Kirk's Ride...

[Kirk]

When life throws you lemons... make lemonade, right? I got hit on my motorcycle in May of last year. Totaled out my bike and almost totaled out me. I'm recovering and I'm anticipating to settle with the insurance company later this year. So what to do for fun now that the bike's gone and I've got a little money coming? I decided to start modifying my 2000 Boxster S.

Here are the mods I've done so far, most in the last half of 2007:

Interior
Aluminum pedals with "Porsche" name on them
TV monitor in middle of dash
HKS CAMP system to feed car data to the monitor
Knock Link - knock sensor and display
Polk door speakers (I have the DSP stereo system)

Engine
I don't really plan on doing much now. I just installed a K&N air filter. Maybe I'll upgrade to a 3.6L in the future, once Todd and others figure out how to bullet-proof the electronics/DME changes.

Suspension
Gemballa lowering springs
Lower stress bars

Exterior
Screen mesh behind front bumper grills and side vents
Carbon fiber hood
Dzus fasteners to hold down hood, otherwise it bulges in the middle, all of the CF hoods seem to have this problem. The Dzus fasteners with my custom brackets hold it down perfectly flat.
Litronic headlights - just picked these up this weekend. I tried tint film and tint paint first and didn't like either. Finally got a good deal on some litronics.
Tinted side markers
Tinted 3rd brake light
BSA wheels w/Falken tires
Chrome lug bolts
Removed bumperettes and replaced with metal screen
Removed rear "Boxster" badge and left a red "S" in its place

I've got some cool plans for the future. I like a more radical look to the Boxster, what some would consider "rice". I have the following parts then that I need to paint and install:

Gemballa GT rear bumper
Gemballa GT exhaust
Gemballa GT side skirts
Porsche speedster humps

I also still have some dash speakers that I need to custom install, and I need to roll the fenders to fit the wheels I have (minor rub issue in back).

Right now I'm focused on getting the exhaust and rear bumper on. I've test fit the bumper and it goes on pretty well, so that's not a problem. I test fit the side skirts and I think I'll take those to a body shop as they need some work to make them fit perfectly. I'm taking my time as it's winter, cold, rainy, and the car's not going anywhere.

When I get these mods done I will still want to change out the rear (amber) tail lights, add a wing (Fiberwerks Daytona), and probably add a more aggressive front bumper to match the Gemballa body kit (their GT front bumper is too mild, almost the same as stock). I'm thinking of the 997 GT3 style bumper that fits a 986.

Here's one photo of my car from before I got the chrome lug bolts and litronics.

Kirk

[Gary in BR]

Looks really sharp!!

I have a question about the HKS CAMP system, can you use watch the display and listen to the radio at the same time.

The carbon hood looks great.


Good job

[dcporsche99]

IMHO, your mods have been tastefully done and your future plans looks like they will further add to the personality of your car. The CF hood, I never thought I would like it, but I've grown accustomed to it since my brother put one on his VW 337 w/ a similar color combination as yours.

[Kirk]

Originally Posted by Gary in BR

I have a question about the HKS CAMP system, can you use watch the display and listen to the radio at the same time.

Yes, the monitor I installed is separate from the stereo system. So I only have the audio from the HKS CAMP going through the monitor speakers. That's not the most ideal setup for the alarm function the CAMP has. You can set an alarm to go off above a certain speed, certain revs (like a shift light), etc. With the stereo blasting you probably wouldn't hear the alarm. Other than that the CAMP doesn't really make much noise.

Kirk

[Gary in BR]

Let me ask my question a different way...
Is the monitor part of the radio?

If it is all one monitor can you watch the HKS and listen to music on the same radio? So you would have the video of the HKS and the audio of lets say your IPOD or XM?

I looked into getting the Brockway ( http://www.brockwayengineering.com/products.html )display but I am afraid that when I have the gauges on the display the other radio functions would be useless?

Plus, how about a few photos of the inside.

[Kirk]

Originally Posted by Gary in BR

Let me ask my question a different way...
Is the monitor part of the radio?

If it is all one monitor can you watch the HKS and listen to music on the same radio? So you would have the video of the HKS and the audio of lets say your IPOD or XM?

I looked into getting the Brockway ( http://www.brockwayengineering.com/products.html )display but I am afraid that when I have the gauges on the display the other radio functions would be useless?

Plus, how about a few photos of the inside.

I'll try to get some photos of my interior. My monitor is not integrated into the dash. It's actually a separate monitor that's mounted just below the sight line to be legal in California. So the monitor and HKS CAMP in my car is a completely independent system from the stereo. I had it integrated with the stereo in my last car, but that was a complete aftermarket system. My Boxster has the DSP stereo system and other than switching drivers I haven't screwed with that yet. So yes, I can watch anything on the monitor and still listen to anything on the radio as they are separate units.

Kirk

[Kirk]

Here are a few more photos:

The BSA wheels have a nice lip in the rear. The photo shows the chrome lug bolts installed. I got them for $75 from Vertex Auto - a set of 20. They're very good quality. I'll put up a separate post about them sometime as I took lots of photos.

I installed a Polk 5.25" driver in the stock door location. This required a little Dremel modification of the plastic enclosure, but it fit well. I've got a Mark Levinson 3.5" and the matching Polk tweeter to install in the dash yet.

The Dzus fastener holds the CF hood down tight. When the hood is made the materials shrink and create a less than perfect fit with the finished product. Just about all of the CF hoods I've seen on Boxsters and 996's bulge in the middle as a result. This was my fix - custom brackets underneath and a Dzus 1/4 turn fastener on each side of the hood. My hood lies nice and flat now.

Kirk

[Kirk]

I've totally de-badged the exterior of my car. The Porsche wheel crests are gone since I have aftermarket wheels and the hood crest is gone because I have a carbon fiber hood. All that was left was the rear "Boxster S" badge. This was my answer - just a simple, red "S". I want to leave folks guessing... Maybe they'll see the car zoom by and they'll say, "Wow, look at that S car go".

[Kirk]

Here's the current project - a Gemballa GT rear bumper, exhaust, and side skirts. This photo was from when I test fitted the bumper cover. It's just on there loose, but seems to fit okay. I still have a lot of work to do though. I need to install the exhaust and modify the metal bumper to accommodate the exhaust and the shape of the bumper cover.

[Jeph]

Mesh over the intake? Tinting headlights? Those "mods" seem counter-productive, no?

[Thumper]

I'd like to see an interior shot of the TV monitor

[blinkwatt]

Kirk where did you get the wheels?

[David N.]

All this and no engine upgrade? I guess that makes sense too, you can customize your look. Not much imagination to an engine-swap. All and all, nice looking Boxster there

BTW, carbon fiber hood is nice, but why not paint it? Is it that important that other people know it's a CF hood? And I don't mean just Kirk, someone tell me for all unpainted CF hood owners, I've always wondered. (Even the F40 has a layer of paint on it).

-David

[Kirk]

Originally Posted by blinkwatt

Kirk where did you get the wheels?

I got the wheels 2nd hand off someone in the Chicago area... They're BSA Motorsports and I believe you can find a black painted version of them cheap, cheap, cheap on eBay.

[Kirk]

Originally Posted by David N.

BTW, carbon fiber hood is nice, but why not paint it? Is it that important that other people know it's a CF hood? And I don't mean just Kirk, someone tell me for all unpainted CF hood owners, I've always wondered. (Even the F40 has a layer of paint on it).

Naw, it's not important that other people know it's a CF hood. I just like the look. It's something different from the other silver Boxsters I see all over creation and it's a look I like. I think it makes the car look a little more racey, same as with the lowering springs which give it a lower, more racey and aggressive look. If I wanted to show off I wouldn't have de-badged the car. I'd rather hide that it's a Porsche and just make it look cool.

[Kirk]

I took a trip down to Sacramento today and picked up a new (well new to me) front bumper for my car. It's a Porsche OEM MK1 GT3 bumper with the lower spoiler lip too. It needs paint, but otherwise is in pristine condition. I'm a happy camper. Stopped by the Porsche dealer too and picked up the fasteners to attach the lip spoiler to the bumper.

I'll have pics whenever I get around to actually painting the thing. No hurry as it's winter and I'm not driving the Boxster any way.

Kirk

[986chris]

hey sweet ride! like the CF. ? what did you use to remove the emblem adhesive i'm struggling with it, don't want any paint damage. thanks

[Kirk]

Originally Posted by 986chris

hey sweet ride! like the CF. ? what did you use to remove the emblem adhesive i'm struggling with it, don't want any paint damage. thanks

Thanks Chris. I used dental floss and a heat gun to help take the "Boxster" script off the rear deck lid. Then to take the residual adhesive off I just used the heat gun again and my fingernails to peel the rest off. It comes off fairly easy. I finished up with a little rubbing compound to get it really clean and the clear coat buffed up.

Kirk

[986chris]

hey thanks. alittle heat gun action sounds great, got to about 10 degrees today. if you can't drive it clean it. later

[Kirk]

Just a quick update since I'll be posting finished photos hopefully next week. The car is at a body shop now for paint and installation of the side skirts. The Gemballa rear bumper is done and the GT3 front bumper fit just fine. Those are in for paint too. So, in all I'll have new front and rear bumpers, side skirts, and humps hopefully painted and installed by early next week. I'm pretty excited.

Here's a pic of the different body parts rough finished.



The stock front bumper with my new Litronic headlights.



The HKS CAMP and Knock Link install, previously requested: