Looking to upgrade a 2001 boxster - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

lbrown2009 · 10-01-2009, 05:28 PM

Hi all! I am new to the forums and a recent purchase of an 01 boxster has me reading these pages until 3am every night : ) I am looking to add some horsepower and torque but I want to keep the primary use for street driving. I know there are tons of suggestions on here, I am just looking for the most recent, don't want to spend more than 2k. The car is stock(5 spd 44k miles) from purchase, will changing the headers increase exhaust noise? what brand of headers are highly recommended? How good is the softronic ECU flash?

thank you in advance

Lance

Topless · 10-01-2009, 06:37 PM

An underdrive pulley will get you 5-10 hp and Tq for around $200. It is NJ smog Nazi friendly (headers and chip probably won't pass NJ smog inspection), It will not burn down your car (as several here have after adding headers). It is not a cool shiny bling item you can show off at cars and coffee... it just works. Or you could drop in a Raby 3.6L but you might need a little more than $2k.

Good luck with your mods and enjoy your car. Don't forget to get her to a track and ring her out a bit.

lbrown2009 · 10-01-2009, 08:19 PM

will the pulley affect the battery ? I want to keep this on the street and will need the AC, radio etc etc

Topless · 10-01-2009, 08:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lbrown2009

will the pulley affect the battery ? I want to keep this on the street and will need the AC, radio etc etc

If you are running a 4000 watt sound system this mod is not for you. It works just fine on my street car even with an ultralight battery. A/C, lights, top, gps, no problem.

lbrown2009 · 10-01-2009, 08:33 PM

I want to add a kenwood double din system ...that orange radio reminds me of a commodore 64 lol where will I see the power increase with the pulley? low mid high?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Topless

If you are running a 4000 watt sound system this mod is not for you. It works just fine on my street car even with an ultralight battery. A/C, lights, top, gps, no problem.

lbrown2009 · 10-01-2009, 08:38 PM

I am guessing it shaves a few lbs off the stock battery? anything else positive about it?

Lance

Quote:

Originally Posted by lbrown2009

I want to add a kenwood double din system ...that orange radio reminds me of a commodore 64 lol where will I see the power increase with the pulley? low mid high?

Topless · 10-01-2009, 09:11 PM

The smaller pulley simply reduces parasitic losses from your P/S pump, A/C compressor water pump and alternator so power gains occur at every RPM.

The ultralight battery is 15lbs. Stock was about 45lbs so a 30lb weight savings. Reducing weight in your car is the most effective "mod" you can do to improve performance. Better acceleration, stopping power, higher g forces, quicker transitions, and faster lap times. 100lbs weight savings is like adding about 50HP. (but they will never tell you that at the ebay afterrmarket goodies store).
Here is a link for the pulley:
http://www.bradrobertsag.com/c=x2VulZwIe1SNTfknWV3T0gKDJ/category/boxsterspec/

edevlin · 10-02-2009, 03:12 AM

The underbelt pulley sounds like a good idea, I may try one after Jake plays with it a bit more. I liked an ECU flash on my base boxster. Only picks up about 10 hp or so, but if its a good flash, remapping the throttle response coupled with little more hp made the car seem more responsive.

Also ditto on saving weight, it can start out being a be a cheap way to make the car more responsive. Lose the spare tire and put in a lightweight battery and you are 50 lbs lighter. Put in GT3 seats and aftermarket exhaust and you are another 50+ lbs lighter. Put in a lightweight flywheel and you are another 15 lbs lighter of rotating mass and you get the added bonus of being able to worry about when the undamped harmonics are going to rattle your engine to pieces

Ed

Bob O · 10-02-2009, 05:26 AM

I'm also considering an under pulley. Does it require a different serpentine belt or does the stock belt still fit?

Bob

Topless · 10-02-2009, 06:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bob O

I'm also considering an under pulley. Does it require a different serpentine belt or does the stock belt still fit?

Bob

In my case the stock belt I had fit fine. Porsche offers several different size belts so if you have a larger one it may not fit. Brad can tell you which part # belts will work.

stephen wilson · 10-02-2009, 06:24 AM

Not to nit-pick, less weight is good, but if you do the power to weight calculations , 100 Lbs from a 3000# car is equivilent to an 8 HP power gain.

Carry on.

Steve

Topless · 10-02-2009, 06:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stephen wilson

Not to nit-pick, less weight is good, but if you do the power to weight calculations , 100 Lbs from a 3000# car is equivilent to an 8 HP power gain.

Carry on.

Steve

This is true if you only consider acceleration. When you add in shorter stopping distance, higher G turns, quicker transitions your lap times improve much more than simple power/weight ratio comparisons. That is why you can often see stripped out Boxster spec race cars with lowly 2.5L stock motors turning faster laps than many 996 Turbos and Vettes on tighter tracks.

On a super speedway like Daytona or Fontana there is still no substitute for horsepower due to the really long straights and higher speeds. Once those cars can stretch their legs they will pull away. How often do we really get to run Daytona or Fontana?

lbrown2009 · 10-02-2009, 08:03 AM

i ordered the underpulley, where can i find one of those ultra light batteries? what kind of labor charge am i looking at to install the underpulley?

stephen wilson · 10-02-2009, 10:31 AM

I agree with your list of benefits of weight reduction ( I race a Formula Ford) , just not the magnitude. I don't have time to try and calculate the increase cornering G's, it's a complex issue, but 100 Lbs. is around 3% less weight & weight transfer. I doubt that equates to a 3% increase in cornering power.

Top speed has little to do with weight, it's dominated by mechanical & aerodynamic drag, and horsepower.

edevlin · 10-02-2009, 11:09 AM

I also do not know how to quantify how much lightening the car changes its performance. But it sure does seem to make it quicker. My 2000 base boxster weighed in at 2780 lbs when new (not 3000 lbs), I have taken at least 100 lbs off of that, so I suspect I am well below 2700 lbs. How do you quantify that weight reduction, I dont know, maybe I have a 2.5% bigger grin when driving

.....

Ed

:dance:

Topless · 10-02-2009, 02:15 PM

Stephen,
Of course you are right. There is no direct correlation between weight and HP because every track is different. I chose 50hp as a wild guess simply based on local lap time comparisons. On a popular 1.8mi track here a keen driver (Grand Am driver Kevin Roush for example) might run 90 sec. in a bone stock 2.5 Box. He then steps in to a 250hp Box S and turns 88.5s. When he comes back to the pits our 2.5 Box has 100lbs removed and he proceeds to run 88.5s in that car. So on this day, at this track with these cars and this driver, 100lbs weight removed was roughly equal to 50hp. Switching over to the Auto Club Speedway in Fontana Kevin will be checking his email down the front straight at 130mph in the 2.5 car as Turbos and Vettes whizz by doing 165.

Feel free to use whatever comparisons you are comfortable with based on your own experience. This is just one crude example of the benefits of weight reduction on our cars. Your mileage may vary.

Here is a link to the 15lb Oddessy 680 battery I am using. If you get the battery also order the mounting cover they have. It is pretty slick:
http://www.odysseybatteries.com/battery/pc680series.htm

stephen wilson · 10-02-2009, 03:02 PM

Topless,
Fair enough. Don't mind me, sometimes I focus too much on minute details!