Hi friends.
Will be running my 986 stock Boxster at Mid Ohio on a few open track days.
Would like to have a set of dedicated track slicks and wheels, suggestions appreciated.
I am fairly experienced and competition licensed, just not that good;)

If you are going to do track days I would highly recommend Nitto NT01's. Perfect for DE weekends and Time Trials. I even do some wheel to wheel action on them sometimes.

I'm way too new here to comment on wheels other than to say that Enkei make some fantastic wheels for the track. I have several sets of RPF1's and NT03+M for my track only RX8. They would probably look good on a Boxster too but have not yet looked into size availability.

We heard a loud pop and nothing at all happened. The automobile did not decrease and the actual brakes does nothing. Nevertheless, when my partner and i park over a hill in addition to pull the actual hand brake up, it holds the automobile in area.

.........................

Ive seen so many accidents happen due to people Driving too close.
Picture a broken down car, the driver infront of you isnt paying attention, they swerve around it without signalling , bang game over for you. Keep your distance from the driver infront. So what if some idiot steals a place infront of you because you left a gap. Let it be them that learn the hard way.

We have all heard the driving rule of leaving a 2 second space between you and the car in front. Unfortunately, that just isn't possible most of the time on the freeways I drive. If you had that much space between you and the car in front someone behind you would try to pass you and get in that gap. Slow down again, the next car will do it. Keep doing it and you'll cause traffic to jam behind you and the other drivers will be flipping you off as they pass you.[/QUOTE]

Track Day Tire Choices
 

I want to be a bit more aggressive on my Track Days and am considering a new set of Wheels / Tires oriented for the Track 90% / Street 10%... So, tire Life is NOT the highest concern... I am used to using "Top Level" Tires on my motorcycles (Slicks)... I have noticed that the Track Day and Road Course organizations state the Boxster is "Legal" with it's Factory Roll-bar UNLESS "R" Compound Tires are used... Anyone enlighten me to what choices would be best ?... Also, should I stay with the 17" or upgrade to 19" for the Track Tire Fitment ?

Mirror upgrade
 

I upgraded the mirrors (both sides) on former ride and they were great.
It took a while to get use to the mirrors.
I have read a article somewhere on how to set the rear view
Mirrors for track use and seems to help a great deal to over
Come the blind spot issue. Pls note I have no track experience .

Here is how it is done; top up, center inside rear view mirror
Have some one mark the very outside edge of vision of inside
Rear view mirror behind the car (I used a yard stick).
Now adjust outside mirrors So object is just on the inside
edge of outside mirrors. Do this for both sides.

Hope this makes sense. I could not figure out any other way to word it.

Jinxhttp://986forum.com/forums/uploads01...1398392180.jpg

Boxster Spec requires 17" wheels in the stock sizes and offsets, but even if you are not in spec 17" tires are *way* cheaper than 19"s. (Edit: at least for the street tires and max perf and extreme summer tires)

Car control clinic
 

The Car Control Clinic was SO much fun. Please see my entry In the tech section under Carpets. Yes yes I know I am off topic. Still feeling the love from yesterday. Jinx

I can take exception to #4 above. I generally agree and teach my students this also. However there is a slight exception to this general rule. Having worked with pro driving coaches, including riding while they drive, they have taught "rolling the car into the turn". After coming off the brakes they coast for a second into the apex prior to going to the gas for track out. The car is simply carrying so much pace due to not over braking that they can't immediately go to power in the turn.

Attached is a pic of my 986 S taken at Road Atlanta.

What kind of wing is that?

I'd have to do a little digging in my buildout archives to get you the exact supplier info. I will do so if you'd like. I modded this car for the track about three years ago. The wing and rear deck was included, with the deck made out of fiberglass. It was around $1500. I think it probably slows me down a bit on the long straights but in hard braking zones and high speed sweepers such as Bishop's Bend at Sebring, I can really tell a difference in terms of car stability.

Not urgent but at some point I think I'd like to add something like that to my car.

Wing purchased from: https://www.gt-racing.com

Deck lid purchased from: KOKELN :: Racing Products

Were you at the DE at Sebring in May? If so me and my son were admiring your car :)

Yup I was there. I plan to return first week of September to race with PBOC.

In those situations, I have found it better to enter the corner faster, trail brake into the turn, and get on the throttle the moment you come off of the brake. Done correctly, this is generally faster than coasting into the turn.

No right approach I suppose. The guy who taught me this has the track record at Sebring in his class of Miata, so it works for him. I on the other hand have the track record nowhere. :-)

Ross Bentley just mentioned this in a recent "Speed Secrets Weekly" - he says he was originally in the "either be WOT, squeezing the throttle, or on the brake with no coasting" but now says that sometimes a short interval of settling the car before getting back on the throttle can help reduce initial understeer and help with carrying the most speed.

I'm so new that I still have only a handful of correct heel & toe downshifts and I have usually over braked so much that I am way slow on every corner entry :) So this particular tip may benefit me only in the far future...

We will look for you to say hi, I am hopeful to run a DE there later this year with Suncoast PCA. I didn't get to run in May because my car broke down the night before on the way there... failed crank sensor... fun times :)

Q: What's the most important shot in golf?
A: The next one.

I have a friend who obsesses over a missed putt or bad drive from 3 holes ago. He needs to be focused on the shot at hand. Good golf requires concentration.

Same is true in DEs - if you're thinking about the corner you just blew, you're bound to blow the next corner (and probably the one after that). Nothing you
can do about that last corner. You do have control over what happens in the next corner. Don't look back, that's not the direction you're going.

And a related situation - if someone faster than you catches you in a part of the track that you can't let him by, mentally note he's there but then forget him
and focus on what's ahead of you. When you get to a passing zone, pull over and let him by. If you obsess over the person behind you, chances are you're
going to mess up because your focus is misplaced and you don't gain the confidence of the guy behind you.

Go out to YouTube and watch lots of videos when going to a new track. It helps with your mental prep - knowing the track layout, lines thru corners, etc. I
like to find videos of Porsches so I have a feel for gears as well. Just remember not every video is from Hurley Haywood (some are not good).

Not urgent but at some point I think I'd like to add something like that to my car etui samsung galaxy a9 etui galaxy a9

This picture is helpful http://www.drivingfast.net/images/te...acing-line.png

This is hard for me to do, but totally necessary!! :)

what we've learned on the track
 

In this many replies are good but i want to know more points about boxster and its concepts

Great thread! I agree with most of it, except the guys who think they need special mirrors.
The past couple of years, I've been doing track days at Thunderhill in Willows, CA, using a heavily modified Miata. Tons O Fun, for sure. The only problem I've had there is Turn 3 where the road's camber is reversed. The Bridgestone RE-11s don't give any clue before they break loose. Would be nice if they made some warning noise. My wife actually got the car sideways at that spot on one of her runs.
I'd like to run my 2004 Boxster S at the track, but the car feels like it needs better shocks and springs, compared to my Miata. I might try the box as-is and see how far off the mark I am before modifying it.
The main thing I've learned at the track is, tires make a huge difference, as does track temperature and tire temperature. Unless it's 100 degrees out there, warm up your tires before pushing the limits. Summer tires on a cold day don't stick as well even after they warm up.

Just finished the Skip Barber Advanced Car Control Clinic. Learned a lot and would highly recommend the course, especially for those who currently Race/DE/Autocross or plan to do so in the future.

This was my second time on a skid pad. On my first go-around, I learned how to manage the weight shift after the initial correction, which was a pretty big step forward for me. This time around, after a lot of work and great instruction, I finally progressed to the point where I could start the skid and then drift the car around the entire circle.

The big learning moment for me was to look where you want the car to go -- a throwback to my days on a bike. It's really amazing how your eyes are connected to your hands. Initially, when the skid would start, I focused just off the nose of the car. As soon as I started looking downrange, the car went exactly where I wanted.

After the skid pad work, it was out to the track (Lime Rock), and my ability to turn-in and track-out of each turn was vastly improved. I was also a great deal more confident that I could better manage things if the car went loosey-goosey.

My stock 2001 boxster S was a blast at Chuckwalla. Same as you, I drive a car that is heavily modified, but enjoyed the feeling of literally leaning the car in the corners. To the point the inside front wheel wasn't working hard. That is where I was 2 seconds faster without PSM then with PSM. PSM would freak out.

Btw, I wouldn't suggest anyone new to porsche's or rear engine cars to run without PSM. Especially, if they are new to HPDE. The mix of rear weight balance and endless rear traction(265s over 225s in the front.) allowed me to pivot while trail braking. I race a lot of sim racing and I am highly proficient with rear engine cars(maintenance throttle cornering cars) and it translated extremely well into real life.

How is the balance of your car with no front splitter and the huge wing (nice one by the way)?