We've been enjoying our 1994 Porsche 993 Carrera 2 Tiptronic Coupe since purchase last August. Work on the pre-VarioRam 911 has included an overdue service, a front end strip and rebuild and of course we're using the 993 as a development vehicle and test mule for our next-generation Porsche electric air conditioning systems.

As this car was not originally fitted with air conditioning, we've fitted our full electric A/C system including our high-output Porsche 993 alternator. This is a trickier installation on a Tiptronic, as it has an additional transmission oil cooler up front so a second condenser is challenging. Instead, we're trialling a new-tech version of our single condenser setup.

Made by a Dutch company, the new condenser is 50% more efficient than the original 964/993 condenser, which is a big improvement. While we usually recommend twin condenser systems which give massive headroom over the original, a 50% improvement on the original Porsche part is more than enough for most users, especially when combined with our new CCU, which is also in testing in our 993 (see below). More on that later!

Other improvements seen on the test mule include the development of a tightly-packaged combined battery and A/C compressor mount to minimise the space required by our electric A/C system: watch out for this as a new product. One more product developed for the car is a replacement tweeter mount to fit Focal TN43 tweeters into standard 993 door cards. This is a great little upgrade for audiophiles and is available to buy now.

Recent road trips to Retromobile in Paris and R&D visits to several UK classic EV consultancy clients have proved that, almost 30 years after its introduction, the 993 remains a highly capable and comfortable daily driver. The Tiptronic is relaxing, the car can still get a shift on when needed. We look forward to sharing more news on the car and our 964 and 993 developments!