Tractive Suspension

[mikelb04]

Hello all
Sort of Newbie here I am a long time reader but never a contributor
I have had my 996.2 GT3 for about 8 years and I have learnt loads about my car from all your posts so thanks for all the good advice but I thought it was about time I tried to give something back
I know a few people have fitted Tractive suspension but I think mine is one of the first 996GT3's so I thought I would give my thoughts as I couldn't find very much about it before I had it fitted
A bit of background my car was bought with the idea of weekends away with the wife, me doing a track day and leaving wife for the day at a nice hotel etc the reality is wife hates car due to the ride and noise and flatly refuses to go anywhere in it but I still love the car so it stays in the garage and I just do track days when I get time
Well I must be getting old, even for me the crap roads round here were starting to really make driving it anywhere but on track just a pain so during lockdown I started perusing the adverts as you do. Got full management clearance to buy something new and shiny with adjustable suspension and found a couple of 'perfect Spec ' cars locally but due to covid they had to be bought on line without seeing them. Call me old fashioned but it wanted to sit in them first so I missed out.
I still liked my car and didn't really feel the need for something quicker and more bling with lots of expensive bits to go wrong (old age again) really it was just the local roads that were really p***ing me off
So end of lockdown and the car is due a service and that is where were the slippery road starts
Enter Ken at 9E with his super slick sales patter, what about Tractive suspension he says. My car always got money spent if it needed it but as I didn't buy a new car it seemed a good idea to give it a bit more love and attention this year so why not
I can't tell you if its as good as Ohlins or Nitron on track as my car has only ever had Bilsteins with standard springs but what a difference. Adam at 9E did do a few other jobs at the same time so slightly different geometry, diff rebuild with Guards Plates, new Cup 2's but WOW it's actually nice to drive on the road now, I have stopped trying to avoid every bump and manhole cover and I just drive it normally.
Its not a limousine ride by any means but the hardness has gone it actually works as suspension now . The dampers are in a different class the way the car deals with bumps in corners compared to the Bilsteins is like night and day. With the Tractive you have 5 settings for pitch and roll and 5 for front and rear hardness , you can leave the dampers in soft but set the roll and pitch to hard if you want so the car just stays flat round the corners but doesn't shake out your fillings when you hit a bump
On Track it just gives much more confidence coming out of the corners, it is SO much quicker. The Tractive controller has pre sets and you adjust it as you want and save the setting, so you can set it full hard for ride as well as the roll and pitch or if it is a bit bumpy or wet just dial it back to a slightly softer setting. I find the hardest setting too hard for most places even on track but the option is there and I am still experimenting
I am not chasing lap times these days I have had my mad days of Rally cars and being on the limit and beyond on slicks, if you want to go quicker than me that fine I am just enjoying driving the car. Is as quick as a GT4 or 997 now, I don't know I don't really care, it is just so much better on both the road and track
What the Tractive set up has given me is my GT3 that I still enjoy but with a slightly more modern twist I now have the adjustable suspension (and A LOT more) of a newer car but still with the feel of my 996 GT3

 

[Aikidoka]

Thanks for the feedback and I will be going to Ken for the suspension upgrade in a few months. Bumped into someone else who also said it was a revelation and worth doing.

 

[IMI A]

I'm excited about getting mine back from Ken/9e to try new tractive they've kindly installed on my 997. Good feedback :thumbs:

 

[Roro]

OP. It's always nice to hear when someone has a positive experience with their new mods :thumb:

It's a shame though that you didn't just change the suspension first, so you could see what that alone was like before any of the other changes. The benefits you describe could also easily in a large part be down to the fresh tyres and rebuilt diff

However like I said great to read about a positive experience, keep the posts coming! We need more GT3 content on the interweb, and it's nicer when it comes from owners rather than reviewers or YouTubers 8)

 

[mikelb04]

Hi Roro
No we actually did it it two stages, I wanted to get it all done in one go but Ken was keen to do it incrementally to see the difference as you say
I did one track day with the new Tyres Diff rebuild and Geometry and then another track day with the same Geo settings but Tractive fitted
Like most GT3's it leads a pretty pampered life its only done about 28000 miles
and I just checked the invoice 9E had the original Bilsteins Re-built by Bilstein 4000 miles ago so they were in pretty good condition as well so it wasn't a case of the dampers being worn out and the suspension due a rebuild

 

[pye21]

Good to see some good feedback on the Tractive set. Its something I have been contemplating for mine.

Might have to look into costs etc.

 

[Rallyeman]

Thank you for the feedback. Does look a great bit of kit. Slightly off subject how much roughly are Guard lsd plates? I didn't realise 9e were a uk supplier

 

[askgeez]

I have a DSC controller from 9e , and that was a decent upgrade .

I have met Steve (of Tractive) a few times , and he demonstrated his own 964 at ace cafe a while back. Amazing bit of kit. It made perfect sense on an old classic, But as a 997.2 GT3 owner it is great to read that big gains can be had on new state of the art system .

Read only last week that Pagani chose tractive ! Quite a coup

 

[mikelb04]

Hi Rallyeman
ken told me don't Porsche do the motorsport plates anymore they only sell the standard road spec ones which is a pain. I am not sure who the alternative to Guards are though Somebody else must be able to make them but I guess there isn't a huge market for them
Ken got about 6 sets from Guards, I think they were basically all spoken for but that was last year and they took nearly 2 months to come in
cost for plates and fitting was about £1000

 

[GTTommy]

Does anyone have any experience of how something like these would compare to oem +dsc box?

I need to decide soon whether to rebuild and add the dsc or just replace the lot with something else?

Spoke to a few places and the feedback has been pretty much 50:50 but I'd prefer to get feedback of some owners :thumb:

 

[Diggermeister]

Does anyone have any experience of how something like these would compare to oem +dsc box?

I need to decide soon whether to rebuild and add the dsc or just replace the lot with something else?

Spoke to a few places and the feedback has been pretty much 50:50 but I'd prefer to get feedback of some owners :thumb:

No, but I will do soon.

My aim is to get the DSC fitted and see how it alters things, with a view to then looking at the Tractive dampers.

Thought I would do it in two stages. I do know the Tractive dampers react roughly 10 times faster than the OEM Bilsteins.

The increase in performance and functionality of the DSC and Tractive is not surprising, given that the tech fitted to teh 2007 build 997.1 GT3 is, effectively 20 years old now.

 

[Aikidoka]

Does anyone have any experience of how something like these would compare to oem +dsc box?

I need to decide soon whether to rebuild and add the dsc or just replace the lot with something else?

Spoke to a few places and the feedback has been pretty much 50:50 but I'd prefer to get feedback of some owners :thumb:

No, but I will do soon.

My aim is to get the DSC fitted and see how it alters things, with a view to then looking at the Tractive dampers.

Thought I would do it in two stages. I do know the Tractive dampers react roughly 10 times faster than the OEM Bilsteins.

The increase in performance and functionality of the DSC and Tractive is not surprising, given that the tech fitted to teh 2007 build 997.1 GT3 is, effectively 20 years old now.

I have had the DSC on for coming up for three years and it is a revelation. It offers a far more compliant ride and far tighter when on it. It has increased my cornering speed and is a great upgrade. I cannot wait to try it with the Tractive upgrade next year.

 

[IMI A]

They banned DSC with Tractive Coilovers in the IMSA GT3 Cup Challenge USA. 911s equipped with tractive were too fast with them on compared to other competitors setting lap records. Tractive 16x faster to react than PASM OEM shocks 8)

 

[Senoj]

They banned DSC with Tractive Coilovers in the IMSA GT3 Cup Challenge USA. 911s equipped with tractive were too fast with them on compared to other competitors setting lap records. Tractive 16x faster to react than PASM OEM shocks 8)

Great testimony that :floor:

I'm not sure on a road car, for road use, it could be that much better than OEM PASM plus DSC controller.

If you have a passive set up like a 996 then an active damper upgrade on can be a nice upgrade to ride quality on our crap roads.

However I'd probably not bother if car was PASM already unless it was wear related replacement.

 

[NineExcellence]

So we have been doing a lot of installs - maybe 2-3 a month for the last 6 months. We also have a lot of planned installs for next months and in Q1.

I think we have covered most models now as well.

I do think it takes some time to find the right set up with tractive. The basic choice is

1. DSC + Tractive
2. Tractive controller + Tractive
3. PASM + Tractive

For 2, if the car is pre 997 then this is the only choice clearly. For any 997 onwards then both are open.

It is also for 997.2 onwards to keep stock PASM controller and then add Tractive. However I would advise against this because whilst it will give a great improvement, you are losing out on the benefits of DSC - this is because the PASM controller does not take benefit of the full range of dampening and the normal benefits of DSC ( independent control of each damper etc etc ).

We have also finished a few high hp turbos recently ( 3 x 997.1 turbos and 1 x 991.2 Turbo S ) that had DSC and Tractive.

The standard DSC calibration file needs to be modified to take benefit of the full range of dampening. But, and here is the real benefit, if like us, you understand the full capabilities of programming the DSC, you can really make the DSC and Tractive combination to a higher level.

Take the 991.2 Turbo S, highly modified for power etc, but due to weight of the car and the speed of entry, the turn in prior was poor. Add tractive and DSC customised, this car turns in like a 991.2 GT3 - you would be shocked at the difference between this is what can be achieved.

Remember the geometry set up is important as well, as is the condition of other suspension parts, engine mounts, tires etc. But once that is done, add DSC and Tractive and it transforms the car.

I really hope at some point next year that there can be a true comparison between active and non active suspension - really do think this is now at the point that tractive will become the number one choice for anyone looking to upgrade. It really is that good.

For those that remember in F1 when Mansell car was banned because they added active suspension and were lapping several seconds quicker, cornering flat, this is what tractive is doing effectively.

So yes our recommendation now is Tractive over Ohlins, KW etc. And that is based on real world testing, not some brochure spill etc.

Happy to answer any questions.

Ken