|  How
it Started
My name is Dan Beckett. I
purcased my first transaxle Porsche in August 2004. It was a
normally aspirated
1981 Porsche 924. The idea was to fix it up for my eldest son as his
first
car. I fell in love with it on my first test drive because it reminded
me so much of my
first car (a Fiat X1/9). Nine
months later, the new-to-me toofah had a fully rebuilt top
end, a bunch of cosmetic fixes, a plethora of preventive
maintenance items, and was show-worthy at the last-ever Tweeks Porsche
FunFest
in
Effingham IL. In the intervening months and years, I have purchased
thirteen additional transaxle Porsches, eight of which I still own in
addition to
SONIC06. As for my son, he's graduated to his own 931 (GEBLASN), with
his younger brother taking over the car that started it all.
Who's
Involved
I rely
a good deal on the patience and common sense of
my wife, my primary sounding board and sanity check. I also benefit
from tremendous local support from guys like
Vaughan Scott and Chris Marsh (who each race a 924 in the ITB class),
as well as a number of other members of
924board.
I can't take credit for all of the accomplishments
represented in the products shown on this site. My contribution is
being the friendly, persistent pest that persuades manufacturers
and vendors to help us bring these products to market.
Why
We Do It
The
924 community is sorely underserved. Many critical components are no
longer available (NLA) from Porsche or aftermarket suppliers.
As for performance enhancements, there are very few off-the-shelf
options for the 924 and 931, aside from the suspension components
common to the 944. To compound the matter, the 924 has a seemingly low
cost of entry, but it usually masks years of deferred
maintenance.
Many
first-time owners don't realize what they're getting into, and don't
plan appropriately for repair and restoration costs. As a result, the
"toofah" tends to have a spend-thrift owner community, so very few
aftermarket vendors bother with the 924.
That's where we come in.
I
don't need to rely on this venture to put food on my
table, so we're not subject to the same survival pressures with which
run-of-the-mill parts resellers contend. This
allows us to stay focused on the micro-niche market of the
924, which most vendors ignore. We
have virtually no overhead which also helps keep product prices
in line with what that market will bear. After recouping operational
expenses, our revenues are poured back into developing new innovations
and products for the 924, including many that are replacements for NLA
OEM parts, and many that were never before available, and some only
available
from us!
The
happy coincidence is that some of these
products
have commonality with the 924's successors and siblings, particularly
the 924S, the 944, the 944 Turbo (951) and the 928. Developing
cross-over products
like the IMI Hi-Torque Gear Reduction Starter and Stage8 locking CV bolts allows us to
appeal to a broader market, making sustainability and further
development possible.
Where To Find Us
924board.org:
ideola
Rennlist: ideola
Pelican: ideola
944Cup: ideola
Spec944: ideola
CarDomain: ideola
 | | Our Garage, a.k.a. Test Lab
(click
images for CarDomain sites)
SONIC06:
81 924NA
SH4RK:
80 928 Euro
WEISGUY:
81 924 Weissach Special Edition
UBER931:
80 931
941: 80
931 with 944 body
GEIST:
87 924S
GEBLASN:
81 931
931 CS: 81 Euro 931 |
