First track day in my 987

[ricof]

I took my 987.1 2.7 to Goodwood last week and I have an absolute blast. I did the morning slot which was run in sessions of 15 minutes and the order was determined based on when you joined the queue. I did four or five 15 minute sessions which was just enough, the brakes were just getting a bit hot towards the end but absolutely fine ready for the next session. My car is standard apart from the below:

- Spyder Performance front coffin arms with polybushes

- Front trailing arms polybushed

- fast road geometry 

- braided brake lines

- RBF 660 brake fluid

- Goodyear Eagle F1 Assy 6 tyres

- Modded short shift kit

I monitored the tyre pressures with did increase quite dramatically when hot - up to high 40s on the rear and high 30s on the front - a pressure gauge is essential. It did understeer much more noticeably when hot.

 

All in all a thoroughly enjoyable first TD in the Boxster! 

[brillomaster]

good stuff! hopefully another track convert 👍

yeah i normally have to drop the pressures by a good 5psi once they get warm... tricky to do with sessions, though if you check and bleed off excess pressure as soon as you come into the pits, they'll be at the right pressure when they're warm in the next session. just remember to pump them back up again for the drive home.

if you graduate to open pit lane sessions you might find the brakes, especially the fronts, become a weak point. i've been through a new set of standard front pads in less than a day before, so some pads that can take the heat a bit better might be next on your shopping list. oh and then it'll be tyres after that!

[ricof]

15 hours ago, brillomaster said:

good stuff! hopefully another track convert 👍

yeah i normally have to drop the pressures by a good 5psi once they get warm... tricky to do with sessions, though if you check and bleed off excess pressure as soon as you come into the pits, they'll be at the right pressure when they're warm in the next session. just remember to pump them back up again for the drive home.

if you graduate to open pit lane sessions you might find the brakes, especially the fronts, become a weak point. i've been through a new set of standard front pads in less than a day before, so some pads that can take the heat a bit better might be next on your shopping list. oh and then it'll be tyres after that!

It's been massively overdue! I was dropping the pressures as soon as I got off track, just for a bit of consistency as you say. What pads and tyres have you used?

[brillomaster]

used a few over the years... when i had various BMW 3 series and a Z4, i used EBC yellows and blues, which were ok, but then upgraded to Performance Friction 08s, which were great - excellent stopping power, and lasted ages. but they weren't cheap. when when i got my 986 boxster, started on the standard brembos, which were terrible, but now have some pagid RS44s in the front, which are great. but again, not cheap.

As for tyres, i used to swear by Federal 595 RSRs, but unfortunately they don't make them any more. so now i'm using accelera 651 sports, which are good, considering how ludicrously cheap they are!. better than any road tyre, but not that long lasting (though that may have been driving style and alignment issues also). im keen to try Zestino Gredge tyres, or the tried and tested Nankang NS2Rs.

money no object for a dry weather tyre i'd probably have Nankang AR1s.

[Lennym1984]

I had the Zestino Gredge tyres on my Cayman and they were okay but didn't last long before blistering on the edges (and that was with -2 camber all round).

I have AR1s for my race car and they are great and much better than the R888Rs they replaced. They're about 2s a lap (of Castle Combe) slower than slicks but get up to temperature quickly and are fine in damp weather

MRF ZTRs are supposed to be very good but as semi-slicks go, the Yoko A052 seem to be extremely well regarded

Edited July 25, 2023 by Lennym1984

[phazed]

There seem to be more Boxsters on track days in the last couple of years, well done.

I use my 3.4, 987.1 running all standard except pads and tyres. I change pads to a set of Ferodo DS2500's and change to a spare set of wheels shod with a set of Toyo R888's that are brilliant. I too ran Federal R595's in the past, they were not quite as good as the Toyo's but were considerably cheaper at the time. As for wear, I have done 6-7 open pit lane TD's with the current set and should squeeze another two out of them. The Porsche by comparison goes through tyres at half the rate of my modded track Octavia vRS shod with the same tyres, strange but true.

Tyre temps can go up by 10 psi and I have recorded temps of 52 degrees C straight after coming in to the pits!

Understeer isn't an issue and with PSM switched off and PASM switched on it really is a very capable car with the benefit of really feeling at one with the car. As an occasional track day car it is happy without further mods. As the sports seats hold so well I don't feel the need for a 4 point harness, they really are very good.

As for sessions TD's, you will very soon grow out of them. Goodwood although a great track seems quite boring as they only allow a minimum amount of cars on track and after a few laps you feel like you are on your own. I personally like a busy track so you can judge your progress against other cars. It also adds to the entertainment seeing others drive on the limit in front of you. Try Cadwell Park, open pit lane for a far more thrilling and interesting experience. I am doing Donington in a couple of weeks, again a great track. Both have elevation and an interesting layout.

 

Here's a clip from Cadwell doing a bit of filming staying behind my friends 4.6 TVR Chimaera. Just to add, another 100 bhp would be just about right!