I really liked the red wheel color (which was temporary Plastidip) so I went ahead and had two sets professionally painted. Still going to try out gold on the last set just to see what they look like.

http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/...psb3bb4474.jpg

Wheels off inspection yesterday to check brakes, rotors, suspension, and tires. Yes, using the lift I can inspect all of those items with the wheels on, but to get a really good look its easiest for me to remove the wheels so I have full access and clear visibility to everything.

As you can see, there is still pad (EBC Yellowstuff) remaining on the front brakes (rears have even more) but the rotors are starting to crack and there is some grooving on the face of the rotor (hard to photograph, easy to feel!).

The cracks are normal/expected. I got the light just right to highlight the biggest crack so it showed up in the photo. Because of this, I have to replace the rotors every time that I replace the pads. Solid or slotted rotors wouldn't crack but I tried them and think that the drilled rotors cool better and have a better feel as a result.

Tires (Toyo RR) are in good shape with generally even wear across the width of the tire. Looks like the alignment, especially camber, is set about right. There is still a reasonable amount of tread remaining after 8 heat cycles (three of which were races) since the wear dots (or whatever those little holes in the tread are called) are still visible.

http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/...ps5f5f71ba.jpg

http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/...ps8bdccf44.jpg

http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/...ps9810e885.jpg

http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/...ps494e0870.jpg

Getting ready for upcoming races at AutoClub Speedway with PCA and Willow Springs Raceway with POC so I had the car at the shop for some lightening and maintenance;

Weight removal = 84lbs Car is still about 75lbs over min weight (with driver) so there will be more to come on this subject.

• Remove front and rear crash bumpers – 30lbs
• Remove one low speed radiator fan - 12lbs
• Remove passenger racing seat + mount + harnesses – 25lbs
• Remove windshield wiper system – 8lbs
• Installed lighter "clam shell” mounts – 5lbs
• Removed trunk carpet & heater core coolant pipes for heater core – 4lbs

Upgrades/Maintenance

• Install wheel studs to make tire changes at the track easier
• Improved alignment - add more camber, still wearing outside edge of tires
• Improved ride height - set car to min spec ride height and optimal rake
• Nut and Bolt - torque check for all fasteners
• Change air filter
• Change oil + filter
• Top up power steering fluid
• Top up brake fluid

Next weekend - new brake pads and rotors!

FYI -- 2014 Spec Boxster rules require windshield wiper system to be installed.

I did the same thing regarding removing just 1 radiator fan. It's not a bad idea to keep one radiator fan in case you have to idle at stop for some reason (grid, red flag, diagnostics, etc.). Or if you need to drive the car in traffic in a pinch! Best to remove the driver side fan in the interest of equalizing left-right weight.

My car is also overweight but probably not by as much. The obvious things for me still to do are:
- additional door material around the edges
- tar paper in doors
- replace trunk latches with hood pins
- smog pump blower thing

I'm sure there's at least 10 lbs of wiring that can be removed, but that is a big process!

Looking good!

Something to note:

Porsche factory cross drilled rotors last MUCH longer than solid rotors that are drilled. They are internally directional and cast with the holes. They are 1lb lighter per rotor than stock solid.

I'll send you a PM explaining more :) and which ones to buy. They are not expensive.

NO. The spec ride height was introduced to keep people from modifying their rear shocks!! This is NOT a guideline!! Please look at Nathan's car!! (you know? the guy kicking everyone's ass on the west coast?) :) there is NOT one single fast car in this country running *at* the spec ride height. My cars are typically 10-15mm's higher than the rules call for!!

Get rid of this.. it traps heat in the rotor. Works great on the street.. No racing caliper has a spring clip, your caliper doesn't need it ;) (7+ years of not running them)

I just noticed something else in this pic.. buy the factory clips for the pad pin!!

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01...1395678166.jpg

Tom, you see me on the wall doing tire temps and pressures for cars every weekend at every track :) ping me offline, I'll discuss what I've found with the RR (nationwide)

What ride height are you running front and rear? I generally measure from fender lip to center of wheel.

It's a starting number, the final number comes out after the corner weights. Me giving you numbers won't help you :(

We run ride height XX because of the bump steer in these cars. Run them super low? bad bump numbers. Since we cannot adjust the bump in SPB (like I would in a full monoball car) RAISE the car up until the bump numbers get better :cheers: Simple.

BoxsterS has less bump gain in the rear due to a change in the casting. They moved the toe link back from axle centerline, which slows the toe gain in bump.

Thanks - since I'm not SPB bound, my car has adjustable bump - so I'm less worried about it.

Since I'm new to this world - just trying to gain as much knowledge as I can. The previous owner kept extremely detailed notes on setup, corner balancing etc. I'm going to drive the thing a few times and see whats up.

PCA Club race at Thunderhill next weekend.

I'll be there with 4 customer Boxsters.

Sign up for the DE, and I'll help you anyway I can :cheers:

The NorCal Boxster racers help each other .. a lot.

Unfortunately I can't make it - wife's big Bday weekend in Sonoma County.

Really appreciate the offer and really wish I could make it.

Ok ;)

CA Speedway festival speed PCA club race the weekend after THILL race :)

Should have 8 customer cars at that event for me :)

Sorry, I should have said that we set the ride height to "optimal" instead of minimum! For background, the car was initially set kind of high to ensure no scraping issues while I drive to/from the tracks. Since I haven't had any problems, we wanted to get the car set to the best ride height for performance.

It wasn't for you :) It was more of a rant to keep other people from thinking that the ride height rule was the starting point for their alignment :) You just gave me the opportunity :)

Ok Brad, I hear you. New pads, new rotors, no springs, and factory retaining clips!

See you at Fontana!

http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/...pscdc3f912.jpg

Racing - its all about tire management!

http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/...ps2933798b.jpg

Oh. Good to know.

It was so great finally meeting you at the festival of speed today Tom! Thanks for taking the time to show me your car, now I have no choice but to sell the Volvo and get a Porsche!

Dude, you kill me.

Just so everyone knows, my good friend little "t" qualified 1st and won the Boxster Spec race at the California Festival of Speed today. He pretty much decimated the field. I qualified 4th and finished 5th (of 9 cars).

Tomorrow, we have another race in the morning and an optional race in the afternoon so stay tuned...

I'm making the Plunge and buying a Porsche! But first I have to sell the Volvo….

2002 Volvo S-60. Silver with dark gray interior. Vehicle Includes, 4 wheel disc brakes, ABS brakes, AM/FM/CD radio, Ice Cold Air conditioning, Anti-whiplash front head restraints, Automatic temperature control, Bodyside moldings, Brake assist, CD player, Delay-off headlights, Dual front impact airbags, Dual front side impact airbags, Front beverage holders, Front center armrest, Front dual zone A/C, Front fog lights, Front reading lights, Heated door mirrors, Ignition disable, Illuminated entry, Leather shift knob, Leather steering wheel, Memory seat, Occupant sensing airbag, Outside temperature display, Overhead airbag, Power adjustable rear head restraints, Power door mirrors, Power driver seat, Power windows, Rear bench seats, Rear beverage holders, Rear fog lights, Rear reading lights, Rear seat center armrest, Rear window defroster, Remote keyless entry, Security system, Split folding rear seat, Steering wheel mounted audio controls, Tachometer, Telescoping steering wheel, Tilt steering wheel, Traction control, Trip computer.

PM me with any questions….

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01...1396824203.jpg

I don't know, I think the Volvo will be pretty competetive on the track along side the Porsches.

Especially with those stone impregnated slicks I see you have. :p

I saw another volvo racing with the Porsches already http://youtu.be/Czfn3tgcofM

Here is some racing video from Sunday's 15-lap sprint race at the California Festival of Speed. I started 5th, went to 4th, dropped to 5th, back to 4th, then to 3rd, and finished 4th. There are a couple of good shots of some quick saves from some serious oversteer and some good door-to-door/bumper-to-bumper racing. It was quite a battle the entire race!

You can feel like you're sitting in the passenger seat if you watch it in full screen HD.

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ZWKv3WtUkOY?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Stone BSR Festival of Speed Sprint Race #2 Apr 2014 - YouTube

Thanks for the great video thStone. Looks like a blast, great driving!

Good job Tom, I'm looking forward to Willow this weekend, we are going to do some serious damage!

Great in car video. I especially like the commentary so we can see what your thinking.

To me the passing seems like the craziest part since you need to push harder to be able to, and thats when things can get out of whack.

I suppose you can push the guy up front hard and hope he makes a mistake or gets tired and leaves you some more passing room.

I signed up for iRacing so I can do some Sim work to get a better feel for track layouts, racing lines, passing opportunities, driver reactions etc.

They have a RUF 911 to drive :D
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOTG7GYYOns&feature=share

It will be nice to be able to experiment without risking life, limb and wallet while warming up to the excitement of real wheel to wheel racing. ;)

oh nice video!
Do you know the reason why the back end was stepping out at the end of the "straight"?
Was it locking on gear downshift (mismatched rev) or something else like alignment setup?

I believe that I was getting oversteer for three reasons;

1. I was overdriving the car which over-heated the rear tires resulting in less grip.

2. I was trail-braking into the turn and was not always smooth enough in my transition from brake to full throttle.

3. I was tired and sometimes took a crappy line into the corner.

My downshifting was fine along with alignment. What I need to work on is off-line driving at full speed with tons of pressure!

looked like there were some pretty rough pavement breaks that were unbalancing your car as well.

I haven't had the pleasure of doing so. :cheers:
Nice job though. Cheers.

The reason that I think that the majority of the oversteer was driver induced is that other times (as you can see in the video), I make the turn through that same corner cleanly.

In racing situations/conditions, I am finding that consistency is a challenge because everything continually changes due to the existance of the other cars. This is the biggest change from time trialing.

and perhaps a slight throttle lift-off in times of uncertainty through a corner (traffic, rough pavement) will lighten the rear and loosen it up.

Little "t" and I will be back at Willow Springs battling the field this weekend! Look for updates here.

Here is some racing video from yesterday's 12-lap sprint race with the POC at Willow Springs Raceway.

With a 12-car Spec Boxster field, I qualified 4th, then dropped to 5th on the first lap, moved up to 2nd when the 2nd place car spun coming out of Turn 9 allowing me to pass the P2-P4 cars. Then I was passed and moved to 3rd, and finally was passed by the points leader and ended up finishing at 4th.

Funny, but if I said that I started 4th and ended 4th you'd think nothing much happened - sometimes its not where you start or end but what happens in between that makes it all worthwhile!

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/lvpFeMX4Ihw?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Stone POC BSR Race WSIR 4 12 14 - YouTube

Nice one! ... the adrenaline definitely kicks in during the black Boxster moment.

Nice driving! Great footage:cheers:

Here are a few pic's from the California Festival of Speed...

Traffic moving well on the 405 but there is sure to be a big back up at the Turn 3 offramp...
http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/...psd57821cc.jpg

About to pass Doug at 130mph...
http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/...ps01bc8922.jpg

Racing through the infield with a 911 on my tail...
http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/...ps09c6cdeb.jpg

Baseline dyno performed this afternoon...

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/R7buKbGJHn0?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

is the car not strapped down?

Here you can see the strapping in front and behind the rear wheels (front chocks were added just before the runs).

http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/...psa4e1dd54.jpg