"Project Clubsport" a '97 2.5 build
04-01-2014, 05:32 PM
#1
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"Project Clubsport" a '97 2.5 build
I've officially had the car for a two weeks now, so I figured it was time to write something up about this thing.
I recently moved across the country to Reno, NV from Cleveland, OH, and I didn't want to ship my project 944 all the way out here, so I sold it to a friend. I've been Porsche-less for about 8 months, and it was driving me crazy.
The fiance and I agreed that 986s were at that awesome apex of fun-to-drive and bottom-of-their-depreciation-curve that we so enjoy, and now was the time to buy.
I was passively looking for one since January or so, and there were some decent ones, but not the "right" one. A guy on the local SCCA board had been trying to sell his since last August, and the price was gradually coming down.
When it got low enough for my liking, we struck a deal, and now I have a Boxster.
It's a Guards Red 1997 2.5 liter base model. I contend that the 2.5 liter 5-speed cars have always been a bit underrated. They require a bit more "momentum" driving than the Boxster S' 3.2 liter does, and that's something I admire in a sports car. Granted, we're at 4000 feet above sea level up here, so it'd probably perform a little better down at sea level.
The good:
Recent IMS Bearing upgrade
New Flywheel
New Clutch
New water pump
New convertible top
New shift boot
Good tires
Interior is in excellent condition
Recent power steering pump replacement
The not-so-good:
Loads of rock chips in the front bumper
Headlights are foggy and yellowed
The center console and my right leg want to occupy the same space at the same time (don't worry, GT3 center console delete is coming...)
The paint is ROUGH. Water stains, fading, a bunch of scratches, etc.
There is a broken piece of cast aluminum linkage in the driver's side of the convertible top
The idea for the car is to create a "Clubsport" version of the car as Porsche should have from the factory. A little more 'hardcore' than the 987 Spyder, and hopefully I'll be able to chase down some Carreras without too much trouble.
Will update with more as things progress. I won't leave this thing well enough alone.
For now, some pictures...
I recently moved across the country to Reno, NV from Cleveland, OH, and I didn't want to ship my project 944 all the way out here, so I sold it to a friend. I've been Porsche-less for about 8 months, and it was driving me crazy.
The fiance and I agreed that 986s were at that awesome apex of fun-to-drive and bottom-of-their-depreciation-curve that we so enjoy, and now was the time to buy.
I was passively looking for one since January or so, and there were some decent ones, but not the "right" one. A guy on the local SCCA board had been trying to sell his since last August, and the price was gradually coming down.
When it got low enough for my liking, we struck a deal, and now I have a Boxster.
It's a Guards Red 1997 2.5 liter base model. I contend that the 2.5 liter 5-speed cars have always been a bit underrated. They require a bit more "momentum" driving than the Boxster S' 3.2 liter does, and that's something I admire in a sports car. Granted, we're at 4000 feet above sea level up here, so it'd probably perform a little better down at sea level.
The good:
Recent IMS Bearing upgrade
New Flywheel
New Clutch
New water pump
New convertible top
New shift boot
Good tires
Interior is in excellent condition
Recent power steering pump replacement
The not-so-good:
Loads of rock chips in the front bumper
Headlights are foggy and yellowed
The center console and my right leg want to occupy the same space at the same time (don't worry, GT3 center console delete is coming...)
The paint is ROUGH. Water stains, fading, a bunch of scratches, etc.
There is a broken piece of cast aluminum linkage in the driver's side of the convertible top
The idea for the car is to create a "Clubsport" version of the car as Porsche should have from the factory. A little more 'hardcore' than the 987 Spyder, and hopefully I'll be able to chase down some Carreras without too much trouble.
Will update with more as things progress. I won't leave this thing well enough alone.
For now, some pictures...
04-01-2014, 06:02 PM
#2
Drifting
Congratulations, it looks great! Aerokit too. I bet all the paint aside from the rock chips will clean up with many hours of careful buffing. I agree that the 2.5 5-speeds are underrated.
04-01-2014, 06:38 PM
#3
Pro
Thread Starter
The strange thing about the Aerokit on this car is that it doesn't have the aerokit "long deck" or the fixed decklid wing (below). It did come with an Aerokit specific front bra, though. I might stick that on until I'm bothered enough to get the bumper repainted.
I'm planning to do a full paint correction on all of the panels bar the front bumper, it certainly should help (well, at least it won't hurt).
04-02-2014, 10:22 AM
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I have an entire 97 Boxster black interior, seats, carpet, panels etc that was removed from my car that was converted to a race car...car had 28,000 miles... any interest PM ... will sell all or part etc...
04-02-2014, 04:33 PM
#6
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Thread Starter
Over the last few days I've been working on getting the exterior lenses to look better. The front lights were foggy and didn't produce much light. The rears had that split Red/Amber/Clear look that I've always kind of hated. About 42 dollars later, and all of that was sorted...
Step 1, clean up the headlamps with a Mother's Powerball Headlight kit ($20).
Step 2 - Install some yellow vinyl that I got on Amazon, and cut to fit. (Got two 12" X 48" sheets shipped to my door for 11 dollars.)
Step 3 - Tint the tail lamps using some Testors Transparent Candy Apple (had it in the garage from when I did the same thing to my old 944), and a can of Testors Gloss Clear. $5 total, $10 if I had needed to buy the red.
Step 4 - I used some touch up paint on the front bumper, and it matches, but not 100% perfectly. It looks decent from about 5 feet, but up close you can tell that it's a bit more orange than Guards.
Before doing the vinyl, I took the car for a drive out to Pyramid Lake north of town. Gorgeous scenery, beautiful day.
Step 1, clean up the headlamps with a Mother's Powerball Headlight kit ($20).
Step 2 - Install some yellow vinyl that I got on Amazon, and cut to fit. (Got two 12" X 48" sheets shipped to my door for 11 dollars.)
Step 3 - Tint the tail lamps using some Testors Transparent Candy Apple (had it in the garage from when I did the same thing to my old 944), and a can of Testors Gloss Clear. $5 total, $10 if I had needed to buy the red.
Step 4 - I used some touch up paint on the front bumper, and it matches, but not 100% perfectly. It looks decent from about 5 feet, but up close you can tell that it's a bit more orange than Guards.
Before doing the vinyl, I took the car for a drive out to Pyramid Lake north of town. Gorgeous scenery, beautiful day.
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04-02-2014, 08:22 PM
#9
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Thread Starter
Thank you. The car seems to photograph well, and the backdrop certainly didn't hurt.
I want to take the "Clubsport" ethos that Porsche used in the 80s and 90s, and extend it to the 986 chassis, the way they should have from the factory. I want everything to integrate relatively well, and in the end, look like it could have possibly come out of the factory that way. Sometimes known as "OEM+ Style".
I'm going to start with some suspension work. I'll probably end up with H&R springs, eibach sway bars, and Bilstein sport struts.
Add in some 18X8.5 and 18X10 GT3-look wheels and Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 235/40 front and 295/30 rear.
Larger Boxster S brakes. Eventually I'll be moving to an aluminum hat and floating rotor to save a few pounds of unsprung weight. Stainless steel braided lines will be done at the same time.
In order to remove some weight, I'm going to get the longer rear decklid and delete the rear pop-up spoiler.
Inside the car, I'm going to do the "GT3 Center Console Delete", and eventually fabricate some lightweight door panels.
The car will get a "radio delete", but I'm going to run a small 2-channel amp with an aux input direct to the speakers. Delete the door speakers, and install some newer speakers in the dash with smaller magnets.
The difficult one, that I'm not sure how I'll accomplish yet, is the top. I want to build a 987 Spyder-esque 'bimini' top for the car.
For a little while, I was shopping Miatas before I got the Boxster, and ran across this thing.
Luckily, the car came with a brand new soft top, and the original soft top was in a box in the trunk (The rear window stitching had separated). I can use that original top with some modifications, and pick up a used windshield header latch to accomplish this.
Two things I need to figure out with this project.
1. How best to fabricate the mounting points for the rear tension, and where to place them.
2. How to raise the tops of the roll hoops to increase headroom. As it stands, the factory top sits up about 4 inches above the roll hoop, so using them as the tension points for this bimini-style top would make things a bit more cramped than I'd like. I'd probably still fit, but not as comfortably.
I'll probably remove the power soft-top for the summer months, and reinstall it for the winter.
Eventually I'd like to fabricate a vinyl tonneau cover for the rear section that incorporates a plastic window, and keep it on year-round.
It'll be a long road, and probably be more than a year or so before I get things the way I envision it, but it'll get there eventually.
I want to take the "Clubsport" ethos that Porsche used in the 80s and 90s, and extend it to the 986 chassis, the way they should have from the factory. I want everything to integrate relatively well, and in the end, look like it could have possibly come out of the factory that way. Sometimes known as "OEM+ Style".
I'm going to start with some suspension work. I'll probably end up with H&R springs, eibach sway bars, and Bilstein sport struts.
Add in some 18X8.5 and 18X10 GT3-look wheels and Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 235/40 front and 295/30 rear.
Larger Boxster S brakes. Eventually I'll be moving to an aluminum hat and floating rotor to save a few pounds of unsprung weight. Stainless steel braided lines will be done at the same time.
In order to remove some weight, I'm going to get the longer rear decklid and delete the rear pop-up spoiler.
Inside the car, I'm going to do the "GT3 Center Console Delete", and eventually fabricate some lightweight door panels.
The car will get a "radio delete", but I'm going to run a small 2-channel amp with an aux input direct to the speakers. Delete the door speakers, and install some newer speakers in the dash with smaller magnets.
The difficult one, that I'm not sure how I'll accomplish yet, is the top. I want to build a 987 Spyder-esque 'bimini' top for the car.
For a little while, I was shopping Miatas before I got the Boxster, and ran across this thing.
Luckily, the car came with a brand new soft top, and the original soft top was in a box in the trunk (The rear window stitching had separated). I can use that original top with some modifications, and pick up a used windshield header latch to accomplish this.
Two things I need to figure out with this project.
1. How best to fabricate the mounting points for the rear tension, and where to place them.
2. How to raise the tops of the roll hoops to increase headroom. As it stands, the factory top sits up about 4 inches above the roll hoop, so using them as the tension points for this bimini-style top would make things a bit more cramped than I'd like. I'd probably still fit, but not as comfortably.
I'll probably remove the power soft-top for the summer months, and reinstall it for the winter.
Eventually I'd like to fabricate a vinyl tonneau cover for the rear section that incorporates a plastic window, and keep it on year-round.
It'll be a long road, and probably be more than a year or so before I get things the way I envision it, but it'll get there eventually.
04-02-2014, 08:45 PM
#10
Interesting, we are pursuing some kind of "similar" project !
In my side, I would like to remove the piece of lead (called battery) that is so badly positioned (heavy & quite high up. I think that the engineer(s ?) that took the decision to put this piece of lead "here" had simply no idea about car dynamics. Ok, on a 911, everything is at the wrong place, as it is a "compromise" car, I can understand, ..but, please: NOT in a Boxster !), against a Li-Ion version.
Also, I will change these heavy seats against lite bucket seats.
I'm lucky to have bought one, (a 3.2 S) ..that had allready new Bilstein PSS9 on each corners !
About these, I can tell you that they are great, the handling is very good (kind of big go-kart feeling).
But, I'm not sure sure I'm going to fight against the roof weight !
In my side, I would like to remove the piece of lead (called battery) that is so badly positioned (heavy & quite high up. I think that the engineer(s ?) that took the decision to put this piece of lead "here" had simply no idea about car dynamics. Ok, on a 911, everything is at the wrong place, as it is a "compromise" car, I can understand, ..but, please: NOT in a Boxster !), against a Li-Ion version.
Also, I will change these heavy seats against lite bucket seats.
I'm lucky to have bought one, (a 3.2 S) ..that had allready new Bilstein PSS9 on each corners !
About these, I can tell you that they are great, the handling is very good (kind of big go-kart feeling).
But, I'm not sure sure I'm going to fight against the roof weight !
04-02-2014, 09:15 PM
#11
Pro
Thread Starter
Interesting, we are pursuing some kind of "similar" project !
In my side, I would like to remove the piece of lead (called battery) that is so badly positioned
Also, I will change these heavy seats against lite bucket seats.
I'm lucky to have bought one, (a 3.2 S) ..that had allready new Bilstein PSS9 on each corners !
About these, I can tell you that they are great, the handling is very good (kind of big go-kart feeling).
But, I'm not sure sure I'm going to fight against the roof weight !
In my side, I would like to remove the piece of lead (called battery) that is so badly positioned
Also, I will change these heavy seats against lite bucket seats.
I'm lucky to have bought one, (a 3.2 S) ..that had allready new Bilstein PSS9 on each corners !
About these, I can tell you that they are great, the handling is very good (kind of big go-kart feeling).
But, I'm not sure sure I'm going to fight against the roof weight !
For the time being, I am going to stick with the seats that I have. I might see what I can do to remove the heavy motors, but luckily the weight is mounted down pretty low.
04-03-2014, 03:42 AM
#12
Beautiful pictures! A great idea indeed! I have the same goals for my 97... A Clubsport strip-O track toy still tame enough for daily driver duties. My inspiration is the 968 clubsport.
I started by gutting the carpets and insulating out of the front and rear trunks. I am still running cabin carpets and interior. I would like the center console delete kit for the same leg delimma. I have a 996 gt3 seat for the driver, and full manual regular passenger seat (due to cost). The weight saved from a full manual seat to a gt3 seat isn't much! It's amazing how much car control you gain from a proper drivers seat.
I removed the factory soft top assembly and drive. I use a hardtop, but decided any "stiffness" gains to be pure placebo. The nice thing is the added storage- on the way to the track or a weekend getaway it gives me a couple more cubic feet to cram things like helmets or luggage. Also the engine access is to die for without any softtop, and it's weight removed up high in the car. A future project is removing the factory roll humps, and having a custom rear half-cage fabricated to the factory mounts. I would have it taller, flushing up against the hardtop, and have it drop back to the rear strut tops.
I installed an X51 oil pan, and squeezed in a 997 oil heat exchanger (larger than 996 and pain in the butt). I removed the A/C system, from compressor to condensers with everything in between, and run the factory shorter belt. (Holy crap does this give you better access under the intake!) I run custom straight pipes, from the factory manifolds back with resonators. This saved REDICULOUS weight but netted minimal power change (see: placebo) I am collecting parts for the center radiator install slowly.
I swapped in the larger "S" front brake setup with gt3 ducts. I ran the factory setup with hot pads but found it to be too delicate. With the "S" equipment my skill-less buddy could blow up the brakes every turn with confidence... And I just run factory pad compound. The rear caliper/rotors aren't worth swapping. I painted the "S"calipers black for that stealthy classic M030 look.
It has the traction control option, which includes ABD... An electronic limited slip program of sorts. I usually shut off the TC after the first lap, but ABD probably helps on the tightest of turns. If I had my way I'd put a mechanical limited slip in, but these 2.5's don't really make enough power to get you in trouble.
I installed ROW M030 suspension including the sway bars. Originally I wanted to go pss9 and aftermarket sways, but after tons of research I decided the factory route was more true to the cause, and had plenty of potential. I have not once regretted that purchase! My 180k mile car was tired, and the suspension was life changing! The edge of the limit feels very predictable, but the balance and stiffness is neutral and performance orientated. On rough sections of track, or ANY back mountain road shinnanigans, the factory setup suspension allows the car to undulate for grip where most coilover setups fight for the perfect potential tire angle (on the road or in the air). Everyone has their opinions... I'm just saying don't rule out the lap time potential of the M030 setup.
It currently sticks with Dunlop Starspecs. I can't preach highly enough about em. They are fantastic, and so are the starspec 2's! I'd like to try a square setup for comparison, but 225/255 works great. Lighter is better with these momentum cars, it handled like garbage with 18's (also 97's have less unibody reinforcement in the rear, and 18's are not allowed according to Porsche)
I'd love to upgrade to the 03-04 bumpers, or the whole aerokit.
I'm considering the Clubsport side decal from the 968's shown here...
Here she is flogging thunderhill...
I started by gutting the carpets and insulating out of the front and rear trunks. I am still running cabin carpets and interior. I would like the center console delete kit for the same leg delimma. I have a 996 gt3 seat for the driver, and full manual regular passenger seat (due to cost). The weight saved from a full manual seat to a gt3 seat isn't much! It's amazing how much car control you gain from a proper drivers seat.
I removed the factory soft top assembly and drive. I use a hardtop, but decided any "stiffness" gains to be pure placebo. The nice thing is the added storage- on the way to the track or a weekend getaway it gives me a couple more cubic feet to cram things like helmets or luggage. Also the engine access is to die for without any softtop, and it's weight removed up high in the car. A future project is removing the factory roll humps, and having a custom rear half-cage fabricated to the factory mounts. I would have it taller, flushing up against the hardtop, and have it drop back to the rear strut tops.
I installed an X51 oil pan, and squeezed in a 997 oil heat exchanger (larger than 996 and pain in the butt). I removed the A/C system, from compressor to condensers with everything in between, and run the factory shorter belt. (Holy crap does this give you better access under the intake!) I run custom straight pipes, from the factory manifolds back with resonators. This saved REDICULOUS weight but netted minimal power change (see: placebo) I am collecting parts for the center radiator install slowly.
I swapped in the larger "S" front brake setup with gt3 ducts. I ran the factory setup with hot pads but found it to be too delicate. With the "S" equipment my skill-less buddy could blow up the brakes every turn with confidence... And I just run factory pad compound. The rear caliper/rotors aren't worth swapping. I painted the "S"calipers black for that stealthy classic M030 look.
It has the traction control option, which includes ABD... An electronic limited slip program of sorts. I usually shut off the TC after the first lap, but ABD probably helps on the tightest of turns. If I had my way I'd put a mechanical limited slip in, but these 2.5's don't really make enough power to get you in trouble.
I installed ROW M030 suspension including the sway bars. Originally I wanted to go pss9 and aftermarket sways, but after tons of research I decided the factory route was more true to the cause, and had plenty of potential. I have not once regretted that purchase! My 180k mile car was tired, and the suspension was life changing! The edge of the limit feels very predictable, but the balance and stiffness is neutral and performance orientated. On rough sections of track, or ANY back mountain road shinnanigans, the factory setup suspension allows the car to undulate for grip where most coilover setups fight for the perfect potential tire angle (on the road or in the air). Everyone has their opinions... I'm just saying don't rule out the lap time potential of the M030 setup.
It currently sticks with Dunlop Starspecs. I can't preach highly enough about em. They are fantastic, and so are the starspec 2's! I'd like to try a square setup for comparison, but 225/255 works great. Lighter is better with these momentum cars, it handled like garbage with 18's (also 97's have less unibody reinforcement in the rear, and 18's are not allowed according to Porsche)
I'd love to upgrade to the 03-04 bumpers, or the whole aerokit.
I'm considering the Clubsport side decal from the 968's shown here...
Here she is flogging thunderhill...
04-03-2014, 12:28 PM
#13
Pro
Thread Starter
@Dan951Man, I have thought about the 968 CS decals, but really, I think I'll end up with the ones used on G-series Carreras...
I probably won't be stripping it down as far as you have. My fiance has to occasionally drive the car, and it gets up to 110 degrees here in the summer, so the AC will have to stay...
If you get a half-cage made, let me know, because I'd be interested in having them do mine at the same time (hopefully that would help save both of us a few dollars).
I probably won't be stripping it down as far as you have. My fiance has to occasionally drive the car, and it gets up to 110 degrees here in the summer, so the AC will have to stay...
If you get a half-cage made, let me know, because I'd be interested in having them do mine at the same time (hopefully that would help save both of us a few dollars).
04-04-2014, 01:35 AM
#14
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Thread Starter
Well, here's what it looks like with the yellow headlamp vinyl in sunlight. They're not perfect, but I have enough left over material that I can redo it if I need to.
04-05-2014, 10:21 AM
#15
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Dan, How difficult was it to remove the soft top and motors? How much weight savings do you estimate? Was it worth the effort. Why didn't you just put a track seat with harness? Any Consideration to a fixed spoiler? I have an 2000 S with PS9's full suspension. I run with the hardtop and considering removing the soft top. My mechanic tells me its a big job. Your thoughts.