Photography by David S. Wallens
Perhaps it was time for new shocks on our Porsche 911: The fronts leaked fluid, while someone had inscribed the rears with April 18, 1995. Joe Montana announced his retirement that day.
From behind the wheel, I could also tell that the 911 had long needed fresh dampers. The car floated about at highway speeds as weight seemed to move unchecked from corner to corner, while every impact with a roadway reflector sent a jolt through the cabin.
Let’s start at the beginning: Exactly what do shock absorbers do?
They do not, as the name suggests, absorb shocks. Technically they’re called dampers because they damp the springs.
Picture a bobblehead.
What causes the head to bobble without restraint? Its undamped spring.
What if we could control the rate of that spring and slow it down as necessary? Think of shock absorbers as timing devices in that they control the movements of the spring. So instead of that bobblehead bouncing to and fro without restriction, it would experience controlled movement before returning to center.
How do shock absorbers control all that energy? Through the movement of oil through various orifices and passages found inside the unit. As the miles pass, though, things wear out. Seals allow fluid to leak. The springs that operate the internal valves weaken.
In short, those aged shock absorbers can simply no longer mechanically control the springs they’re paired with. The result: decreased traction and control under all situations, including braking, cornering and acceleration.
The easy button would involve sticking with the same OE pieces that 911 owners have used for decades. But what about a modern alternative? Enter KW, a high-end German shock absorber company. In addition to offering adjustable valving, it manufactures the necessary front strut assemblies for the air-cooled 911, complete with new forged spindles.
What makes our KW struts special? Adjustable valving for compression and rebound plus bespoke front spindles.
Why that’s important: Not all 911 replacement strut cartridges are compatible with the original strut housings. For cars originally fitted with Bilsteins, like this one, a Bilstein insert is required. To change insert brands, you’d have to change strut assemblies–including the NLA spindles. Note that rear shocks can be changed at will.
KW offers several setups for the G-body Porsche 911: race, street, track and somewhere in between. We went with the KW V3 Damper Kit setup that’s a bit in the middle. It retains the stock torsion bars–the track kits add coil springs–but raises the spindles by 19mm, offering increased shock travel for lowered cars like this one. Budget a little north of $4000 complete, and the catalog also covers other classic Porsche models, like the 356, 928 and 944.
Installation? The usual remove and replace.
One more thing: To silence the old-car squeaking–we all know that sound–we replaced the hard, deformed, original anti-roll bar bushings with new urethane units from Powerflex’s Heritage Collection: stealthy gray looks along with modern, engineered materials.
The ride since the suspension work? Much more stable on the highway, better under braking, no more noises. Plus, thanks to the repositioned front spindle, the increased shock travel means less harshness from encounters with the bump stops.
While the car was on the lift at Autobahn Daytona for the suspension work, we handled two other items on the to-do list: brakes and clutch. The brake pedal pulsed, while the 40-year-old rubber lines looked like they had seen about 40 years of service.
Replacements were fairly straightforward, with braided Goodridge brake lines–better debris protection plus a firmer pedal thanks to less deformation under pressure–coming from Tire Rack for about $120 for the set. For pads and rotors, we went with OE replacements. Figure they were perfectly adequate 40 years ago.
So, the clutch. I fit an aftermarket unit about a dozen years ago, and it had chattered ever since. In addition to the standard replacement setup, however, Sachs offers its Power Clutch: higher-friction disc, increased clamping torque and a lighter aluminum pressure plate. Could this offer OE-like manners but sportier performance courtesy of less rotational mass? (Spoiler alert: yes.)
The biggest trick: buying one, as retail prices covered nearly a 100% spread–and all for the same part number (3000 961 101). At the time, at least, Summit Racing had the best price; currently, budget a little north of $600.
Replacing a clutch on an air-cooled 911, however, requires dropping the engine. So that leads to the usual “while you’re in there” work, meaning clutch return spring, crank angle sensors, clutch cable and assorted seals, including the ones that fit between the bodywork and engine tin.
One axle needed a new CV boot, while I splurged–about $25–on Stoddard’s bronze accelerator bell crank bushings as they promise long life plus smooth throttle action. Including oil–I’m running Porsche Classic’s 10W-60–those extra parts cost about $700.
Pelican Parts, FCP Euro and Stoddard had everything else in stock, reminding us of a popular refrain with this car: Despite the exotic looks and prices, owning an air-cooled Porsche doesn’t have to be a painful experience.
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