I'm on a mission to buy a cherry condition air-cooled 911. But I came upon a good deal on a Boxster, good enough that I may be able to resell it to add to my 911 fund. But I'm also considering keeping it. I would never take the 911 I intend to buy on a track. But I'd really like to get on a track, learn to drive, and not worry about the value of the car. Can have my cake and eat it, too? Perhaps.

1. If I wanted to turn an old Boxster be a better track car, what might I do to it without spending a whole lot of additional money? FYI this car is not an S model.

2. What kind of repair/maintenance expenses will I incur for tracking the car on a casual/occasional/non-competitive basis?

3. I hear these engines all have a catastrophic bearing failure at some point. Is that true? If so, what's the best option for my "Boxster racecar on-the-cheap"?

 

what is your budget ? NEVER use the words porsche and cheap.....aint gonna happen. buy a corvette...they are cheaper....and faster

 

Get a first Gen Boxster. They can be had in the sub-$10K range in fairly good mechanical shape. The relatively low power/torque means you have to learn to carry speed through the corner rather than using lots of engine to drag race from corner to corner. They are also less prone to IMS bearing failure than the 2000-2005. Change the water pump ($300 for parts), all four wheel bearings($200 for parts) and all the fluids if unsure of when they were last done. Install an underdrive pulley ($160 plus a shorter serpentine belt) for the crank to slow the PS pump down a little and extend it's life at sustained high RPM. When you install the water pump also install the oil cooler ($125) from an "S" model along with the center radiator ($500-$1000 depending) from an "S". Finally, consider installing one of the many deep sump covers to add some more oil capacity to the system.

As far as ongoing maintenance expect to be changing oil, brake, and trans fluids a lot more often particularly as your skill increases and you run the engine harder and harder for longer periods. You will also go through tires, brake pads and rotors quicker. How fast depends on your driving style.

Mike

 

Thanks! This is exactly what I was looking for.

The car has around 90k mi, is in Kelley Blue Book's "Very Good Condition," and I can buy it for $5000. Even with these additional expenses, it still leaves me with beer money

It also sounds like a handful of weekend tinkers I can do with my more mechanically savvy friends. Also, it's a chance to gain some much-desired auto mechanics experience for myself, and to better understand the car I'm going to beating the tar out of.

 

Here's another question on my mind...generally spending money modifying a car ironically reduces the value of the car. But Porsches are different because they're usable race cars. I'm wondering if adding these race parts to a $5000 Boxster will actually lower the value more, or add a little value back to it.

Since my primary goal is to buy a pampered air-cooled 911, I want to make sure I have a good exit-strategy with my race car. I suspect the loss in "stock car value" would be offset by it's new "RTR track car" value. Especially since the car is only $5k.

 

The stock Boxster handles better than a stock 911, IMO, and it really shouldn't require much to make it a nice learning platform. Brakes/fluid (I wore a stock set of pads down to the sensors after 1 hour at an open track day!) at a min, then go have fun!

 

Just a comment to clarify- if you are talking about building a race car such as spec boxster, that is big bucks relative to a 5k car. You'll need a cage, seats, harness, etc. A track car for DE, you'll need very little over stock to get started. Suggest check which track(s) and organizer(s) you plan to run with. A few will not allow convertibles. Most that allow convertibles require you to pass the broomstick test - your helmet must be lower than a line from the roll hoops to the windscreen top. If you're tall you may need a roll bar extension (I did). Need to make sure you fix all mechanical issues- no leaks, good rotors/pads, fresh fluids. You mentioned a coolant leak in the other thread- another possible cause could be the coolant tank in the rear trunk. I had a leak in mine. The part is fairly pricey- seems like it was 600 or so. That said the 986 can be a great car to learn in. You'll likely be underpowered compared to most cars showing up at DEs these days, but if you stick with it you can develop strong skills and keep up with or even pass higher powered cars. Best of luck.

 

More great info. Thanks again!

couple more questions:
1. how much performance value is there in stripping the car down to lighten it?

2. My main concern about this car is the lack of power. It is well said that it's better to learn on a smaller car. But I've also owned a Cayenne S and a 964 C4. I'm a little concerned about being disappointed by this little car. Do I seek to beef up the HP, or just enjoy it for what it is? Unfortunately I don't know that I'll really know the answer to this until I have experienced the car. But any thoughts specifically about hp increase (preferably not ones that will weaken the engine)?

 

Thanks for the clarification. I just want to get some skills and take my fast driving off the public roads. I have no interest in winning, smashing my little Boxster, nor smashing the $150k supercar driving next to me.

 

The base Boxster is a blast above 4K rpms. Very responsive and nimble. Enjoy it for what it is. And consider every dollar spent build a track car to be money you will never recover. They don't say "the best way to make a million dollars racing is to start with two million" for nothing.

 

LOL awesome. (2 mil for 1 mil). No doubt. I can think of a few other hobbies like that.

So, pop on a few select upgrades if I want a little more from the car, but leave the car as unmolested as possible.

I'm not a believer in "the fastest car is the best car." One of my favorite cars I used to drive was an old Honda Civic with the baldest tires you ever saw. I loved to take it out in the rain. You can have just as much fun at 35mph as you can at 135mph...it's all about context.

 

1998 Boxster weighs in at 2822lbs.

Spec Boxster minimum weight is 2975lbs.

To save weight avoid going the spec Boxster route...

Really, your best performance gains will come from making the most of the car's capabilities.

I've watched some pretty amazing track videos of drivers who are obviously moving very fast around the track. They are all smooth drivers, spend as much time on the throttle as possible and spend as little time on the brakes as possible, yet do not slide the cars around like some goofy Saudi drifting meet.

Invest in driving classes and personalized instruction to hone your driving skills.

There are only a few ways to gain significant HP. Up the displacement. There is no replacement for displacement. Or super-charge (turbo-charge) the engine. Custom flashes, special air intakes, exhaust mods, are not going to deliver much.

There is a limit to how much you can boost the stock engine with its high compression. 5/6psi or 0.4 bar is about it. By comparison my 03 Turbo's max boost is 0.7 bar which works out to 10psi. The Turbo's 3.6l engine puts out 420hp. This is 105hp over the N/A 3.6l engine's 315hp.

Might mention the Turbo has intercoolers and much better cooling and oiling (dry sump) and a much more robust engine. While the 2.5l engine is a pretty tough engine it has its limits.

On that note all HP mods weaken the engine. More HP means more heat, more stress. You don't get something for nothing.

You have to be careful with adding HP, whichever way you chose. If you mod the car, the engine, this may throw you into a different class and then you are in competition with those owners/drivers who have the money to throw at their cars.

 

Thanks Macster. You failed in providing a magical cure to what I already knew...you can't beef up the car without adding burden to it. I'm am concerned this little engine; I hear they're fragile. On the other hand, ammonman recommends a first-gen. It'd be helpful to get my facts straight on when/how/if this engine will explode. I do know all Porsches come with a $10-15k risk, I'm just wondering how much risk this generation is.

I've owned 2 first-gen cars, & I seem to remember vowing never to do it again, reminding myself not to forget, and crossing my heart and hoping to die. But I can't really remember that far back with any real clarity.

 

The 2.5l engine is not fragile. A case could be made in fact that of the 2.5l, 2.7l, and 3.2l engines it should be the toughest of these 3 engines since it has the smallest displacement and thus the engine is less stressed.

On the street the engine with a little luck should last a long long time. However, when used on the track this can expose the weakest link in the engine. I know of one 2.5l Boxster which was tracked and tracked and tracked with the engine finally letting go at over 180K miles (and the miles could have been higher) with a failed rod bolt.

No one can tell you when or how the engine will explode. Frankly if I had that ability to foresee the future I'd apply it to picking winning horses at the track or stocks on the DOW.

Whenever you venture onto the track with a car you have to be prepared to experience an engine problem, maybe severe, or contact with another car or an off, maybe severe. I sincerely hope neither you or anyone experiences any of these things but the risk is there.

For vehicle contact or an off you can buy track insurance which can help mitigate the cost of an off or contact with another vehicle.

For an engine problem, you can't insure for that. All you can do is take steps which can help reduce the likelihood of an engine problem: You can practice sound track engine preparation, servicing, pay attention to your driving (some engine problems are self-inflicted as the driver performs a money shift... IOWs, the engine fails but not because of a real problem in the engine but due to a a momentary lapse off attention on the part of the driver) and cross your fingers.

For track engine preparation there are things you can do to improve the engine's chances by helping to ensure the engine has sufficient oil supply and pressure at all times. You can possibly install an aftermarket IMSB upgrade to address what has proved to be in some cases at least a weak link. There might be other things you can do I'm not current on track engine prep. (You might see what the spec Boxster people are doing to help ensure engine longevity.)

If you venture onto the track without at least acknowledging the possibility the engine could go boom even if you are perfect behind the wheel and practice track engine preparation and maintenance that would shame an F1 team you are ignoring the reality of the situation.

In this case my advice would be to pick another hobby.

 

This is VERY far from the truth. Min weight for Spec Boxster is 2650lbs WITH DRIVER.

My car comes in at 2430lbs with a quarter tank, this makes a massive difference to the handling and power to weight ratio of the car.

Spec box is a great way to go as a beginner racer. Throw a set of PSS9s, Toyo RR's and an underdrive pulley and you are set to go as a track day car that will kill a lot of factory cars.

Start ripping weight out and you have something that will run with E cars.

I built my car for around $25k after the initial car purchase.