Driver's Ed in a new car

[MikenOH]

and did our first DE @ Mid-Ohio in May where it rained for 2 days. A couple slips an slides but no off track excursions and I did gain a lot of respect for both the PS2's and the 987 suspension. I have to say, both my wife and I couldn't wait to get it on the track.

I tried covering the front in plastic but it came off in the rain,. the car was not any worse for wear. Since then we've done two more DE's and a EVO auto-x School--still trying to get the black marks off from that one.

Mabe it's that this our second Boxster but we got his car to drive, evidence the options on it, so short of bending up a fender or worse I'm not going to lose any sleep over it.

. We did auto-x for years and that is a good learning session to get a feel for the car's handling, but the DE is where you really get an appreciation for the car. What I enjoy most about DE's is the amount of seat time you get at speed vs. the auto-X. On a good day at a DE I can get over an hour on the track; at an auto-x it's less than 10 minutes.

Regarding damage to the car, both events will chew up rubber and if you get too close to the guy ahead of you at the DE, you can pick up paint dings from the gravel. I try to cover the headlight and lower trunk lip and tops of fenders. With those precautions, you'll protect the finish pretty well. With my '99', after 6 years of doing 6 auto-x's a year and 1 or 2 DE/year, we had the same brake pads, clutch and had not touched anything on the car save for tires and normal maintenance.

Bmussatti--with the seat in the lowest position you shouldn't have a problem with the broomstick on a 987. The 986 was a different animal with lower hoops. You may have to recline the seat back a bit but not much.BTW, a G-Force helmet runs $149--open face.

Keep one thing in mind with a DE, you can go as fast as you're comfortable and they do keep drivers of similar experience in the same run groups. In other words, if you're running with the novices, you shouldn't have to worry about a Jeff Gordon wannabe on your tail as you go around the track. You may want to go to an event and ride with an instructor to get a feel for what it's like or some clubs will have events just for novices. Either way, I don't think you'll regret the experience.

[z12358]

"Either way, I don't think you'll regret the experience"

Thanks MikenOH. A lot of valuable input.

[limoncello]

Taking your car to DE is an excellent way to learn the car's handling in a controlled environment. Ditto what others have said - plus:

Debris & dings: cover the front with something. I used clear plastic carpet protector from Lowe's. $10 a roll. Slap it on any old way the day before track days, remember to cut out the holes for air ducts , and peal it off gently at the end of the day. Works great, I never had any paint damage from 4 DE's.

Brakes: Just put in a higher temperature brake fluid like ATE Super Blue, which is pretty much the track standard fluid. That's it. The Boxster brakes are wonderful right from the factory. Inspect, or have someone knowledgeable inspect your pads before and after each day. Not hard to do - the track community is very collegial, most other car owners are glad to share their knowledge.

Tires: Tires will get chewed up a little on the edges, and make a little more noise on the interstate. It's a price you have to pay...

Helmet: Mine cost under $200 for a Bell. Not all helmets are equal. Check the rating required for your track. Most tracks require at least SA 2000. Check before you buy. Some are going to the later rating of SA 2005. So first, find out what the track requires, then go to a site like saferacer.com and look for the cheapest name brand helmet (Bell and G-Force are good) that meets your need. Check the closeouts (last year's colors) and you may find a bargain, but be sure the rating is right. They will mix non-rated helmets in the closeout mix. Beware.

Warranty: Hmmmm. Little cloudy here. If there is a good Porsche aftermarket shop, you may want to use them to do your track preps. Course, when you go in for the 15,000 checkup sporting bright blue brake fluid with the fashionably worn edges on the tires, they might put the pieces together. I feel like track days should not affect repairs like the A/C doesn't work, or a window lift motor craps out. But if, say, your clutch goes out and you show signs of tracking, there could be a negotiation that follows...

For me - it was worth every nickel of it. Feeling the car do what it was designed to do, in a controlled environment, was a blast. And if I had broken my clutch I would have paid the aftermarket shop to fix it, and not bothered to go to the dealer.
It's a ton of fun. Hope this helps. BTW, each HPDE day I got 6 x 20 minute outings, 2 hours total track time per day. Can't beat it.

[longislander1]

I thought I read on here or one of the other boards that Porsche can download info from the computer indicating whether you've abused the car (exceeded rev limit, etc.). I wonder whether DE has any effect on that. Of course, PCNA has to know that we're not buying these cars just to take a ride to the supermarket.

[dezigns]

I've been to 3 autox's this year, and am fully hooked. Haven't given the DE a shot yet, I've been too busy looking forward to AXs and getting faster each time. Only thing that seems to happen is the tires get a bit gummy.

Regarding someone's point about dealers...I know for a fact my dealer sponsors autocrosses, in addition to driver's ed and driver's events. These cars can handle these sort of sporting events - its what they're engineered for. Bouncing off the rev limiter day and night is NOT cool, but 5-6 AXs a year and a DE event here and there won't hurt a thing, IMO.

[z12358]

Lots of good input here. Pls keep it coming.

limoncello, I assume you're doing your track maintenance (incl brake fluid change) at an independent shop. As for the warranty, I was told by the salesman that the clutch was not covered by it anyway. They treat it just like brake pads -- something that wears out more or less depending on abuse. I think all of the Tiptronic system IS covered as there's no clutch for the driver to abuse. The mosr important question is: Isn't the warranty voided by doing maintenance at an independent shop?

longislander1, you are right about the car keeping track of historical operation data onboard. The Porsche service can definitely see if you've touched the rev-limiter. I'm not concerned by that as I don't plan to hit it -- at least not on purpose.

[z12358]

dezigns:
I've been too busy looking forward to AXs and getting faster each time.

Please tell more about the AutoX experience. Is it true that you almost never change above 2nd gear? How long is a typical course (length, time, etc)? Does hitting the cones leave marks, dings on the paint, body?

Everyone, how about insurance (no one mentioned it). I read somewhere that some people buy separate track insurance for their cars, as the normal one doesn't seem to cover track usage.

[dezigns]

Originally Posted by z12358

Please tell more about the AutoX experience. Is it true that you almost never change above 2nd gear? How long is a typical course (length, time, etc)? Does hitting the cones leave marks, dings on the paint, body?

I've never gotten to 3rd gear, only upshifted to 1st on one or two occasions...really tight chicane / box turns. Wear on the clutch, for me, is nonexistent as I 90% of the time take off in 1st, get into 2nd, and keep it there.

I imagine a cone could leave a slight plastic-y mar on a body panel if you hit it fast enough - but nothing that couldn't be buffed out with a proper polish. Personally, I don't know, as I've never hit one

For me, the AX experience justifies my Porsche purchase - I drive my Box every day to / from work, which consists of driving up and down I95 everyday. Not very exciting, nor optimum utilization of the car's performance aspects. AutoX for me is truly enjoying the car, and learning better driving control and habits. Why buy $150 Air Jordans if you dont play basketball? Yes, the car has a lifestyle cache to it, but I didnt buy it to look cool - I bought it to enjoy its characteristics and performance.

I highly recommend it to any owner. It's a competitive, adrenalin fueled experience, and like someone else said, you can really enjoy the social aspect of it once you get to know the PCA regulars in your area.

[limoncello]

The warranty issue is cloudy as noted, and a most peculiar cloud too. The facts as we know them:

a. The cars are high performance cars. Surely Porsche does not build and sell these cars to demure great grandmothers. They market performance, they must suspect that we (the buyers) will drive them.

b. HPDE's are growing in popularity. Lots & lots of Porsches (all kinds) attend these events. Probably as much or more than any other marque.

c. The most popular days (in our area) are sponsored by PCNA. Well run events, heavily attended, great reputation for strong safety emphasis. Porsche owners from 3 states driving their cars, talking, recreating in the evenings. Good fun, good sport.

Back to warranty: I suspect if one were to ask the dealer point blank, the answer might be "no", since that's the answer he/she has to give. Corporate line. But, say you're a good customer, the damage isn't too great, they know from the events that you drive well (not a car destroyer) - maybe they fix it anyway to keep your business. Also, some dealers are inherently evil, and don't like to fix anything, even legit repairs, while others are more user friendly. Dealers vary. I guess what I'm trying to say is that it really is a squishy area - there may not be clear black and white answers. My approach was to drive my car like I had to fix it. This takes a little off your lap time, but the brakes and clutch last a lot longer. Also, I use no trailer - my car has to take me home at the end of the day.

Brucelee or others, feel free to jump in on the dealer/warranty thing. My views are as a consumer only.

Rev limiter - nice thought that one will not hit it. My first day I did indeed hit it several times out of naivete and blind exitement. It's gonna happen, just like the occassional spin is gonna happen. The more I drove, the more experienced I got, the less I hit it. Your max torque is around 6-6500 I think, so there's really not a lot of need to hit it, but I did somehow. All part of the experience.