360 Ryan's Giallo Modena 360 Modded Build

Someone like me needs at least one project in rotation so in a mildly smooth brain fashion, I just picked up this:

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Coming from Porsches, I've been enjoying the 04 360 Spider immensely but I really love how the Modenas look and really wanted a yellow car in rotation. After selling the 997 GT3, I've spent the past several weeks looking at options for a companion in the garage. 996 GT3s seem to have gone up like $30k since I sold mine, which was a tough pill to swallow. Plus, I already know all the aftermarket options for those off the top of my head, so not much new to figure out or learn. I briefly flirted with the idea of a 991 GT3RS but that didn't tick the project box. Same goes for a McLaren MP4-12C (plus, it would spend more time being in repair than being operational). Older Porsches were a potential option but they just don't have that exhaust note like the GT3s can have. Within the Ferrari family, F430 was the most logical option but those seem to have less opportunity to modify and tweak over time. Plus, they're heavier so that would be a worse starting point for a potential lightweight build.

So, that brings me back to a 360 as the best candidate for a project build. This one should be here next week. Plan is to keep both through the summer and then make a decision then if I keep the Spider or replace it with something else (maybe convert the spider to manual to solidify the experience aspect of that car?). The Giallo Modena 360 will most likely be the keeper though.

This car had pretty extensive records and the dealer was helpful in putting together videos of flaws and blemishes and such to the point that I was comfortable buying this car sight unseen, and without PPI. We'll see how that goes but it can't be worse than my experience with my last purchase (knock on wood).

 

I think the general idea will be a lightweight build with performance in mind and OEM+ overhaul of the car. I already started the conversation with Sammyf for an ECU/TCU tune by Trev. I'll probably take an iterative approach on that. I don't plan on optimizing for HP or acceleration per se. With my Shark Werks GT3 putting out 500hp, while it had a meaningfully bigger shove when getting on it, I never really felt like my 996 GT3 was lacking in that department. I've driving the 996 GT3 with a lot of guys in a lot faster (on paper) cars than mine and I was usually on the pointy end of willingness to go fast in the canyons. Weight loss is something that I can nerd out on, over time and lighter cars do feel better. I have gone down that rabbit hole though where the car became less tolerable day to day. I've learned that lesson so this will be a balance of NVH and the pursuit of lightness.

For a flavor of what I've done in the past, this was my 996 C2 build that I dropped a pretty meaningful amount of weight on:
https://rennlist.com/forums/996-forum/1226519-ryan-s-hold-me-over-1999-996-a-2.html

This is my 996GT3 build that was a little more conservative in the approach:
https://rennlist.com/forums/996-gt2-gt3-forum/1256593-ryan-s-basalt-black-6gt3.html

I want to get a like for like comparison to the Spider as a baseline before I start down the rabbit hole. So, first priority will be to swap the Capristo over to the Modena (trying to be a little reasonable with cost...), move the freshly done wheels/tires over and begin getting a feel for the car and the differences. I don't know what has been modified from an ECU/TCU standpoint on the Spider but it has had something done so it'll be interesting to feel what a stock 2001 ECU/TCU feels like and how the car handles.

After that, I'll probably get SuperSprint headers and sport cats. I reached out to Gert at Carnewal and he offers a service to swap the cat material with HJS 200 cell material for a very reasonable price so that will most likely be the direction I'll go.

Down the road, the entire interior will be refinished but this interior may be too nice to re-upholster. The leather appears to be in very good condition and it has deviated yellow stitching. Maybe if someone wants to swap a tired interior with me (for a fee) that will make me feel a little less guilty.

I'm also going back and forth on CCBs. They satisfy the weight goals and I love how they look. But, that'll require going to 19" wheels which I'm iffy about. I'd probably rather get the BBS 18" challenge wheels. So...decisions...

 

Brakes and Wheels
After writing the above, I was wondering if CCMs are actually lighter when factoring in wheels (and tires). GiroDisc makes steel rotors wth alloy bells that are only marginally heavier than the CCMs. Based on the below without factoring in tires, a GiroDisc setup with the BBS Challenge wheels is actually 3.2kg lighter than the CCM setup. Plus, you'll get a better ride in my experience over 19s.

CCM w/ 19" OEM Challenge Wheels
Front:
CS Brembo Front 6-pot CCM caliper with pads: 5.94kg
CS Brembo Front 380mm CCM disc with centre bell: 6.77kg
19" Challenge Stradale OEM Wheels Front: 11.3kg
Total Front: 24.0kg

Rear:
CS Brembo Rear 4-pot CCM caliper with pads: 4.72kg
CS Brembo Rear 350mm CCM disc with centre bell: 5.86kg
19" Challenge Stradale OEM Wheels Rear: 12.5kg
Total Rear: 23.1kg

Total: 47.1kg

GiroDisc w/ 18" OEM BBS Challenge Wheels
Front:
360 Brembo Front 4-pot caliper with pads: 5.2kg
GiroDisc 330mm disc with alloy bell: 7.17kg
18" Ferrari Challenge BBS Wheels Front: 8.6kg
Total Front: 21.0kg

Rear:
360 Brembo Rear 4-pot caliper with pads: 5.2kg
GiroDisc 330mm disc with alloy bell: 7.17kg
18" Ferrari Challenge BBS Wheels Rear: 10.5kg
Total Rear: 22.9kg

Total: 43.9kg

 

I'm definitely aware of his build but I couldn't track down a build thread for it. Does one exist? I have a lot of his individual posts about weight loss bookmarked though.

 

That's from the dealer so unfortunately not my garage. If anyone thought I have a problem now, it would be 10x worse if I had the space lol.

 

I think the stock suspension is pretty good for a road car so I don't know if I'm going to change it. I will overhaul the bushings though. I may try to source CS suspension (not sure if there's a 430 option) but electronic dampers make more sense for a car that will be entirely street driven in LA. All of my GT3s had Ohlins R&T and the 360 dampers I feel are better until you're really pushing it (and I'm not entirely sure there's the much of a difference on the open roads).

For tires, if I get the 18" challenge wheels, I'm going to do 235 up front and need to decide if I do 285 or 295 in the rear. As much as I love Cup 2s, I think I'll stick with PS4s. They've been tested on the track to only be marginally slower but have immediate grip. There were a bunch of mornings that I couldn't drive the GT3 (or when I tried I was sliding all over the place) once it gets below 50*F.

For weight loss, I still want the car to be comfortable enough that I wouldn't hesitate to drive it up to NorCal for Monterey Car week (around 500 miles).

 

Anyone ever delete the passenger inner door handle? Kinda looks ugly to me and would look better without. If the door panel is the same as the RHD ones then I assume I can just order the RHD pieces to replace?

 

Arrived a day earlier than expected:

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Did a quick trip up to Mulholland and back:
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This may or may not be the definition of having a problem:
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Started working with Sammy to figure out what is on each car. The 01 Modena has a MY03 TCU but stock flash which I thought was interesting while the 04 Spider has a late 00 TCU. I also found out that the Modena has sport cats and a Tubi exhaust. While it sounds nice, it's definitely not nearly loud enough. Capristo with stock cats and headers is a lot more race car vibes.

Shifting with the stock TCU was a bit lackluster. Definitely not the violent experience at WOT that I was getting on the Spider.