ELange0322

I acquired my new to me 2003 996 C2 last May and started Drivers Education this year. I have done 4 days in total thus far and am (or will be) registered for about 25 thru October.

I havent made any performance modifications on my car, but based on some feedback from some prior posts and conversation with my last instructor, am looking to have a roll bar, racing seats and harnesses installed in the near term.

A number of the events that I will be attending are multiple day and between 250-300 miles away. Given the amount of distance, I was thinking of having a tow hitch installed on my wife's Toyota Highlander and for like $60 for 3 day, rent a car trailer from U-Haul to tow my car (saw this recommendation on a different thread).

Anything that I need to be thinking about or considering in towing ? I would tow to Watkins Glen and Mont Tremblant - thoughts or advice on where to leave the car trailer (just leave a random U-Haul trailer in the paddock overnight ?) What about issues with US to Canada boarder crossing and anything that I might need or need to consider ?

Sorry of basic and seemingly stupid questions - any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

996FLT6

If I going uhaul route make sure those straps that wraps around front wheels are not torn and more than likely u need planks of wood or race ramps because uhaul ramps are kinda short and incline is steep. Make sure all the lites work on the trailer. U should also check the towing capacity of your wife's car because uhaul trailer is very heavy. Mike

KevinGross

First thing to work on is the driver. Spend a few years there...

Next would be tires.

Leave the rest as is for a bit, unless the cash is burning a hole in your pocket.

Kevin
Catellus Engineering

LuigiVampa

First mod you should make is tires. Talk to a few people who have a similar car to see what they have done. If you haven't figured it out by now everyone loves to talk about their car.

Seat, belts and harness bar are a great addition. Instead of hanging onto the wheel for dear life you can concentrate on driving.

Welcome to an addiction which ruins marriages and drains your bank account! Tires are just the beginning!

Juan Lopez

First thing is to determine what you really want to do long term before you make any permanent changes to the car. You dont want to make modifications which will affect your racing class.

For DE, brake pads, brake cooling, tires.

Spyerx

First mods I did were safety equipment, second was proper alignment. I like to be tweaky but these cars are so good the driver is key. If you do harness make sure you get a hans.

Frank 993 C4S

Welcome to the club! It is a great idea to upgrade your safety equipment first before you do anything else.

As for trailering, the UHaul option is something I tried and would not recommend. The UHaul trailer is heavy (like 2,200 lbs). Make sure your Toyota Highlander has the towing capacity for such a heavy trailer plus your 996 car. The UHaul trailers have tremendous tongue weight. Make sure your tow vehicle is rated for that. Trailers are left overnight in the paddock. Just buy some chains to lock it down. Personally I'd doubt anybody would steal a UHaul trailer but since you're responsible for it ......

If you have excess stuff, consider buying an Auto-X trailer and mount a removable hitch to your 996.

rlm328

Don't modify anything, you have a fairly nice car that is going to be a compromise either on the track or the road. You will be driving it much more on the road. Look at getting a cheap dedicated track car to learn on. There are several Porsches for sale on this site that will be significantly cheaper than modifying your present 996 to get to the same stage.

Horus2000

I believe Highlanders have very low towing capacity. Not sure why, but that's not something to risk. You want a very healthy reserve of towing capacity. At only 4 days you should spend quite a bit more time on the track before making any changes, IMHO. Tire trailers for 996's are relatively common, which is probably even more than you really need at this point.

If you really insist on towing the car (maybe to reduce mileage, wear & tear, risk of breakdown - which is a real possibility, etc.), then look at http://www.toyota.com/rental They offer Tundra's with heavy duty towing packages. And then rent the Uhaul.

Do not screw around with towing. It'll hurt you a lot faster than a mistake on the track. The best warning I ever got was from my future crew chief who watched me load my new race car into a trailer - having no idea what I was doing. He said, "Be careful. This thing will kill you." I told him that I had track experience and a healthy respect for the car. He replied, "Not the race car, I mean towing this trailer."

Deadeye

You can add extended towing to AAA coverage if the car breaks down at the track. You will also find club members with registered cars and trailers willing to help out. Load the track wheels and the cooler in the Toyota and convoy with wifey?

Bill Verburg

I doubt that the Highlander will be happy about your plans, U-haul trailers are heavy and putting a 3000+# 996 on one makes for 5000+#s load, If you want to go this route I'd consider renting a full size van hopefully w/ a factory tow package to tow it all w/

The Hills between Alb and WGI are pretty big and I 88 can be like driving in a 3rd world country, some good size hills on the Thruway rt too.

As for border crossings just have your documentation/ownership papers, never done it w/ the track car but when I raced boats the concern was that a sale was happening on the other side of the border and taxes were not paid.

As for parking the trailer WGI at least has lots of room near the garages, be considerate and line up w/ others trailers so as not to block others access to their trailers/parking, most clubs will pay extra to allow drop offs the evening before the event starts

ELange0322

Thank you all for your thoughts.

I'll heed the advice and not tow with the Highlander. I had considered towing mostly to have the space to have my wife or my boys come along, and to have the space to carry my stuff - and mostly to avoid the wear on my car. I bought last year with 17K miles on it so looked and seemed almost new, but just did Mont Tremblant and tagged 650 miles round trip just to get there and back. Guess that's got to be part of the price at this point until I go further and decide whether to get a true dedicated tow vehicle and trailer...and dedicated track car.

The only things Ive done at the suggestion of some that have been doing this a while were to get Michelin Pilot Sport Cup tires and Pagid blue brake pads. I have since heard that the tires are probably a bit more than I want of need at this point and to consider stepping back from a top tire (plus I hear they are terrible in the rain), and to consider race seats (I'm sliding all over the place inside the car and was constantly having to pull my belt tight a couple times a lap). So, thats where I'm at because you cant get the seats without having a bar, and then you need harnesses - so its all or nothing.

I really dont want to ruin my can but have understood that all of this can be removed and my old seats put back in. I can only drive the car on weekends anyway so I figured maybe not such a big deal to get the seat mod done. I have thought of just getting a dedicated race car (something inexpensive), but then I'm back to needing a tow vehicle and trailer, and as importantly, figuring out where I'm going to put the tow vehicle, dedicated race car, trailer, etc.

Anyway, thanks again to all. I'l clearly sliding down that slippery slope.

KaiB

Yep, yer screwed.

Kein_Ersatz

Sliding down the slope in front of you . . .

RickBetterley

Don't worry, we're all glad to help push you down that slope.
I still haven't hit the bottom!