Best donor car years?

[TToneSpasm]

Hi folks…

In terms of donor cars for track-car 944 or 968 LS1 conversions…

1) Are all 944 Turbo trannys/transaxles created equal? For example… is the 1986 944 Turbo transaxle just as tuff as the 1989 944 Turbo tranaxle?

2) Are the 968 transaxles stronger, or at least as strong, as the 1989 944 Turbo transaxles?

3) What are the best years to consider for 944 donor cars?

4) What are the best years to consider for 968 donor cars?

5) If I intend to replace sway bars, springs, dampers, etc., with after-market parts, does it matter whether I get a 944 or a 968? Does the 968 have some clear handling/suspension characteristics that would make it a better choice than the 944?

Thanks!

Mike

[968ls1]

MIke

The 944TS AOR gearboxes are touted to be the strongest and best of the 951 trans axles; they have hardened 1st and 2nd gears, LSD and an external oil cooler. The 86-88 5R trans axles are the same less the hardened 1st and 2nd gears. I like these because the have the LSD and the cooler.
The 968 6 speed is probably a little stronger due to the fact they use a G50 diff and a physically larger but the gearing is too tight for the V8 torque-too much shifting. I have used both 5 and 6 speeds and the 5 speed is the way to go for an LSX conversion.

The best 944 donors would 87' and newer non-sunroof cars. The 86 951 would be my second choice, but I would update the suspension to "late offset" like the 87 and newer cars. 968's are harder to find and VERY rare without a sunroof; body parts are more costly. The basic layout of the 944/968 chassis are the same, the suspension and brakes are virtually interchangeable. All 968 chassis are the same. 968's are a little more rigid than 944's, but if you put a full cage in either the difference is negligible.

If you are going to gut a car for track use only look for a chassis that is already stripped and save yourself A LOT the work. I think there is stripped 944ts chassis for sale in Florida and it has a cage and some lightweight body parts. Look on Pelican Parts the poster name is Byron.

Good Luck!

[v8carreragts]

The turbo S transaxles have shot peened gears incl the R & P along with the shafts. These are the strongest. The turbo S ID like 968ls1 said, is AOR. It also has reinforced inner LSD plates and molybdenum coated differential shafts.

The 968 transaxle has it's problems but it isn't any stronger than the 944 turbo. The ring and pinion is almost identical to the 951 but is not interchangable. The G50 diff is also just about identical to the 951. It has the same ring gear bolts and is the same diameter however it has 12 bolts vs 10 bolts as in the 951. The real only difference is the plates in the LSD but they are not different enough to make any measureable difference. If it had the G50/52 diff and ring gear that would be different but the non G50/52 transaxles don't have a stronger diff. The 951 and 968 have 7.4875 " diameter ring gears and the G50/52 has an 8.062" ring gear.