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08-01-2006, 04:35 PM
As far as handling goes, I'd suggest going with a stiffer set of torsion bars and a set of good heavy duty shocks. How big you go on the bars depends on your tolerance for harshness. 22MM in the front and 28MM (or even 29MM as the later Carrera’s are starting to get heavy) in the rear and then use adjustable sway bars to fine tune is a pretty good street setup.
As far as performance, I'd suggest back dating the exhaust to a SSI system. Of course the need for a cat needs to be considered. The early style exhaust system has equal length (well, they are close) primaries and provides very good throttle response. It doesn't give you that much overall horsepower but it feels like much more. If you didn't want to go that route then a Euro pre muffler in place of the cat and a free flowing muffler is a good addition. FWIW, I really liked the sound of the Borla muffler on my 3.2 Carrera.
One modification that I really like, but may not be that much bang for the buck, is wider wheels. I'm assuming your car came with 6's in the front and 7's in the rear. Move the 7's to the front and find a set of 9's for the rear. I stayed with the same tires that were on the car and was very pleased with the improvement. It may have offered more overall grip by going to larger tires but I would have given up some of the feel of the smaller tires. Putting the original size tires on the wider wheels reduces the amount of flex in the sidewall which improves turn in.
And last but not least, the biggest bang for the buck is a new/different steering wheel. It may not make your car any faster, or handle any better, but the right steering wheel can make all the difference in the way you feel driving your car.
As far as performance, I'd suggest back dating the exhaust to a SSI system. Of course the need for a cat needs to be considered. The early style exhaust system has equal length (well, they are close) primaries and provides very good throttle response. It doesn't give you that much overall horsepower but it feels like much more. If you didn't want to go that route then a Euro pre muffler in place of the cat and a free flowing muffler is a good addition. FWIW, I really liked the sound of the Borla muffler on my 3.2 Carrera.
One modification that I really like, but may not be that much bang for the buck, is wider wheels. I'm assuming your car came with 6's in the front and 7's in the rear. Move the 7's to the front and find a set of 9's for the rear. I stayed with the same tires that were on the car and was very pleased with the improvement. It may have offered more overall grip by going to larger tires but I would have given up some of the feel of the smaller tires. Putting the original size tires on the wider wheels reduces the amount of flex in the sidewall which improves turn in.
And last but not least, the biggest bang for the buck is a new/different steering wheel. It may not make your car any faster, or handle any better, but the right steering wheel can make all the difference in the way you feel driving your car.
Michael Andrews