the_vetman

Yes, you'll need one of those. 1) It's required. 2) Better aerodynamics, actually. All the wind buffeting with the top down (or up with the canvas top) leads to air turbulence and slower speeds.

mikew968

There is the regular Boxster hard top and then there is the Cayman look hard top that looks much cooler but costs an extra $1500.

campagnolo4625

Looks like fun Mike. Good luck with this project. Personally, I would never build a race car from scratch again - it never seems to save money by the time you are done. Hopefully, that wont be the case here. Hope to see you on the track again soon!

Schmidts Cat

Here's a question for boxster/spyder owners. Any measurable lap time difference top up vs top down?

orthojoe

I've never driven with the top up. At my level, though, I doubt any difference would be measurable with top up or down.

mikew968

Well the Boxster is gone so now I am looking at a proper Cayman S PDK build! Trying to pick the right mods and stay on budget!! lol...right?

the_vetman

Probably very little but I haven't timed myself with top down vs. top up either.

Last time I was at the track I spoke to someone who had studied his data with top down, top up, and factory hard top on a 986 and he said he was definitely faster (e.g. higher top speed at the end of long straights) with the hard top. Even with the soft top, apparently aerodynamics isn't as good since it shakes, vibrates, and flexes, allowing for 'dirty air'.

This was on a 986 S with 250 hp, so the aerodynamic effects may have been more pronounced vs. a car with more hp - less hp to power through the wind buffeting. No doubt there's more air turbulence with the top down, however.

good hands

I think he said it's a race car so I assume it has a full cage so no top required but probably a good idea.

I'd start with a Cayman over a Boxster . Not sure How you would be able to stay with a 60k budget with a 40k donor.

As Frank said it is way cheaper to buy a used race car. That being said the Cayman race cars seem to go for silly money. ( 996 cup car money )

Vetman: 213.s are very respectable in a stock Spyder. Would love to build mine out to a race car just to have something different than everyone else.

mikew968

Must start with an accident damaged car...make sure it's straight and go from there!

Frank 993 C4S

Good luck and keep us posted!

Find one that has been vandalized, maybe had the paint scratched (get a wrap) or the interior ripped up. That's better than a car that has been in an accident. They are out there. Just be patient. With PDF over-revs are not an issue.

jenk12m

I'm In the same boat as the OP, doesn't seem like any used cayman race cars are around. Everyone is still driving theirs and the one available are brand new builds going for 120k plus.

Being 6'5, I would also need to get lucky with one built for a guy my size

GTgears

Tranny cooler is a must on any midengine Porsche racecar. And not all tranny coolers are created equal. Ask Chris Smith about the early Interseries car that one of his clients bought. Put the gun on the gearbox right at the diff one day. In excess of 300 degree WITH A COOLER!!! He revised the design and brought the temps down.

Mike Bavarro at Body Motion had a client who lost his ring and pinion while running no cooler. The dang thing came out of the gearbox blue!

The new PDKs have two coolers, one for the gears/clutches and one for the diff. The older ones do not. I would be sure that your build uses two coolers and you want coolers that are larger and more efficient than the stock street car coolers. Budget $3000 for coolers, especially since those Giken LSDs tend to run really hot.

jcastle

cayman race cars for sale:

https://rennlist.com/forums/vehicle-...-race-car.html

https://rennlist.com/forums/vehicle-...tc-car-fs.html

https://rennlist.com/forums/vehicle-...ack-tuned.html

mikew968

So, the coolers in the newer cars (987.2) are not adequate for pdk with the OS Giken?

Thanks,

GTgears

Sorry for the slow reply. We've been moving. The coolers in the newer cars are not adequate for racing, period. Add in the OS Giken and you are increasing the temps even more and want to be really sure you have adequate cooling.