Snow White, my 944, has been improving and improving in terms of ride and handling over the past few years.
This year has been no exception. During the vehicle assessment and schedule check, there was a fault detected with the control arms - there was some wear and play with the ball joints! Nothing else to do, than to switch the ball joints, however, there are no workshops in Norway that can do this operation. The aluminium arms were still in great shape, but the only remedy was to shift the whole assembly - new front control arms with integrated ball joints. Hopefully good for the next 30 years.
Many years back, I worked with a Tier-1 on innovative light-weight control arms and we had invested a lot in the ball joint technology. We had got market intelligence and did benchmarking, by talking to service workshops, and customers, and learning how many reputable OEMs struggled with the quality. During those days, we disrupted and innovated the automotive industry, which resulted in a major shift of technology and supplier with many of the large automotive companies.
Now, in the workshop I got to check the play myself, and yes, it was evident. I came to realize that the “void” sounds I had heard doing a maximum wheel turn, probably was due to the ball joints.
I was happy to make this upgrade, perhaps the bank account wasn’t as happy…The old ones, I will probably hang on the garage wall.
Anyhow, the ride got even more enjoyable. The 944’s transaxle concept is brilliant, giving a perfect 50/50 weight distribution. The curb weight is about 1350 kg, so it is nimble, with a low center of gravity.
This machine just got safer, but also more fun to drive! Snow White keeps on living, and the interest and notions from mechanics, and bystanders are always appreciated, especially young people (6 - 20 years of age) who seem to appreciate the looks of this vehicle quite much. But more about this later in a separate article.
/Mika