No down force
 

I was able to get my 02 base out for some exercise and after 80 MPH it seems that my front end got lighter and steering got loose,and at 90 it was worse,I thought it would have had more down force,The steering was way to light for that speed, Ive never driven it that fast before, and its my first boxster..?? Thanks

1st check tires air pressure, tread & sidewalls for damage. Next verify rear spoiler extends up by 60 MPH. If all is good go to the best Porsche alignment shop you can & have them inspect suspension parts for excessive wear, replace anything out of spec including shock absorbers. Then have alignment checked including CASTER which affects directional stability & steering.

Downforce? The only street cars with any kind of downforce are very expensive exotic cars. I'm talking stock vehicles, not the cars that have giant wings tacked on. For most street cars you are talking about lift, or the lack of it.

It's probably a worn out suspension that is your problem. If your shocks are worn out, it could certainly give you a floaty feeling at higher speeds. How many miles are on your Boxster?

The fastest I've driven my '02 is 130 mph, and it felt fine, but I have refreshed my suspension completely.

Hi Racer ,83 K ,and NO evidence of any component's being replaced, Handling great at 70-75 after that way loose.

Byprodriver,..tires are good,no damage,.but rims have some small mount of curb rash,I will look for a alignment shop ,..Just pushed on the fenders,..bounce's real easy ,.!

83k and "bounces real easy" suggests it's time for new dampers.
This will absolutely affect high speed stability.

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Try to find a alignment shop that can give you a printout of the alignment settings before & after they align it, and if it needs new struts install those 1st.

Unlike an older 911, the front of a Boxster shouldn't get light at high speeds - it should feel rock solid up to 130+ mph. As the others have said, check tires, suspension, and alignment.

Where? 5? 405? 16? 167? I'm trying to think where is there a stretch of road that would be sraight enough to accomodate that speed. Ima former 98444er (not bragging).

130 huh? Sounds like I've another visit to the 210 and an extra 11mph... ;)

The front wheel spats, if missing will cause a slight feeling of lift past 100mph. Are yours intact?

Pacific Raceways. 120 mph at the Ridge, about 125 mph at Portland Int'l Raceway.

I think you have found the issue. It should be very hard to push down on these cars and get any bounce, at least that is how mine behaves. At 110 I feel absolutely no float. If I have a fullish tank of fuel and at 75 mph when the rear spoiler deploys, the car just gets so planted and I can feel it get very stable.

Ahhhhh. The old S I R. Great memories of the 70's at that place.

Cheers!

Still a great track! The just repaved the track from turn two to nine, so it's a lot smoother than it used to be.

There are lots of roads in Washington where it would be easy to hit 130 +. It just depends on your tolerance for risk (as in getting busted).

Thanks KK2002s....I was kinda surprised that I could push down so easy and just kinda bounce it. need to find a good shop in Tucson,az to get it checked out !

Tracked at a lot of high speed tracks including Pocono raceway. which is scary fast 145 to 152 MPH, VIR 134 to 140 MPH, and Watkins Glen 130 to 135 MPH. The car feel rock solid.

It sounds like you need to replace your struts

I will have it looked at, And my only option here in Tucson..is a dealer alignment,..But at least they will find everything wrong with it,..!!

I'd like to know the effect that these have on the aerodynamics of the car. They seem pretty small, but they must have been put there fore a reason? :confused:

ALM001,...what are wheel spats,..

Dealer alignment fee 385.00 for a four wheel laser alignment. Gee do they still spin balance like the old hunter alignment systems use to do , I wonder

I'd find an independent alignment shop, they'll do a better job anyway for less money. You can ask for recommendations here or locally.

The problem isn't your alignment, it's your shocks. Replace the shocks (and you may as well replace the lower control arms while you have it apart; in fact, you may as well also replace the sway bar links, inner tie rod ends, and trailing arms, because they aren't far behind the shocks in wearing out), and then have an alignment done . No need to waste your money on an alignment when it won't fix the issue, and you'll need another one after rebuilding the suspension.

For $385, you can get a race shop to a better than laser rack alignment

That is true Racer Boy,..what would be a quality replacement...Bilstein's

I have the Bilstein Sport shocks on mine, but just about any replacement you can find is good.

Thanks to all,..JayG..Ill look around the one indy recommended the dealer Not too many Porsche shops in Tucson,..Frank

There must be a race shop or two though?

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Maybe,...Maytag,..I have to start looking into it this week..!

Doesn't have to be a Porsche shop for an alignment. Any good race shop will know how to do it.
Find one that does string alignments and not an a laser rack

A laser alignment can be just as good as a string alignment. If you limit your search to places that only use a string, you’ll probably have a hard time finding a place, especially if you live in a town that is far from a racetrack.

Starter it has 84 K..and I am going to have my rims and tires balenced,..hopfully on the car I just had it looked over they said shocks seemed ok, not exactly reassuring ,..I dont think they spent much time with it just a quick once over

Couple questions regarding this thread:
1: What are wheel spats?

2: Why would a string alignment better than a laser alignment? I have done string alignments on some of my beater cars, I can't imagine it would be better than a proper laser alignment. How do you measure caster with a string?