1st- sorry for my delay- I worked all day & just got home- should be off the next few days & more readily available...
2nd- THANKS A LOT for all of the positive things all of you are saying. I've heard nothing but good things about this community & I'm glad to finally be a part of it, if only a small one. I've also always loved the 968- currently I own a 944 Turbo S that I've had for years- it's been under the knife for a long time & I'm hoping to get it back up & running this week. I'm dying to get into a 968 some day too, as well as an e36 M3 sedan. I actually have tastes for all kinds of dif cars, but unfortunately, most are out of my budget.
Josh- thanks a lot for posting- yes, you are the one who helped me out on the length issue for the main 1awg cable from battery to starter. Turns out, it was a bit longer than I'd thought. I'm glad it worked out & I've sold at least one other kit in that length & it fit fine- I'm surprised it was that much longer. I think Dan used that length for all of his cables & I had had a few people asking why there was so much extra (about a foot) on 944's, so I shortened it w/great results. But then it bit me in the a$$ w/the 968. Oh well, no big deal- easy to fix. Hope all is well w/you & thanks again for all of your help here...
Exrad- yes, cable length was solved- see above reply to Josh. It was only on one cable & evidently, the difference in length b/t 968 & 944 is due to the larger bellhousing / dual mass FW, if I understand correctly.
Anchorman- you are too kind- I really appreciate all the great things you've said. Unfortunately, I cannot take any credit for any of the design. It was all Dan Wray. I knew him pretty well over the years- never met him in person, unfortunately, as he was in MN & I am in TN. I got my 951 in late 99 & met him on Rennlist by 2001. He started the headlight kits in ~2002 IIRC & I was one of the main ones egging him on to do it, as he had told me some stories about his own headlights. One of the stories, I'll relate here, in a minute. I e-mailed him a bunch & talked to him on the phone probably 50 times over the next few years- he was my best Rennlist / Porsche friend. When he started doing the battery cables, I wanted in & got in on the first run of those too IIRC. He started them b/c of several underhood fires in 944's in the summer of 2003 or 2004. He died in September of 2005 & there have been many times I've wished I could call him up & ask "Hey Dan, on such & such cable, why did you...?"
One night- maybe back in mid 90's, he was on some desolate midwestern roads IIRC- no traffic, good visibility, ~3AM, etc, etc. He was in his black 88 turbo S (he'd bought it new in 88 or 89 & it had less than 40k miles when he died, on 9/23/05). He had his 100w high beams on w/his own harness & his custom made Euro fog / driving lights w/100w bulbs in the drivers, etc. He said that a few min later, he was at a gas station when a cop drove in. He thought he was about to go to jail, as he had been doing WAYYYYY into the triple digits- not that he was any kind of street racer & I'm certainly not trying to start anything like that here). Anyway, the cop was just blown away that it had been a car- he said he thought it was an aircraft making an emergency landing on the freeway. Dan said the cop was really interested in cars & learning all about how he had made the lights so bright, etc...
So, you bought a headlight kit for a 968 from Dan? What did you do for lenses? That is the only real wrench w/those- I have several of his own harnesses & enough materials to make more (we completed 10 of them last summer), but the 968 lense is a big issue as it's very expensive to replace. As for the battery cable design- I have to admit here- I tried to modify them several times & I failed every single time. It turns out that Dan really did design them well- the biggest thing is, those fuses are usually ~$30/ea & there are two per kit. I tried to make a dif fuse work, but it just never turned out to be good enough to justify the small savings & everyone wanted the tried & true IceShark method, so who am I to mess w/it? I finally decided to just do it EXACTLY as he did - it took awhile to learn & I had to buy some really good large gauge crimpers, cable cutters, etc & had to practice- it was well worth it. In the end, I just decided to do my best to find the best deals on the EXACT materials that Dan used, w/out cutting corners, & just get the cost down as best as I could & leave it alone. I finally found a source for the fuses for just under $20/ea. Also, it took me days to find a source for the silicon bronze (~96% copper) bolts/nuts & washers that Dan used, but I wanted it perfect.
So, this brings me to Cloud9...68- yes, I did buy the remaining inventory & yes, most of it is gone, but yes, I AM continuining on w/this for as long as people are interested. I'm actually trying to make similar cables for some other cars now, but it's tough to find people who are willing to do such high quality things for their cars as us Porsche owners. As for your question to Anchorman- I'd love to know his input, but I'll go ahead & let you know what I've seen. IMO, based on my experience, what you're asking is tough to answer. Your environment COULD make improvements a little less noticeable than for some other less cared for &/or maybe higher mileage examples. I can only tell you what I've seen. 1st, these cars are known to be undergrounded. The supplemental ground that is included in the complete kit, is the cheapest, easiest part of the kit & can help in several ways. I'll send you one of them alone for $20 + S&H if you'd like. Now, the insulation on the stock cables, does wear out. This has caused shorts w/catastrophic results. It is more prevalent on higher mileage examples & I'm not trying to push you into buying, but merely letting you know to make some simple checks. The main places I've seen probs on stock cables are: the main [+] from battery to starter- when it runs behind the engine- you'll need to either disconnect it OR get a good light & mirror, etc to check it all out. Also, the longer of the two ground cables from the [-] terminal to the ground point at back of engine. It just gets hot back there... Also, there have been some mild probs in the starter to alternator cable, but I haven't seen this AS OFTEN. I think it was Josh (banditsc) who sent me some pics of a really bad one. But just check these places closely OR have a mechanic you trust, do it next time your car is there when it's up off the ground & you can see easier. It's really worth it to keep an eye on & if you need new cables or help w/them, let me know...
Mark- how have you been? Have you not installed the 2nd set yet? I hope all is well w/you. I'm currently trying to get in touch w/Pete- we're trying to work something out for him to have a few sets at his shop so he can install on some of the 968's he has in there & keep price the same, etc. Should be a win - win situation.
Brian- I replied directly to you in e-mail. I'm going to try to post some pics here now. I think I'll do a separate reply w/them as this one is pretty long now- sorry about that everyone...
thanks again to all of you & I'll be glad to answer any questions anyone may have either here or directly...
