that had me loling... there you go though cab or targa might cure the open air appeal.

Walt. Kind what you to say. The "purposeful" part is in reality the result of work done in the last 18 months or so as a result of exposure to this track day addiction. "Fit for Purpose" now has relevance! Prior to this much of the work & $$$ was cosmetic (interior/exterior etc). As you can appreciate its not a project that makes economic v benefit sense...just a hobby that out of control!

Pete has some relevant points re the racing. First and foremost we are a social group bound by a common passion. The 2K car race makes perfect economic sense but doesnt deliver on the Porsche theme. That said its an economic solution.

My situation is quite different from many here. I am quite happy with the RSG/Playday menu complimented with our bespoke annual NITT and a bi annual Playday SITT and complimented by an annual Targa Tour outing (North island three day event). This is what I've programmed into my 20015+2016 budget/calender. My personal goals are simply to become a better/faster driver on and off track and to continue to develop my 993 over the next 3-4 years until it is an accomplished machine which can be realistically competitive and reliable in international events from 2018 when it qualifies for Northern Hemisphere historic events. If I want to simply be the quickest on the track then I can take the keys to the GT3, but I'm wanting to become a faster more skilled driver regardless of the machine I am in. I think if I were to go racing it would be one make series. Otherwise RSG/Targa gives me all I need (4-6 track days a year and a 3 day tarmac event plus 3-4 Ron's Sunday runs is in reality enough to fill in my NZ days).

Benefits of living in the Tron. Yay for you! :-P

Thanks for the offer to "soften up Lola" with heated seats but I really think I prefer the rawness (and coldness of the seats) as is. It's all part of the experience.

Ha ha... Sam, you need to take the Boxster for a run one day, or ask Paul. It's amazing. Close to 300hp in a two seater mid-engined configuration with smooth manual shift, heated seats, massive sun roof, good sound system, two boots, brilliant handling, and th shrill from the engine right behind your seat at 4,000+ revs is intoxicating.

The original plan was Boxster S for DD, lots of NZ wide touring, and now annual Targa Tour which it is well matched for. It was pretty cheap (under 50k) so the depreciation won't be too bad over a few years.

Lola was for polishing and feeling good about, Sunday retro drives, making lots of noise, taking to the track, getting grease under my fingernails, and more manly touring.

So, I kinda have the recipe right except I love the 964 so much I don't really want to make it into a hard out track rat. I like her as is. Which then defeats some of the purpose of purchasing her in the first place.

Food for thought and I appreciate all the feedback and ideas!

This group should have seen the big grins on Doug, John and Dave's faces after thrashing the $1800 beater and discovering there was not too much difference (Doug does have a weight advantage).. you don't need to spend squillions if the track is the focus .. anything will give the buzz. As a lay person on what this group has done to their cars to shave 0.5 of a second off Pauls times and the $$ invested, I think there are two or three ways to go.. Karts and beaters for the track buzz, SITT, Targa and playdays for Porsche, or go the full Monte like Macca or Dave and turn your car into something stunning. If these 964 Air suckers are going to be so valuable soon, seems a shame to modify them too much..they go pretty well as they are. Although not as quick as the mighty 996TT..
I love driving my car as quick as I can, but don't care if somebody is quicker.. they will still buy me a beer later.. Bring on the Karts, that's the great leveller!

As one of the spectators watching Matt, he picked up on the track and got straight to business, shaving what seemed like seconds every go-round. Simon was also doing some owning of his own, quite enjoying the new ABS.

Edit: PHG
^^^^^^ you are right, it was really good fun! And more competitive when we all drive the same car, a great leveler. I can see the lighter of us being fitted with lead weights like jockeys soon.

Doug you may have gone full circle and answered your own question here mate. Keep the status quo. Sounds like each car addresses a niche requirement for you.

Mark , when I last talked with Dean at CCS , he mentioned you where happy with the breaker bar
imported for your center locks , I am yet to buy one , would you mind sharing the contact ?

Hi mate. Its a work of art. Breaks down into three pieces in a case fits perfectly in the luggage space, self calibrating/zeroing. Precision Instruments made in USA. They are US based and made these units for Snap-On. Its a 600lbft torque wrench but you can drop the gauge part and lock it up with the shorter handle and use as a breaker bar assuming you are reasonably strong and over 80kg. So it serves two purposes. I wouldnt travel without it with CL wheels., especially at the track - Neil had that nightmare with his 7.2 in Manfield last NITT which taught me the lesson. Dean said it was better than his LOL!

I cant for the life of me remember exactly what I paid for it or where I bought it. It was recommended on 997.2 GT3 board. I think an online tool supplier in the states for $400 USD. I had it sent to FDMotorsport and they shipped it to me as a favour with some gear I bought....

Heres on on ebay for similar what I paid plus free CONUS shipping so have it sent to a freight consolidator like that NZ Post partner in teh states and then they will ship it to you will owe you less than $450 landed...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Precision-In...-/300520050803

I have a couple smaller PI torque units - they are very nicely made & love that I don't need to rezero them. +1

Doug - here is my spin on it. If you have 2 cars for yourself(not family) then I would keep one exclusively for track AND targa and the other for DD and touring. Whereas you are saying boxter will do targa tour. The reason for my different view is that although Targa Tour is a bit like touring it is more hard out and inevitably you will want brake and tyre upgrades as well as potentially some suspension. Keeping 2 cars for this means accelerated wear and maintenance on both like gearbox etc which will get heavy on the budget sooner or later and this is money that can be spent wisely n other things. The beater is a great idea and fun but you all can circulate the track in your existing cars so going 20%-30% slower isn't going to teach you much. That then means racing the beater in 2k. So got to step up to this. I still think that racing karts for a year will teach you more about racing faster. Kart racing is closer, year round, wet , dry, 5 or 6 heats (races ) per day so the skills get honed faster and because fields are tight there will always be someone in front and someone behind. I am still betting that the boys that do the July day will be blown away with the intensity of the experience.
Secondly the best thing about multiple car ownership is to have cars that are different. The Boxster achieves that in being convertible. I still miss my one used as a DD. I used the top down much more than I thought even in wellywood.
specialized cars but in different segments - that is the message both Chris B an I gave John when we had dinner in welly a couple of weeks ago. 3 Pcars and not one of them hard out enough!! selling the 996 is a big opportunity for him haha. He's gonna buy a Kart after July ... and the spare cash buys a lot of racing and trackdays in Karts, beater and 964

Great , thanks for that , I will follow up and get one sorted .

..

Dougie - you need to buy a forth Porsche.........

Then you have a daily, Sunday driver, boat tower and.........a race car......