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Well, after tow-and-a-half agonizing years away, I finally took my "finished" car back on the track yesterday to re-take Driveway Austin's beginner's class (a good decision). I'm happy to report that the car did amazingly well - I was able to keep up with a 2001 996 turbo on the short (0.7 mile), technical, challenging section of the track they restrict the beginners to.



I was afraid that the very racing oriented suspension mods (torsion bar delete, ~675 lb wheel rate springs front and back, Moton Clubsport struts and shocks, replacement of all rubber bushings with solid or spherical ones, including the solid camber plates, solid steering rack bushing, front sway bar brace, Racers Edge heavy duty control arms, 18" wheels, Hankook RS-3 tires, and welded-in half cage) would make the car more nervous and twitchy, but nothing could be further from the truth. The car is amazingly settled, planted, and astoundingly forgiving. I was of course very rusty, and making a slew of beginner's mistakes, but I never came remotely close to losing control, so I know I left a lot on the table. That should all come back with seat time. But no matter how big of a mistake I made, the car always gave me plenty of leeway to recover.



The best part of the day was riding in my car with the school's owner's son, who races a wicked-looking Lotus Elise-based car in Grand Am. Maybe he's supposed to say this to everybody, but his reaction to my car was a real thrill. He kept repeating what a blast it is, how easy it is to drive fast, how forgiving it is, and his praise got more and more profuse with each passing lap. I literally almost couldn't get the car away from him. Made me feel really good that the basic set-up of the car is sound, considering it's a dual-purpose car, with all the compromises that come with it.



I definitely have a lot to work on - many of my downshifts were ragged, I was killing way too much momentum at several places on the track, my inputs were too jerky, and it took me awhile to get back into the habit of looking ahead, and not driving point to point. But I think I've succeed in creating a car that I can "grow into" without getting into much trouble as I hone my driving skills, which I'll have plenty of opportunity to do with the track barely two miles from my place of work.

Congrats, i know you've been looking foward to this day a long time, quite an accomplishment. these cars can compete well on the track performance wise, but you do need to push them to keep up. Not clear that they can handle the constant high rpms well, though, as they don't like vibration.

Sounds great, congratulations !

Cool!

Awesome. I have read about your track day adventures, and getting prepped for it, excellent documentation. I actually looked at your car for sale before your track conversion.



I am doing a DE in a month, and i am quite excited about it. I have autocrossed several cars for 2 decades, done a - 3 day Panoz racing school at road atlanta, and i am now diving into track days at Sebring..... 45 minutes from my house towing car on a trailer.



Cant wait. I am instructing for an all day Tire Rack teen driving event, and get a free DE, so sign me up!!! Teaching teens slalom, evasive lane change, threshold braking, and skid pad (understeer, oversteer) should be fun. Check out tire rack website for locations.



I may buy a " track rat" like an E30 for sebring and autocross, and keep 968 for family drives. It is to nice to bet up, since getting it 100%

FQ

Yes, I call my 968 my "accidental track car", as turning it into a track rat was the farthest thing from my mind when I bought it in 2004. But I got bitten by the track bug, and, as you pointed out, tried selling it and using the proceeds to buy or build a real track car. But I was unsuccessful at selling it, so decided to convert it. I'm sure there are much more capable platforms for converting to a track car, but what I like about the 968 is that it's very well balanced and forgiving, and since it doesn't have as much power as a lot of the cars you see at a typical DE event or practice session, it forces you to learn to carry a lot of speed through the corners.

Cloud good job. Now the fun begins! Let us know about your progression on the learning curve as it comes back to you. I suspect it will come back quickly with even some limited seat time. It should be interesting to learn the cars new dimensions with all of your mods. Your so lucky to be close to your track with its access! Lucky dog. Lol

Fantastic. Excited for you; know you've been waiting for a long time. Patience sometimes pays off. Sounds like you had a great first day.



Congrats!!!

Glad you got it out....I take it that it did not over heat.



I have done a lot of track days in my days.....and this is one reason I bought the 968 was to be able to do one every once in a while....but actually I think I will not do any this year....just really love driving it right now on the road. I don't want to "ruin" it as I did with my Audi's. I think the Porsche would go better on the track (read: less beating on the car), but it's still an expensive, slippery slope.



I'm doing a major radio install in parallel with siding my house, I don't have no stinkin' time for track days (read: jealous of you). Tear it up!!!

Congrats Cloud!!!! Sounds like your time and effort paid off. Good Job!!!!

Sometimes good things take awhile to work out. Congrats.

Thanks for the encouraging words. Yes, it's been a very long journey - much of this car was in boxes in my room for a depressingly long time, so it's very gratifying that it all seems to work together so well - I never dared to predict such a positive outcome. But it's ALL thanks to all the great advice and help I got along the way.



As far as the coolant temp - lol - this just proves I'm a 968 hypochondriac, but on a hot central Texas August day, after a total of well over an hour of lapping total, the temp gauge barely moved above 9 oclock. Maybe there is something to this notion that engines run cooler once they're broken in.

Congratulations. Following your build journey has been very interesting. Look forward to more posts about your track experiences.

Awesome! I'd love to go play with a few of the guys around here on the track. Sounds like we'd have some fun. Congrats on successfully completing the long journey.



I don't think he was lying to you though. Cars are fun to drive...These cars rock. I was saying the same stuff about driving my buddies 914 on the track back a few years ago...

Play? Like at a DE or on a closed track with a limited number of cars?

Yes, either one. I do some DE with PCA regions, but I've done a couple of open track days with other folks as well. I prefer the open track format. It's not racing, but the passing rules are less restrictive. It's fun to get with similar cars and "play"... Going out with other marques is cool.

Do any DE this year? What region. I'm thinking of doing a BMW deal at Pocono in October.

check out schattenbaum, they have good ones. there is one coming up in September at njmsp. let me know if you need any info.

It is on my calendar but I'm at Pocono the week before with Reisentoter. Provost Motorsports in Bordentown, NJ, where I get my cars serviced, are big Schattenbaum guys. So far their dates haven't matched my availability but I have heard they are a fun group to run with. So is Reisentoter!

you get a lot of track time and they space the run groups well. my car is at provost now, having compressor replaced.. they do very good work and robbie is a friend.