986 3.6 conversion vs 987 3.4 DI

[alturodoc]

I agree with Cloudsurfer. It's not the 60 times that is as important as the rolling times. Driving a Porsche is like life itself--What you do on the straightaway is not as important as how you handle the curves. What caught my interest was Roock. My 1998 Boxster is in Roock Autosport in Atanta getting a 3.8X51 conversion. Should be ready in late Dec or early Jan. I wonder how it will match up not only to a 987 but how about a 997?? It is still a 5 speed but, with 18 inch Cayman S wheels, PSS-9's, rear strut and and adjustable sway bars and Quaife ATB diff. Regardless, it should be fun to drive. To me it is important to be able to get through of a corner quicker (with more torque, traction and stability). Did I forget the brakes?? Braking distances are at least as important as 0-60 time. Upgrading my brakes will be next on my project wish list.......alturodoc

[RandallNeighbour]

Alturodoc, how much is that conversion going to cost you?

I'm guessing north of $20k

[jacabean]

I was talking with Roock last week they told me about the 3.8 conversion they are doing. That car with the 3.8 is going to be one nasty ride. The only thing i think he should have done was use a boxster S for the conversion. I will tell you my 3.6 has been a dream ride for me so far. I ajusted the H&R coilovers today for a more supple ride .

[23109VC]

if you redo the motor toa 3.8 adn eventually do the brakes, does i treally matter if it was a base or S to start with?

[alturodoc]

North of $20K--yes. been saving my pennies for 2+ years for this. I'm guessing the difference between a 3.6 and 3.8 is not that significant since the limiting factor is not torque/HP, but traction and suspension to handle the over abundance of power. I'm not by any means an expert on the tech aspect of Boxsters and Boxster S's but except for the obvious interior differences, once you upgrade the suspension (wheels included), there is probably no difference in performance; unless, of course you think a 6 speed transmission is that much better than a 5 speed. I'm old school. Grew up on 3, 4 and 5 speed stickshifts. My reasoning is that 1st to 2nd gear will not be so quick a transition with all that low end torque. I'd like to hear your thoughts on this.
At one of the Drivers Ed programs in Memphis last spring I let an instuctor drive my boxster with all the suspension/wheel upgrades and 2.5Liter engine I had at the time and asked him after the session to compare it to his 2003 Boxster S. His response was that the difference in power was not noticeable because the handling of my car was so much better than his.

[jacabean]

I was thinking mainly about the 6 speed and brakes. if i was going to do this conversion i would prefer an 03 or 04 model. I think the 5 speed is a little sloppy for such an upgrade.
after driving the six speed you can see how loose and clunky the 5 speed is . Are you going to upgrade the body work ? A fixed wing and a front splitter would also improve this package. you need to think about the whole package to get the most out of that 3.8

[jacabean]

I can also add that the boxster handles the increased power with no problem at all . it's like it should have been built that way to begin with. it will be just like your 2.5 but those same attributes will now happen at twice the speed !

[alturodoc]

I'm also getting a GT3 front spoiler, (to allow more cooling for the engine) and a modest variation of the stock retractable rear spoiler. You are probably right about the 6 speed. If I'm really unhappy with the performance of the 5 speed, I can always upgrade at a later time. You can see the rear spoiler on one of the upgraded boxsters at www.roockautosport.com. I really don't want the my boxster to look too modified...a sleeper if you will. According to Fabian Roock, a fixed wing (like one seen on his website) would not add to the overall perforance of the car. It's more for looks.