6 months to live build thread

[itsnotanova]

Here's the exhaust I plan on using for now. I took the 997 manifolds and added pieces off a B6 S4. The rear pieces are the catalytic convertors off the Audi. I'm using the cats as mini mufflers. With them off it's very loud. With them on it's just loud. I'll experiment with them on and off. I figure that I'll already be getting dislikes from the way the car looks. Ugly and loud might get me kicked out from events. I'm guessing the exhaust system weighs 15-20 pounds and the cats add another 10. On to the cooling system for today.
As for the window frame. I'm definitely not putting a windshield back in it. I'm torn between cutting the frame off or keeping it. I do believe it adds some rigidity to the body but not enough to worry about. My biggest reason for keeping it is that I plan on jumping this thing and the rollover protecting might come in handy. That being said, I do think it would look cooler without it and will cut some weight. I'm still thinking about what I want to do. I'll be adding some reinforcement tubes for sure though.

[Smallblock454]

Originally Posted by itsnotanova

Ugly and loud might get me kicked out from events.

Ugly might not be a problem as long at it's safe.

Originally Posted by itsnotanova

As for the window frame. I'm definitely not putting a windshield back in it. I'm torn between cutting the frame off or keeping it. I do believe it adds some rigidity to the body but not enough to worry about. My biggest reason for keeping it is that I plan on jumping this thing and the rollover protecting might come in handy. That being said, I do think it would look cooler without it and will cut some weight. I'm still thinking about what I want to do. I'll be adding some reinforcement tubes for sure though.

The problem here is that the windscreen glass and the windscreen frame as constructive element add the rigidity. If you remove the glass you loose a lot of rigidity. You'll get the the best rigidity with windscreen frame, windscreen glass and sidewindows up. Without windscreen glass you'll get a lot more torsion in the front.

Reinforcement tubes can shurely help. But in the end this should be a kind of full cage (left to right and front to back) if you don't want to use a windscreen glass.

If you remove the door panels and the dashboard panel there will be enough room to do such a tube enforcement. But take care that there is enough space for yourself in case you have an accident and you don't can hurt yourself from how the reinforcement tubing is layed out (don't know if it's the right term – what i mean is where you put the tubing so it can't hurt you when there is an impact – so you have enough room for knees, elbows and so on) in the exterior. So safety always first. It can be ugly and loud as hell, but it has to be safe.

Regards from Germany,
Markus

[truegearhead]

Yes! We need more projects like this!

[The Radium King]

Originally Posted by Smallblock454

The problem here is that the windscreen glass and the windscreen frame as constructive element add the rigidity. If you remove the glass you loose a lot of rigidity. You'll get the the best rigidity with windscreen frame, windscreen glass and sidewindows up. Without windscreen glass you'll get a lot more torsion in the front.

i'll disagree with that. regarding rigidity of the boxster chassis, you have two concerns - (a) rigidity of the front subframe, and (b) rigidity of the front subframe relative to the rear subframe.

in the front sub-frame, the only opportunity for relative movement of the various components is at the strut top mounts. specifically, they may try to spread apart when subject to cornering loads. this is where a strut brace comes into play - it stops that from happening (which is why they can be made of carbon fiber - they don't need to deal with compression, only tension). they may also try to move a bit forward/backward if subject to caster loads, but note that there are already triangulation braces in the car. to support those braces i would also note the quality of steel used in that area as per the following:



regarding relative motion of the front and rear subframes (typically a torsion or twisting force - that creaking you get when you drive over a driveway lip unevenly for example) is not going to be impacted by your windshield or the presence of any strengthening along the upper forward cowl. to address this, look to reinforcing that big flat open space between the front and rear wheels - which is why you keep your door structure in place unless adding a cage.

rollover protection, front impact protection? yeah, keep your windshield. and your airbags. and your factory seats. and seatbelts. not certain that's what this is about, however. do check your regs; the broomstick test looks different without a windshield - oem rollbar probably not high enough.

[itsnotanova]

I threw on some 17x8.5 wheels with Hankook RS4 tires I got from hanging around the track. You can find cheap tires at race events. I got these for free but you can expect to pay $20-25 a tire if you get lucky. There are some very rich guys who race boxsters and they're very competitive. They want the best and will throw away tires with lots of life still in them. I'm going to leave the box like this until I can get a vibe for where I'll be racing. If the place is laid back then I'll remove the body panels to lose more weight. It only takes 5 minute to remove the hood, doors, clam and truck lid.




This is probably where most of you are going to ask why I did this. I put the radiator inside the frunk for a few reasons. I went to one radiator to lose weight and make it simpler. One radiator for a car that won't be running for long periods of time should be enough. The biggest reason is that the radiator mounted on the side can not handle the abuse I plan on putting it through. Being in the frunk should help protect it. I just need to build a mounting frame for it. I let it idle for about a half an hour with the hood closed and it stayed at 180.
I spent some time clearing for the track on my property. Here's the straight section. The total track is about 1000 yards. I had to keep it small so I could see the whole track from one spot. The first group to race are teenagers.

Almost forgot to add that I took it for a quick spin down my street. It probably wasn't the smartest thing testing how fast a car can go when there's no brakes, and the seat and steering wheel weren't bolted down. It laid rubber for 20 ft though!

[Smallblock454]

Originally Posted by The Radium King

i'll disagree with that. regarding rigidity of the boxster chassis, you have two concerns - (a) rigidity of the front subframe, and (b) rigidity of the front subframe relative to the rear subframe.

in the front sub-frame, the only opportunity for relative movement of the various components is at the strut top mounts. specifically, they may try to spread apart when subject to cornering loads. this is where a strut brace comes into play - it stops that from happening (which is why they can be made of carbon fiber - they don't need to deal with compression, only tension). they may also try to move a bit forward/backward if subject to caster loads, but note that there are already triangulation braces in the car. to support those braces i would also note the quality of steel used in that area as per the following:



regarding relative motion of the front and rear subframes (typically a torsion or twisting force - that creaking you get when you drive over a driveway lip unevenly for example) is not going to be impacted by your windshield or the presence of any strengthening along the upper forward cowl. to address this, look to reinforcing that big flat open space between the front and rear wheels - which is why you keep your door structure in place unless adding a cage.

rollover protection, front impact protection? yeah, keep your windshield. and your airbags. and your factory seats. and seatbelts. not certain that's what this is about, however. do check your regs; the broomstick test looks different without a windshield - oem rollbar probably not high enough.

Well, i think you have looked to long on that technical drawing. You should also take into consideration that your chassis has also doors, windshields and side windows. Especially the closed doors with closed side windows in combination with the front window frame and front windscreen add a lot of rigidity. That was what i'm talking about. If you remove the windscreen under that aspect, you have a lot more torsion and a less rigid chassis. If you want a fast and stable car, you need a ridgit chassis. I think we both agree on that.

Regards, Markus

[itsnotanova]

Here's a shot of me smoking one Hankook R-S4 tire for about 100 feet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRFV_rATtF8

Another thing to remember is that I'll have at least 1000lbs less weight to be moving around. less weight = less structure stiffness needed. I've taken so much weight off the front end that the car under steers like crazy. I might be taking the front sway bar off because of it being so light.

I moved the battery and used a much smaller Miata battery. The Miata battery was in my other boxster for about a year. I took it out because I kept burning through them. Not so good on a street car but seems to work fine for the beater boxster.

[Smallblock454]

Originally Posted by itsnotanova

Here's a shot of me smoking one Hankook R-S4 tire for about 100 feet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRFV_rATtF8

100 thumbs up!

I think you need a locking differential.

Regards, Markus

[itsnotanova]

Originally Posted by Anker

That's so frigging cool, Woody! I'd love to do something similar. 1000lbs is HUGE!

Originally Posted by Smallblock454

100 thumbs up!

I think you need a locking differential.

Regards, Markus

Thanks guys. I'm hoping for a total weight of 1500-1600 lbs. I'm going to go get it weighed next week to see. I'm half tempted to throw a Lincoln locker in it. I'm too cheap for a real LSD.

I'm not sure if I'll ever get to take it to a real track, but if I do I threw on some tow hooks in case. As you can see, one is a nice manufactured tow hook specifically made for a Porsche, and the other is Woody engineered from scrap. I took the factory bumper shock and cut off both ends of the shock. I then welded the mounting bracket to what was left of the shock tube and then welded a clevis shackle to the tube.


I also decided to throw a quick $10 paint job on it. I liked the blue but there are areas that are not painted at the factory. I figured it would look less ugly if it was one color everywhere. Plus flat black adds 15 horsepower.


As you can see I painted everywhere and almost everything. Besides looks, the paint will protect items from the elements. Mostly the sun! You'd be amazed at how quickly the sun will destroy plastics and wiring on these cars. The brake reservoir turns to dust and the wiring gets brittle in only a few months. I also changed the radiator mounting up a little bit also. I wanted it off the bottom because I'm sure the front area will be get a little abuse.