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You want to go faster? Take driving lessons from a good instructor. That will probably buy you the biggest improvement in lap times vs. anything you can add to the car or the engine.
I fail to see the logic that slowing down the water pump by installing an under drive pulley is a good idea for a car that will be used on the track.
The impeller design, and blade count of the M96 engine promotes cavitation at high impeller speeds. Slowing these, can, in some situations improve coolant flow and system pressure.
The impeller design, and blade count of the M96 engine promotes cavitation at high impeller speeds. Slowing these, can, in some situations improve coolant flow and system pressure.
With the full get up(High flow cats/headers, maxflo muffler, ECU tune and BMC filters) we saw 22 hp and 18 ft.lbs on a 986 Boxster S.
If you are looking for lap time improvements, learning the car with proper instruction is the best bang for the buck. If you are looking for more performance for the road, you can't beat the bolt on mods like intake, exhaust and ECU tune. No amount of driving instruction will help your speed on the street(at least I sure hope it wont!)since you wont be anywhere near the limits of the car.
For doing mods, always save the ECU for last. Do the intake and exhaust upgrades first so that the tune will be more optimized for the mods you have done.
The impeller design, and blade count of the M96 engine promotes cavitation at high impeller speeds. Slowing these, can, in some situations improve coolant flow and system pressure.
I gathered that data to support that, in 2007.
That comment raises more questions than answers. How many pumps tested? Where the same pumps tested in different engines to see if the cavitation was with the pump/impeller or the shape of the engine water passage in which the impeller spun? Was the coolant fresh, old, of the correct makeup, composition? What was the coolant temperature and pressure? Was the coolant temperer varied to see what if any role this played? Was pressure increased to see if a bit more pressure controlled the cavitation? And so on.
As one can see by the chart of hp/torque posted above (in another post) both HP and torque peak below redline. Unless cavitation occurs at these lower speeds I still would be reluctant to fit an under drive pulley.
Additionally I would have concern about cooling at slower engine speeds during which coolant temperature can climb to the "max".
For instance on the way home from work day before yesterday in less than 90F ambient temperature running with relatively light (!) traffic at speed on the freeway until close to my usual exit. Then I encountered severe traffic congestion. So because of this I took the exit before my usual exit.
Around 2+ miles on surface streets with I might add the engine seeing no high RPMs (nothing above 4K and this only very briefly in 1st before shifting to 2nd) had the coolant hot enough that once home in the driveway I had to let the engine idle a couple of minutes before the radiator fans shut off. While I don't know the coolant temp the fans were on high speed which is a sign the coolant temp was over 216F and based on my experience probably quite a bit above that, possibly to the "max" I've ever measured/observed and that is 226F.
At no time during the nearly 30 mile drive from work to home did the engine get to redline. Most of the time it was below 4K RPMs. Thus I would not be comfortable under these conditions having the water pump spin at at slower speed to possibly prevent cavitation at much higher speeds.
Here's one for ya.... What don't you perform your own tests, get your hands dirty and buy a few thousand dollars worth of parts and capability to facilitate those tests? Then you won't have to ask me any questions.
Having a negative attitude, and a ton of opinion about something that you've never had direct experience with is what these forums are all about.
I'll share my data, after you share yours. Seems fair to me.
The stock coolant temp gauge won't cut it, run a stand alone with sensors in 4 regions of the system, (toggling between them) or run directly to a logger from the CAN. Even IF you read from the CAN, the CLT sensor isn't even located at the core of the engine! It is located in the front console and is fairly worthless if you intend to gather more information than what the factory wants you to.
I just bought a used 2002 Porsche Boxster 986 non-S 5-speed.
What are some of the common ways to get more horsepower / torque from this car? New Chip? K&N filter? Exhaust?
Please advise. Thanks
I would recommend an ECU flash with full exhaust including Hi-Flow cats. This will improve both the sound and performance making the driving experience much more enjoyable. I can quote you a "bundled" price for exhaust and tune. Just send me a PM or email if interested.
Since you live in CA, you better be careful about a major exhaust replacement, it may not pass smog.
There are some strict regulations on things like Cats
You can always play the exhaust swap-a -roony before and after you have it smogged
If you are in California, and thinking about exhaust changes, remember also that most of the track days in Laguna Seca ..are with STRICT noise limit to 91dB !
Btw, for those that mention things like "take lessons to drive better", Im not sure that this is the Easiest and Cheapest way ..to get faster lap times !!
It is a good way, this is for sure. But things like adding hp, ..works quite well too !
(I would be surprised to read from all the tracksters, that you never been on track, on the back of a much powerful car then yours, and not been able to pass it, simply because of much better accelerations !!!)
Now, something that nobody did mention : to do better lap time, beside adding hp, that help for faster transitions from slow to fast, do not forget that on one lap, you have as many transitions from slow to fast (accelerations) ..than from fast to slow (brakings).
So improving brakes, ..is as important as improving power !
(Im for changing the 4 pistons front calipers against 6 pistons, with larger rotors i.e.: reason to go for sure on 18" wheels) to have room for these rotors.
..And do not forget that removing weight ..improve BOTH acceleration and braking !
(A real doubble dip "action" !)
While being on that point, good tires (i.e.: "R" compound) are also another double dip, ..or even a tripple dip, ..as in addition to help accelerations and brakings, it also help to take curves faster.
But, I think that it is important to mention again that the danger of trying to move fast a good chassis ..equipped with an M96 engine is a risky business for the health of the M96.
I would recommend to remove the oem oil (plastic with rubber doors) oil baffle and put one in place with METAL doors ("x51 style). While doing that, adding an oil sump extension would be, imo, a good thing to do too.