamics just aren't there - the underside of the car is not designed for it - 400hp would probably get you up around 170, but it would be a very scary ride, as any deviance in road surface and that car is getting airborne

now, if you belly panned the car, opened the rear valance up, added a decent splitter and rear wing, and had about 500hp, you could probably hit 180, assuming you had the gearing and the revs to do it