Tight Competition

We're down to the final two events for the season. It rained quite a bit overnight and B-Street was set to run the first heat. Although the rain subsided by the time we ran, it was still fairly damp and the temps stayed constant at around 55F with a fair bit of wind.

Ready for 1st Heat - NNJR SCCA - 10-20-2018

We had a good turnout for the class with 7 drivers in total. Danny Kao drove up from DC to co-drive Sang Yi's Evo so I knew I was in for an uphill battle. The conditions favored both AWD and co-driven cars but I really enjoyed the challenge to try and close the gap regardless. Our first run or two was a real struggle for grip but the course eventually dried enough to put in decent times.

Danny set fast first run and all of us were chasing him. I'd find some time but then so would he but I would keep trying to close the gap as best as I could. By our second to last runs, I was within 0.38 seconds off his time. He went out to put in a fast final lap but hit 3 cones in the process leaving the door open for me. There was plenty of time still left to be had out there so I knew I just had to push harder. Unfortunately, I pushed too hard and ended up spinning before the back wallom.

NNJR SCCA Autox - 10-20-2018

I'm still pretty stoked though. Considering this is only my third event in the car, I think my pace is already getting pretty competitive and I finally found the limits of her grip with that spin. I knew the rear was coming out but I really wanted to see how far I could push it before really losing control and it's pretty incredible how high those limits are.

B-Street results - 10-20-2018

In other miscellaneous things, I finally installed the euro triangle in the frunk. I definitely don't need this but I figured why not. German yo!

euro spec emergency triangle

Also, I finally got to see the new exhaust tips in daylight. It looks good, I like it, but man the stock exhaust sounds so lame compared to the FVD Brombacher I had on previously. Ugh, maybe one day I can put it back on. For now it's just hanging out in the garage next to the JRZs.

Soul Performance Tips

JRZ RS Pro and Thoughts on STU

I was happily minding my own business earlier this week when I got sent a deal I simply couldn't pass up. It was for a set of used JRZ RS Pros from a 987 Cayman race car with 600lb/700lb Hypercoil springs that have only seen about 3000 miles of track miles since they were last rebuilt. Now, I know what you're thinking. "You said you were committed to B-Street for 2019". Well for starters, buying these doesn't mean I'm installing them right away. They were a good deal no matter what and I plan on sending them off to ANZE Suspension over the winter to have them dynoed and rebuilt as well as add quick disconnects for the external reservoirs. Whether or not I install them on Kay or some future Cayman or flip them, will be decided after winter.

JRZ RS Pro for the 987 Cayman - 10-10-2018

The obvious conclusion some might jump to here is that I'm taking Kay to run in STU instead of B-Street and that would be logical. I've certainly considered it but at this very moment, I have no plans for it in 2019. However, I'm not one to not do my homework to consider all possibilities. I've been spending some time thinking about what STU would look like for a Cayman. In general, I think that allowance for mid-engine rear wheel drive cars to finally go up to 265 width tires makes this a viable choice. Sure you lose out on not having 285s which you can run in B-Street but with better suspension, ability to add lots of camber, plenty of top speed in 2nd and add a bit more power and cut weight then it could be a formidable weapon.

JRZs installed in previous owner's race car

My main concern is that Kay might not be right for STU. Both the 987.1 and the 987.2 Cayman S are allowed in STU and given the same level of prep, the 987.2 (2009-2012) simply has more power. It's not a ton more power but certainly more. It also has arguably a better engine. However, with premium the 987.2 commands over the 987.1, I'm not sure how many people would actually build a 987.2 for STU. It's some serious coin and I can see a full tilt build knocking on the doors of higher mileage GT4 money. At that level of cash, I'd rather have the GT4 and run in Super Street.

Furthermore, Kay is equipped with PASM which is the ideal spec for B-Street and switching to STU and slapping on the JRZs means disabling PASM, completely negating the reason why I paid more for Kay to make sure she had both Sports Chrono and PASM to begin with. Also, with the ND2 in a TBD state of classing for Street Touring, I'd be hesitant to start STU prep only to have it classed in STU later. In autocross, lightness is king and I do believe that the ND2 in ST trim could pose a serious threat to the general higher horsepower but much heavier cars that are already in STU.

Those concerns aside, here are my notes on what I think a decently competitive STU 987 Cayman build would look like for me:

Wheels and Tires

You can go a lot of ways here but for me, I don't see a problem just continuing with XRR spec 18x8.5 and 18x10 wheels I run in B-Street. I don't think 265 square is the right choice. I think the car does like a bit of a stagger so I'd probably run 255/265. This would make the fronts less pinched and feel less squishy as result. I'm only running 265s up front now in BS to balance out the 285s in the rear otherwise, I'd much prefer a 255.

Suspension

I think the stock shocks even with PASM isn't going to be enough. It'll be ok for an "STU Lite" build but will likely still be too soft for grippier surfaces like concrete. You'd also probably want to lower the car a little to get a lower center of gravity and get more negative camber. Obviously, I already got JRZs so I'd run those. The 600/700 rate springs on them now are probably fine too. If it's a fully dedicated max prep configuration optimized for Nationals, I can see wanting more spring rate but I don't think you need to get too stiff to be competitive. It can work, you just have to turn the wheel earlier. Getting good damping is key and the valving and figuring out where the compression and rebound need to be is going to be critical.

I'd keep the Tarrett Engineering GT3 front sway bar and drop links in the front and complement it with the Tarrett GT3 rear sway bar and drop links to be able to fine tune the balance more. I'd also add GT3 lower control arm in the front only as there's adequate rear negative camber but the front needs -4 or more to compensate for the strut suspension and losing camber under compression.

Engine

There's really not a lot more power you can extract from the M97 in NA form and be STU legal. Obviously, sports headers with 200 cell catalytic converters and a "cat-back" exhaust that eliminates the secondary cats is the way to go. A good air filter and a tune to maximize the power would be a good idea too. It should be possible to get the power up to 300hp to the wheels. 

My engine and trans mounts are also 11 years old now and I don't have a high degree of confidence in the state of the rubber in these mounts at this age even with the relatively low miles. The engine is only held down by a single motor mount up front and two trans mounts on each side. I wouldn't go overly stiff here as I've read you can increase vibration to the point where the knock sensor gets triggered retarding power. Personally, I'd probably just go with Rennline HD engine mount and Function First transmission mounts (V2). 

I'd also strongly consider adding in a higher capacity and baffled oil pan. I don't think this is a must but considering how finicky this engine is, it wouldn't be a bad idea given the allowance for some added peace of mind.

Differential

I honestly don't know how much a good differential is worth on a Cayman STU build. With Sports Chrono engaged during my runs, I never once felt I couldn't put the power down or I was spinning tires. I'm reserving comment on this for now but I don't believe it's a must-have item. If I did change it, something clutch type would obviously be my choice but I don't see any evidence in few times I've taken Kay to autocross so far where I felt I couldn't put the power down because of the diff.

Miscellaneous

You can probably save some weight by changing the seats to racing seats. I also think I'd install the Numeric Racing short shifter for a more bolt rifle action like shift engagement for more accurate quick shifts.

Final Thoughts

I've never driven or set up an STU prepped Cayman S before so what I've written above are just my thoughts on this matter. It could very well be a load of rubbish. Am I tempted to do it for the learning experience? Sure! Is it the right thing to do for 2019? That I'm not so sure about. 

Just the Tip

I bought Kay with a nice FVD Brombacher "cat-back" exhaust but unfortunately, it's not technically SCCA B-Street legal since the OEM mufflers have integrated secondary catalytic converters and you can't delete that in Street class even though the primary cats are still in place. As a wild shot, I wrote a letter to the SCCA asking a for a rule change but as expected it was shot down (not that I really expected it to go through anyway) so here I am now putting the stock exhaust back on.

Dropping off the car with Lee at Hybrid Motors - 10/4/2018

Thankfully the previous owner also provided the stock exhaust when I purchased the car so it was a straightforward enough swap. At the very least I wanted it to look good so I did the only thing I could do legally which was to order replacement exhaust tips. I picked up the Soul Performance x-pipe short tips with angle cut and signature satin finish then dropped the car off with Lee at Hybrid Motors in Fairview, NJ today so he could swap it out for me while I was working.

Soul Performance exhaust tips 

As you'd expect, it was a straightforward swap. The stock exhaust sound isn't really that bad after all if I had to be honest. It just doesn't have the growl that the FVD exhaust had. I'd say it sounds better now at low RPM and at higher RPM is still gives a nice flat-6 sound but muted. Perhaps I'll explore getting the valved Porsche Sports Exhaust one day but for now this will do.

Before - FVD Brombacher exhaust

After - Stock with Soul Peformance tips

The tip looks pretty decent too with the Satin finish. It actually matches the silver trim around the exhaust so I think it keeps the clean look.

Top down view of just the tip

As much as I'm not a big fan of this stock "street" class formula I can't argue with the fact that the 987.1 Cayman S is a serious national level B-Street contender and she's already proving to be lots of fun to drive as is. I have to hand it to the Porsche engineers. They really do know how to make proper sports cars.

Minor Tweaks = First Win

I finally got to run Kay on her home turf at the NNJR SCCA's 9th event of the season. First thing I had to get sorted was increasing the front swaybar stiffness. After thinking over how she felt at the last event I knew it has to go up a notch. Thankfully Andrew and Tamra were kind enough to let me use their trailer so I could more easily get to the endlinks. I increased the bar stiffness from 3/5 to 4/5.

Adjusting front sway bar - 9-15-2018

I then opted to run higher rear pressures this event with a target of 31psi front and 33psi rear. I took one run to get used to the course and by the 2nd run I was able to get a nice lead in the class. She felt very predictable and no longer super pushy. I could chuck her into a corner then use the throttle to make her rotate and in subsequent runs where I tried to test her limits, when she gets sideways it's beyond easy to reign her back in.

In grid ready to run - NNJR SCCA - 9-15-2018

After morning runs I was able to keep her in the lead but my first two runs in the afternoon yielded no improvement and I dropped back into 2nd place. Before the final run, Mark Valera came over to remind me to cut my distance. It's such a fundamental thing but even after all these years I sometimes forget to focus on it. By doing so on the final run I was able to retake the lead taking her first win.

Yay for 1st - 9-15-2018

It's a local event so while I was happy for the win, I was even happier that I'm slowly figuring out how to drive her properly. If you watch the video you can see I've still got quite a bit of distance to the cones. I guess unlike Bumblestook, I'm not quite certain of where her corners are. The good news is that there was plenty more time to be had out there so I'm really excited to keep improving and finding more pace as we continue to progress together.

NNJR SCCA Autox - 9-15-2018

Of course, my GoPro 5 Hero Session continues to give me audio issues. Despite hooking up an external mic it recorded nothing so the video will have make do with the external window video.

Concourse Ready

I dropped Kay off with PeeJ Auto Detailing last weekend to get a similar treatment as Bumblestook minus the engine bay since it was already fairly clean and well, it's hidden from view anyway. My main objective was to get her corrected, polished and ceramic coated to make it easier to keep clean. Dark cars are the worst when it comes to this even when they're not black (remember, Kay is Atlas Gray).

Shiny Cayman - 9-6-2018

As usual, PeeJ did a spectacular job starting off with a nice wash a few hours after dropping her off to let the car cool and have some shade from the sun. It's a foam wash with Adams Car Wash followed by 2 bucket wash method. 1st stage decontamination using Optimum Ferrex then rinsed off. 2nd stage decontamination using claybar and Adams detail spray, then rinsed.

Foamy fresh - 9-9-2018

He then spent a few days correcting and polishing. There were quite a few swirls on the car and some microscratches that needed to be taken care of. 1st stage paint correction was compounding using Jescar correcting compound. 2nd stage paint correction was polishing using Sonax perfect finish. She was then wiped down with Optimum paint prep to remove any leftover oils from the polishes.

Up in the air getting polished

Once that was done, 2 layers of Optimum Gloss Coat ceramic coating and the results are once again astounding.

Concourse Ready - 9-6-2018

Concourse Ready - 9-6-2018

Concourse Ready - 9-6-2018

Mirror Finish - 9-6-2018

Obviously, he also cleaned up the interior which wasn't in bad shape to begin with anyway but noting it here for completeness. She was deep cleaned with leather master's strong cleaner and protected with Optimum leather protectant.

Interior cleaned, seats conditioned - 9-6-2018

Setting Baselines

I finally got a chance to take Kay out to her first autocross today. I was initially planning on attending the Porsche club event at Poconos Raceway but opted instead to go to the Philly SCCA autocross at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. It would give me a better baseline as there are lots of good drivers with very well prepped cars that I could use to compare against.

Ready to run - 8-26-2018

One thing I love about the Philly SCCA region is that they're a well-oiled machine and as you might expect the event ran smoothly and we were easily done by 3pm. The downside is that we only had 4 runs. From a competition perspective I'm fine with this but from my goal to get enough seat time to learn a new car, this was a bit limiting. The course was also relatively short and the surface was a bit slippery with a good number of off-camber corners (just the way the site is banked so this was unavoidable).

Philly SCCA Autox - 8-26-2018

In the few runs I did have, I learned a few things:

• You kind of have to keep the Cayman running between runs so that the engine can cool (you can't just "lift the hood")
• As the engine cools, the radiator fans blow an insane amount of hot air out which is great. This air is directed into the front wheel well. 
• Neat feature if you're trying to get your tires warm
• Not so neat when you're trying to keep the tires cool!
• There is a very noticeable difference in Sport mode. The dampers definitely tighten up and the throttle response is quite abrupt. I'll have to get used to this. The throttle is almost "too" responsive which can make modulating tough on slick surfaces. I suspect it's perfect for high grip surfaces though. 
• Unlike the S2000, the Cayman seems to like getting manhandled. You have to kind of chuck it into corners and in slaloms. 
• It puts down power very nicely even without a diff
• It's nice to have torque coming out of slow corners lol

Paddock - 8-26-2018

I improved with each run but was still about 1.2 seconds off the lead coming in 2nd. I'm not overly concerned about position right now though. I definitely had more time out there. The best part of Street class is not having much to tweak so I can just focus on finding time by making corrections in my driving here and there. I had a ton of fun today and the challenge to figure out how to drive this car well is going to be a rewarding worthwhile endeavor.

Setup Notes:
- Front bar set to 3/5
- Tire pressures: 31psi front / 28 psi rear

46qt watertight storage tote in the frunk

Oh, I also got to try the storage tote I got for the frunk to put all the autocross stuff in so it's easy to load and unload and not have to worry about things getting wet if it rains. I got the idea off rennlist from a GT4 guy but apparently, the GT4 can fit a bigger bin. I ended up getting a 46qt watertight storage tote from the Container Store and it's a perfect fit in the frunk. 

LED interior bulbs

I got so used to having LED interior lights on the S2000 that I felt it was weird to have standard bulbs in the Cayman. Unfortunately, a lot of cheap bulbs don't work properly. They either don't fit right or eventually cause errors that some bulb isn't working. I opted to get the kit from SunCoastParts which has all the right resistors on the bulbs to work correctly and swapped all the interior bulbs with LEDs during my "off heat" today and I'm now a happy guy.

Let there be light...LED lights!

I wasn't liking how the silver Porsche center caps from the OEM wheels were looking on the Anthracite OZ Allegheritas so I ordered some grey Porsche center caps from Germany and they look so much better. I didn't take any close up but you can kind of see it on the picture of Kay in paddock.

Risk Management

I dropped Kay off with the capable hands of Lee Nieto of Hybrid Motors in Fairview, NJ before going out of town for a few days so he could take care of installing the final pre-emptive fixes on her.

German cars everywhere - Hybrid Motors - 8/22/2018

Although the Cayman is such an incredible platform, it has its own design quirks and known weaknesses like any other car. One of the parts that can fail and lead to a catastrophic engine failure is the air oil separator (AOS). The AOS on Porsches is basically over-engineered (read as expensive) catch cans. The OEM unit is generally adequate but not when coupled with higher grip tires and competitive use. Add to that age of the car and in turn the rubber diaphragm inside the AOS and you've got a potential ticking time bomb. Failure of the diaphragm can lead to sudden oil pressure loss and you can say goodbye to a $15k Porsche engine in a heartbeat.

Stock AOS (left) vs Porsche Motorsports AOS (right)

Porsche makes a motorsports AOS for the 996 that people retrofit into various model Porsches but there is actually one specifically designed for the 987 Cayman. It is designed to fit into the tight space of the 987 engine bay and features a dual chamber to have higher capacity and give additional time for the oil to drain so it doesn't overfill under higher G-loads.

Porsche Motorsports 987 specific Air Oil Separator

You also need new screws and hoses (all part of the kit if you order from places like SuncoastParts) since it relocates the ports for the AOS and the tight squeeze does make it a bit of a fiddly install.

Porsche Motorsports AOS installed - 8/17/18
(Hoses not yet connected)

New hoses routed and attached to AOS - 8/17/18

Another well-documented point of failure on the 987 platform is the shifter cables. More than a few have been left stranded by cables that have snapped (primarily on the transmission side). There's no damage when this happens and you can fix it after the fact but I'd rather not have to worry about that since with my luck it'll happen at the worst possible time or location. Porsche actually doesn't sell the original cables anymore. They now only sell the revised version that requires new hardware on the transmissions side as well. This part supersedes the old part so is fully legal under SCCA Street Class rules.

Revised shifter cable

Revised shifter cable transmission side hardware

You'd think this should be a straightforward and easy install but it actually isn't because of the need to replace the hardware on the transmission side which isn't particularly easy to get to. This job takes many hours to complete. It does away with some of the rubber bushings to provides a more direct feel and less slop as well.

Older hardware with rubber bushings

New hardware - metal on metal

Lee made sure to route all the cables exactly as factory and you can tell there more of a cripsness in each shift. It doesn't change the throws but just the peace of mind knowing that the new version is less likely to just fall apart like the old one is worth the extra money and effort to me.

New shifter cables installed - 8/20/2018

Finally, I wasn't sure if the power steering fluid was replaced anytime recently so I had Lee put in fresh power steering fluid, Pentosin CHF-11S (OEM spec). Dirty power steering fluid is a cause of many power steering pump failures and leaks so this is cheap insurance.

Maintenance Updates:

Mileage: 32992
- Power Steering Fluid Change - Pentosin CHF-11S
- New Porsche Motorsports Air Oil Separator
- New / Revised shifter cables