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I've been tracking my 2009 Cayman S track car (Piglet) for 7+ seasons now and after 80-ish track days she's been pretty reliable; a couple niggles here and there easily addressed. Recently (4/8) I did a time trial on at Motorsport Ranch in Cresson, TX.
Good News - I improved my previous personal best lap time by another .1 seconds to 2:25.2 (baby steps )
Other news - At the end of three of four sessions I was in fourth place for my category (LA4).
Bad news - Thirty minutes before the last session I discovered Piglet had sprung a leak of some sort of lubricant. Not gushing, but significant enough that I wasn't going to go on track in that condition (not safe for me or others following). See the photo for the mess I made in the paddock.
Good news - I took Piglet to a trackside shop and they determined it was a loose fitting on the gearbox cooler pump. An hour later Piglet was fixed and no longer needed size XXXL Depends(tm). While it was too late to participate in the final Lap Attack session, I was able to safely drive Piglet home
So I ended up 4th in the Lap Attack.
More bad news - Once I got back home, the gearbox leak started again. I had the car taken to a great shop (many years racing Porsche GT3 Cup cars) and they found a crack in the gearbox cooler pump housing which caused the fitting to come loose again. Replaced with a new pump and all PDK fluids changed (clutch and gearbox). I do this every July anyway, but with the fluid leaks I moved the schedule up a couple months.
Even more bad news - The shop also discovered one of my wheels was cracked! Checking the wheels is part of my post-event check-list when I get the car home and I would have caught this but now I'll check the wheels before leaving the track. The current wheels are past their prime so now I'm looking at a new set of wheels (looking at BBS, Fikse, CCW, and maybe Finspeed) and replacing the bullet nose wheel studs in the process.
So... assuming I can find some good track wheels soon, I expect to get the car back in time for some events in June. Looking forward to getting back on track.
My 18 year old Fikse 17” rims (bought used) with a lot of track days on them. Spectacularly light rims. Lots of cracks at edge of the inner barrel. Replacing that barrel and gonna disassemble the other three also to inspect and reseal.
Multiple cracks around the perimeter if you zoom in a little. Like this.
Joe, congrats on the PB! Sorry to hear of the issues with the gearbox and wheels Glad you were able to get that sorted.
I just did Cresson for the first time 2 weeks ago and I am in LOVE with that track. It's my new favorite in Texas (expecting that may change after I drive ECR in September).
What are your plans for the wheels? ...I might be interested in repairing/refinishing them to run as a street setup. Wouldn't bring them on the track though.
My 18 year old Fikse 17” rims (bought used) with a lot of track days on them. Spectacularly light rims. Lots of cracks at edge of the inner barrel. Replacing that barrel and gonna disassemble the other three also to inspect and reseal.
Just street driving on those, or track time as well?
Plan to keep using, inspect regularly. Wouldn’t expect a mega failure during use. Have a second set of wheels so not a big thing if a crack was to be found. Maybe I hit something or the tire lost pressure during a session and hit maybe. I found the issue when I was checking hot pressure and found one very low. At home days later found it leaking.
Joe, congrats on the PB! Sorry to hear of the issues with the gearbox and wheels Glad you were able to get that sorted.
I just did Cresson for the first time 2 weeks ago and I am in LOVE with that track. It's my new favorite in Texas (expecting that may change after I drive ECR in September).
What are your plans for the wheels? ...I might be interested in repairing/refinishing them to run as a street setup. Wouldn't bring them on the track though.
@Zach L I'm really glad you liked Cresson. The 3.1 configuration is my favorite track in Texas. Unlike COTA with the long straights, you actually have to drive the car at Cresson. Do you have any videos of your laps? I think you will also like ECR. Is PCA running there in September? I'll be back to both Cresson and ECR as soon as I get the wheels sorted out on my car. I decided to get a new set of Fikse Profil 701 wheels. ETA is 6-8 weeks :-( CCW is sending me a replacement wheel for my current set. I might keep them as backup but if I decide to part with them I'll reach out to you first.
I'm really glad you liked Cresson. The 3.1 configuration is my favorite track in Texas. Unlike COTA with the long straights, you actually have to drive the car at Cresson. Do you have any videos of your laps? I think you will also like ECR. Is PCA running there in September? I'll be back to both Cresson and ECR as soon as I get the wheels sorted out on my car. I decided to get a new set of Fikse Profil 701 wheels. ETA is 6-8 weeks :-( CCW is sending me a replacement wheel for my current set. I might keep them as backup but if I decide to part with them I'll reach out to you first.
@jazztrip I was doing the 3.1 and totally agree with you regarding COTA. I was doing it with PCA and also planning to do ECR with them 9/2-3. I don't have any video from Cresson. My Solo DL was going and I'm pretty sure it recognized the track but I haven't checked on lap times... was using it just for the temp info. Even though I'm Blue Solo, PCA wanted me to start Blue since it was my first time at the track (plus I think it may have evened out the groups better), but they quickly promoted me to Blue Solo and I was told Sunday they'll probably move me into Yellow next event. Everybody was very complimentary of the car and impressed with how I was driving it...I need to watch the size of my head lol. Didn't get passed once on Sunday, so I guess I'm doing something right. I'll see if I can get a lap time this weekend from the Solo DL.
@JayL how'd it go testing your temps at MSR that Tuesday?
Moorespeed in south Austin. They have raced Porsche for many years and know their way around these cars. They are also the ONLY place I trust to do service work on my 2013 458 Italia.
Moorespeed in south Austin. They have raced Porsche for many years and know their way around these cars. They are also the ONLY place I trust to do service work on my 2013 458 Italia.
I need to get tapped into the PCA scene. Looks like the Maverick region has lots of track days at ECR and MSR. I'll give the HPDE people a call and see what I need to do.
@jazztrip Maverick region uses clubregistration.net ...They have an event sooner than the Sept one I'm planning to attend, but the one coming up is Solo only and a PCA Club race I believe. I'm looking to have an instructor my first time up there so opted for Sept. 2-3
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Not all track days are the same
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Glad you were able to get that sorted.
