5 lug conversion planned!, sweetness! Options

[Aaron Cox]

well, my stock front suspension needs to be rebuilt. so i figure what the heck why not. my plan is to accumulate parts in advance. i talked to german auto dismantlers (i think that was them) and asked for a price on an early 911 front suspension. i was quoted 200 for a "rough one". i need to buy Torsion bars and shocks as it is, so why not put that money into a "rough" 911 front. i figure i dont need used struts and stuff, just the brakes and rotors....ill replace t bars, and shox

what i need to know is:
*someone said early 911 struts are interchangeable with 914's? is this so?
if so: ill put new struts in my car now, and carry them over to the 911 front at the time of install/switch
* how much are my 2.o liter fuchs alloys worth? original, no curb rash on most. have 5 of them
*911 fuchs go for about 100-125 apiece
*what size wheels should i look for, on my stock fendered 914. 15x6? 16x6?
*how hard is it to restud stub axles? cost?
*this front setup will give me 911 M calipers w/ vented discs right?
* i need to use 914-6 rear dics right?

the only downside to this conversion other than cost is, my rotors and brakes are all redone as of last year. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif)

[Demick]

16x6 Fuchs are no more expensive than 15x6, so cost isn't a factor. I prefer the 16's for street, because you can run a nice high performance tire, and be very close to the stock overall tire diameter. 205/55-16 is what I run (very common size, lots of choices). You can also go with 205/50-16 if you prefer, but is sort of an oddball size (1 mfg as far as I know). This size tire/wheel combination really 'fits' the 914 in terms of overall porportions in my opinion.

On a 15 inch rim, you have to make a choice between high performance and reasonable RPM's. If you go with something like 205/50-15, you will be running 4000rpm just to keep up with freeway traffic, plus you end up with wheels that look too small for the car (my opinion). Or you sacrifice performance and go with a high profile tire to get somewhere near a stock diameter tire.

I use 2 sets of wheels to get the best of both worlds. 205/50-15 for autocross, 205/55-16 for street.

Demick