Looking for some collective wisdom. Took my 2006 C2S manual to a PCA HPDE in March at Carolina Motorsports Park. My second time out on a track and first with the 997. Ran in the green group and had a great time, learned a lot, etc. However, my oil temps got up to slightly north of 250 during some runs (maybe 260?) and a did see oil pressure dip during longer right hand turns (never below 2.5). I had fresh oil in, but DT40, not racing oil. Running new street tires (PS4s), Bilstein B12 suspension (B8s + springs), IDP plenum, GT3 TB, high flow cats, Fister exhaust. No third radiator or larger sump. In between runs I googled 997.1 oil temps and most of what I saw was "250-260 is fine, modern synthetic can take it easily." Weather was right around mid-60s F for the day.

I'm heading to VIR in May. I'm trying to decide whether I want to take the 997 or my 2015 Chevy SS 6MT. I've had both on the track and the 997 is more fun, but am thinking that an LS3 is a safer bet on track (plus cheaper to repair/replace). If what I describe above in terms of oil temps and pressure sounds like no big deal to the experts, I might go with the 997. If there were additional, time and cost efficient improvements I could make to the 997 in the next few weeks to keep it cooler on the track, I'd consider those too. Racing oil? Third radiator? Someday (yes someday...) I hope to put an FSI track performer or R40 in the car, but that's years off.

Help me think through this. The track is the only place where you can safely get a good sense for what these cars can do, and I loved having it out there, but oiling issues are making me nervous. Does the "beginner on street tires and mostly stock suspension, so no issues" rule apply? Or should I take my more "full figured" SS girl to the dance?

 

I hate to get off topic here but I've been trying to decide what I want to do with my suspension. The Bilsteins look like they'll fit the bill. I currently have 55k miles on my '07 C2S and feel like new struts are in order. Any advice on your set-up? I wouldn't mind a bit of a lowered ride but I'm really more interested in a smoother sound ride than what the stock set up is providing.

 

Sure. I went with Bilstein damptronics because I wanted to preserve PASM. Mostly in preparation for adding the DSC controller in the near future. If you are looking for a smoother ride, the DSC controller is probably a good bet, so you will need PASM/Damptronic. Bilstein range with Damptronic is: B4 (very close to stock replacement); B6 (stock height but "heavy duty"); B8 ("heavy duty" and lower ride height); and B16 (coilovers). In hindsight, I should have gone for the B16s. Little bit more cost-wise ($1000-1500ish extra installed) but provides more flexibility around ride height and other adjustability. Paired with the DSC controller, B16s are generally considered all that mere mortals will ever need. All that said, I like the looks and performance of the B8s with the Eibach lowering springs and am looking forward to adding the DSC controller soon.

 

- I hate to be that guy, but... don't run anything you cant afford to replace/fix
- I've seen stock cars pop motors on track with only 200 tw tires.

 

Your C2S was made for the track!
Drive it and enjoy. 260 sounds high to me, outside air temps must have been really hot.

 

I think both are nice track options, the SS is a standard powerful FR car, the 997 is a very different beast, as you already know.

If you're tracking it in completely stock form I'd keep an eye on the oil temp and try to keep it at no more than 250. I'm surprised you got that
high temperatures in the green group but I don't know that track.
The third radiator is a very nice fixture and has no downside. It will help a lot with track temps; not much difference in regular driving.
If you end up tracking it a lot, most folks add a deep sump to help the oil system along.

 

To be properly set up for track in with a M97 engine, you need a couple things.

Xp9 race/track oil
Third radiator (with low temp thermostat)
Deep oil sump.

Without these, I believe, you're unnecessarily risking your engine.

997 excels on track. I love it. But the engine in stock form is lacking with today's tire technology. The oil system just isn't up to the task.

Cw

 

In addition to the above I would plan on upgrading pads and fluid. As you progress you will need it, best to start planning now.

 

Funny, just responded with the below to another similar thread. Without going into great detail in addition to the below, you will need to get GT3 control arms so you can get some camber in to the wheels. Otherwise you will eventually be working the wrong parts of the tires. My oil during track days always gets to 250 - 260. I change oil often and always do a cool down lap. I am considering another radiator but have heard both sides of this issue. One group I work with is considering a third radiator with a track switch to use the third radiator only when tracking. I have just about upgraded everything overtime including suspension. Love the car on the track. I have had a 996 GT3, 996 Carrera and a Boxster. Previous post below for background.
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I tracked my 997.1 2006 from 2006-2019 at numerous tracks in the Southeast, California and recently in Europe including Spa. I used Cup2s and have modded the car over time. The main issues with the 997.1 are IMS for 2005s and earlier and bore scoring. IMS wasn't a problem for me as I had a later build. I also never had any bore scoring issues. Not sure why. I broke the engine in correctly, never went above 4K rpms until the oil was warm, changed the oil frequently especially when tracking and rarely drove it in the cold. The one issue I didn't address was the oil scavenging question. It didn't appear to be an issue for me however. After about 80K miles, 60% track, the connecting rod bolt snapped, shot through the case and destroyed the engine. I had one bad but not horrible downshift at Spa in 2016 that may have contributed to the conrod bolt snapping in 2019 but that's not clear. The engine has been rebuilt to the 3.8 spec and is basically new now. During the rebuild I had Nikasil liners put in to address the bore scoring potential and racing bolts installed to be sure I didn't have the same issue. I hope and expect another 13-15 years of tracking. Regarding the oil starvation question, the engine is not a dry sump. I am guessing that auto-crossing would cause a worse problem than tracking as the car is "flung" about a bit more. I am not planning on going to stickier tires than Cup2s or their iterations.

 

In FL with temps around 90 I do not exceed 250 with a 3rd rad and a deep sump oil pan.

 

One more oil quirk: these engines are much easier to overfill than to underfill, and overfill is much worse for them. So the recommendation is to run the oil level for track work with just one block showing
above the lower arrow on the gauge (ie at 1/3 of what constitutes 'full' on that finicky gauge). I've also found it useful to let the engine idle for a few minutes after a fast track session to let the oil mist settle and
empty out the complicated AOS unit. Otherwise you might get a fantastic plume of blue smoke at the next startup, very alarming when it happens the first time.

 

I am extremely surprised to see that temperature for a second time on a track. Make sure you measure it correctly with OBDII (I use SOLO DL). Temp gauge is ok but you need to focus on your driving. I would start with fundamentals: clean your radiators, change ALL fluids especially cooling. For you best oil is new oil. Ask your instructor to help you with smooth driving technique and proper upshifting to let am engine cool off on straights. Proper warm and cool off. No overfill. After 20 min session you shouldn't see more then 240F. At the cooling lap it should drop quickly to 225F. We can talk later once you have more then 100 track days and ask for CRF radiators and external oil coolers.

 

I just ran my 997.1 4S at a HPDE this weekend for the first time. It did very well. I added a 3rd radiator and while water temps are always at 175(right) the oil temps never reached 250. I noticed last year when I only ran autocross it was 15 degrees cooler than before.

I will say this doing a road course vs autocross is waaaay different. Lots to think about the whole time. It’s the first time I wished I had a automatic (one less thing to think about)

 

Thanks for all the feedback. Much of the surprise around the high temps I'm seeing on only my second track day must be related to the fact that you haven't accounted for the fact that I was going "flat out."

Kidding aside, I was probably spending too much time in the upper end range of the tach and could move more quickly to a lower gear. Lot to think about here, but will probably take the SS to VIR so I can give myself enough time to think about deep sumps and extra cooling. And getting smoother on the track of course....

 

If you are doing DE please remember to preserve your equipment (yes our 997.1s are great but delicate), respect and take care of others, and learn...no need to impress an instructor (you can't). Enjoy.