Picked the car up from the cage builder today. Took a few quick pics, failed to get on showing bars going to the front strut mounts.

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Nice! Looks great! :cheers:

I'm pleased with it. There are one or two things I would like to be different. The rear harness bar is straight and nearly against my seat. This setup will not work for a longer-legged person, but the bar can easily be replaced. We did look into an FIA bar, but I did not think there would be enough room for rapid egress (I've been in a car that was on fire, so I want to be able to get out quickly). Now that it is completed, the builder did a great job moving the doors outward and keeping them fairly low, yet safe. I'll run this way for the first few tests and then decide if I need another bar. The car has much better ingress and egress than my 944LS. I am glad he was able to tie in the front strut towers.

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Exhaust system is just about done, just need to decide if I'm using two or one tips, clean up some welds, and black out the entire exhaust with high-temp black paint. Using turbo perforated mufflers and 2" exhaust tubing from the headers.

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Aligned the car on Monday and roll cage painting has begun. Made a plate to insert into the dash for switches and gauges. Photos to come. T-minus 10 days to first real testing.

What are you using to paint the cage? I was in a rush and didn't paint mine before reassembling the car...will probably make that a project for this winter

Rustoleum. Cage will need one more coat, but you get the idea, going for a black/white livery. NOTE: I love the ease with which the doors can be removed, makes working on the interior so much easier.

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Looks great. Wish I had that style of cage with the lower bars - would make entering and exiting so much easier for this old guy :-)

And this old guy!

Tip: Apply clear racer's tape to some of the roll bar surfaces that have everyday contact with people and things. Especially the harness bar, cross bar, any unpadded door bars. It functions as a shiny paint protection that will keep the paint in much better shape for a longer time.

Not a bad idea.

Still trying to decide if I will paint the interior or not (white). On the plus side, it will keep the interior cooler and aid in finding items dropped on the floor. On the negative side, every time I've painted the interior of a car, it has looked like :eek:

Still need to add all the little bits and pieces to finalize the dash.

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What short shifter is that? Looks like the one I have and I don't know what came in my car.

B&M knockoff

Thanks - I was thinking B&M based on photos but could be a knockoff as well. I'll be honest - I don't like it much. It could be just worn out - but it has no real spring "side" assist which makes it dicey going from 2-3. Have to make very deliberate shifts or I'll wind up in 5th.

I like the feel, but have not driven on track with it yet. The throws are certainly short, but feel robust. A 2-5 shift won't kill you, but a 5-2 might hurt.

Tried pulling the end bushings and re greasing yet? Could be dry and adjusted too tight since there is no spring assist built into the shifter. Most likely just dry. I pulled mine and also re greased the bearings in the lever assembly. Like new now.

I have not. Should have the car back by Monday - I'll take a look at it when I get the car back. Thanks for the tip.

You're very welcome! Be sure to pull that pivot bolt on the shaft, there is a roller bearing in there. Mine was so dry the rollers were frozen.

Rear lexan window is in place (need to update the pic). I used well nuts (rubber) that are often used for motorcycle fairings. Easily removable to replace the window (or to remove to paint the top).

To secure the top, I've decided not to use Dzus fasteners as my experience is that they tend to pop open at the worst times. Instead, I'm going to use rivet nuts and large headed screws. This method will require a bit more time to attach/detach the roof, but at least I won't have to worry about the top coming off at speed.

Pic for attention.
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Got the top mounted yesterday. Top has not yet been painted, and the edges of the window will be "blacked" out. That can wait till after testing the next two weekends.

Still need to mount the rear view mirror, hang the doors, and install the brake cooling ducts and I'm ready to head to the track.

Updated pic for attention.
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Washed and ready for the weekend. Still lots to do on the car, but it's a good start.

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Looks good! Hope all goes well on the maiden voyage.

I agree. Looks great!

I am thinking about fabbing up a similar exhaust for my '02 Autox Boxster. Can you tell me where you got the mufflers from and how much the exhaust weights?

I am thinking about butchering up my cheap Bay 2" test pipes and Mig welding some 14" bullet mufflers. Thought about going reallly light with some Burns or Coast Fab bullet mufflers that weigh about 3lbs each, but they are also $300 each and really loud.

Fabspeed makes a similar Spec car exhaust for $1295, but I just don't want to spend $$$ when I can make something similar in one afternoon.

Sorry, I did not weigh the pipes before installing. The system is clearly lighter than stock, but probably not as light as I could have gone. Of course, I have $140 invested in the system and still have 7' of 2" tubing left.

Sound is fantastic, nice an quiet down low, picking up with revs. Can't wait to hear it on the track this weekend, will get some vids and sounds.

Looks great! Good luck this weekend! :cheers:

Great test weekend, even with the teething problems.

My alignment guess worked out very well, tire temps across the face were less than 10 degrees. Was hitting the bump stops in a few places, but upped the compression and it was much better. Overall, very happy with the car.

It was hot (90) and sunny, slippery track in the afternoon but absolutely no issues with overheating. Even with poor grip and well used toyo RR's, times were pretty good, and I think I can get the car to the times I want. Actually bested the SPB lap record from 2008 on the cars maiden voyage, but that record seems high compared to what these cars are capable of doing.

Still lots to do on the car, more testing next weekend at Barber.


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As someone who is completely green to working on cars/racing... I will be following this thread closely. My short term goal is to just get a solid 97-99 Boxster, drive it on the streets for a couple years, then convert to a SPB. Hopefully in a couple years, this thread will be a gold mine for me! Good luck with the build! Any tips for a rookie?

Do your research and don't be in a hurry when buying used.

Thanks! And it definitely is hard to find a good 986. I know that flat 6 engines are quite complicated, especially when you factor in water cooling.

Am I better off starting with something more simple? Like a Miata or 944? Or can one reasonably go from zero car tooling experience to owning and understanding a flat 6?

Miata's are about as simple as they get and parts are really inexpensive. I've seen decent spec miata's go for less than $10k. Both cars will take time to learn - but in the end the Miata will be more forgiving if something big goes wrong.

Agree, a Miata would be cheaper and easier. Having built a few 944 race cars, I would not build another. To be honest, I like working on the boxster more, it is certainly easier to align and I don't see anything that harder.

Second weekend of testing went extremely well. Car ran without a hitch and it sooooo much fun to drive. I don't understand why everyone thinks these cars are tail happy? Mine is incredibly neutral and trail brakes extremely well. Managed to knock of considerable time from last weekend and am close to my goal. Will just need newer tires and cooler weather to get there.

It was hot a Barber and water temps never got above an indicated 190oF. I plan to install oil temp gauges for both the engine and trans when I get time. Late Sunday afternoon I was able to run a full 45 minute stretch at speed and the car was consistent from start to finish.

Compression is set at full stiff and I am still bouncing off the bump stops in a few places, guess I will up the ride hit 5mm and try again.

Vid will follow when I have time.

The livery is coming along. http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1499029559.jpg

Car is just about done, just a few details to make it race ready, certainly ready for more testing (RA in 10 days). Here's the livery, QR codes works.

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Looks great - good luck!

Cleaned up some wheels this weekend, added paint to one set and mounted my RA1 rain tires. Not sure if I like the white wheels or not.

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I think they look good going with your black car / white decals. I've been considering whether to do white if I get my wheels repainted. The car is maroon (Arena Red) with all white decals, so it would have a similar kind of white-dark contrast.

My wife, the artist of the family, is responsible for the livery. She wants to add a splash of red or orange to match the rear lights and possibly do one set of wheels in the same color.

Also raised the shifter 40mm tonight, diy all the way. Still need to clean them up and throw a coat or two of paint on them. Very solid, and only a couple of bucks and a few minutes of welding.

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