1988 Porsche 944 Track Toy

If it's not too open book to ask, what was the curb?

I should back up a week... Just four days before I arrived at Dominion, I was packing up after a successful DE (PDX) with SCCA at the Shenandoah Circuit at Summit Point Raceway.

It was a perfect warmup for the SuperComp school. It was my first time on the track, and I was able to work out a couple issues with the car while there. The hatchback needed adjustment, and I got some help from one of the SCCA officials to repeatedly close the hatch from the outside while I adjusted the capture mechanisms from the inside.

Also it was really hot, and the coolant boiled over after my first session. Turned out it was just a loose radiator cap, and I haven't had a single problem with coolant or overheating since! I simply turned it closed another 45 degrees.

We got to use the skidpad you see here, and it certainly gave me a healthy respect for drifters. I swapped ends over and over before eventually getting the rear end to hang out for maybe half a lap without spinning entirely.

If anything it decreased my confidence... the car wants to change direction like a magnet wants to find its polar opposite.

During the week before Dominion, I had a couple more things to accomplish, including a fire extinguisher install and the inside driver containment net.

Fire Extinguisher Installation

The fire extinguisher was pretty straightforward, as long as you avoid the fuel lines running underneath the passenger side, which I did, fortunately. It is within reach of the driver, according to the rules. Unfortunately, I'd have to pop my seatbelt buckle to reach it. Ideally, I'd be able to fight a fire even if I couldn't get my seatbelt unbuckled. But it passes tech, and eventually, I'll install a fire system anyway.

The bolts I used were overkill, really. But I had them, so I used them.

Driver Net Installation

NASA CCR rules require a driver net on the inside side of the driver. Most other clubs don't but I guess NASA is pioneering this.

The driver net worked out pretty well, based on an installation I saw elsewhere on the interwebs. The tricky part was finding a way to run the forward end straight to the firewall. The glove box turned out to be an ok location, because the fastening point could be along the battery box. This was actually a strong point because the attachment pulls in shear with the panel, as opposed to a perpendicular attachment point.

Loosening the lower two rear straps just a bit allowed the top strap to be more taut, giving my head better containment. The top strap bisects my helmet which is recommended. The front's deviation from the centerline of the car is the only part that's not entirely ideal. The guys in tech inspection didn't give it a second thought, though.

Shifter Boot Installation (see photos above)

Another cool thing was the use of the stock shifter boot. The stock boot has a rectangular shape when it's installed in the console. I used an awl to punch several holes near each corner plus a couple along each flat, and I "sewed" it up with two long zip ties. The extra holes in each corner created "gathers" which made it conform to the steel oval lip. It worked out so well, I wouldn't do it any other way. There are products out there, but this was truly perfect for my needs. Looks really good too!

Thursday: Tech Inspection & Track Walk

So I arrived at Dominion Raceway on Thursday afternoon promptly at 6pm when it opened. I had a bunch of stuff to do... stickers, more stickers, unpacking the car, the trailer, and important things like changing tires and replacing what coolant remained in my system with 100% water and water wetter.

After taking an hour just to apply a dozen or more stickers, I decided to throw a representative tire in the back and roll it into tech inspection.

I mentioned I still had to do the coolant, and that was met with a shrug, like, ok, if you want to. He carefully measured things like cage tubing thickness, and he asked me to demonstrate the engine cutoff switch. I mentioned I have two. One inside, and one outside by the windshield. First I tried the inside one:

I turned it and... the engine continued to run. Turns out this one is only good for shutting off the battery so nothing can drain it during storage.

So I went to the other one, and pulled on the knob and the car died. So he was happy with that. Evidently that's the important one. I just never knew that the inside switch was any different than the outside one.

A little paperwork later, and voila!

I own a real race car!

Track Walk

My friend Ron came down to do open lapping on Friday and to crew for me during my SuperComp school, which is notorious for leaving precious little time for car prep. It's either in the classroom or driving on track, and little time for much else. So having a friend to check pressures, oil, etc. was such a good thing.

After tech we walked the entire 2.0 mile course.

There's a lot of concrete. And it's not going to go away. But it really didn't bother me much. I just wish this particular portion (turn 3) wasn't so blind. You want to late-apex this section and from the driver's seat, there's no telling what's around the bend.

Friday: NASA's SuperComp School

At this point, I'm really nervous and thinking "what have I gotten myself into?" I mean, plenty of folks were calling me crazy for signing up for a race school at a new track that nobody's ever raced on before. Nobody. And with all the stunted starts in getting the thing open over the past year or two, it had gotten some notoriety in the forums.

But I got to class on time - barely, but that's another story - and we (there were just four of us) did all the good stuff, all while learning the course, just the same as anyone else would eventually. We practiced standing starts, rolling starts, left/right track drills, tandem left/right track drills, leapfrog passing, racing, and more racing.

It was boiling hot all weekend. Some of our on-track sessions were 40 minutes long. I thought they'd never end, really. But i stuck it out. I hydrated. I drank water like it was beer. And I made it through to the end.

Unfortunately I was quite a bit slower than the rest of the class, so I had instructors hounding me all the time instead. They'd play in my blind spot. Hug me around turns. Crowd me on the straights. Bump me from behind on the front straight at 100 mph. It was awesome. At one point in my second session I spun out right in front of Jeff, NASA Mid-Atlantic's compliance official, in turn 7, which is tighter than it seems. Fortunately, no harm done.

At the end of Friday, we had a fun race with all the racers that had done open track that day. I got gridded mid-pack so I dealt with traffic from the very start. On the first lap I somehow found myself in the middle of a three-wide pack rounding Turn 7, that same tight turn that I had spun on earlier. But we made it around, slowly, and kept it clean.

Saturday and Sunday: Racing on Dominon Raceway

I loved racing wheel to wheel! However, there was a catch. The only other GTS-1 participant was out due to a blown engine. So I was in my own class in the mixed-class "Lightning" group which included the Spec E30's and Miatas.

My job was to not interfere with others' races. So if groups of cars came through, I'd let them all through, trying not to hold anyone up. But there were some that I could hang with. I let one of the slower E30's pass, but I stayed right with him. I drove in his blind spot. I held close through the turns. I did what I could to keep up in the straights, and reeled him back in in the braking zones. Patience was one of the virtues we were taught in the classroom, and with my patience, he made a mistake (turn 7, where else?) and went four-off. So I rolled on by and never saw him again.

Sunday's race was 30 minutes long, but unfortunately my video camera cut out at a most inopportune time. There were two or three miatas spun out in the dirt in the uphill esses. They kicked up the thickest cloud of dust but fortunately they all ended up off track. They left a real mess though, with passing and apex cones strewn across the surface along with the rocks and dirt. I slowed down a LOT. But once I was in the cloud, I really couldn't see ANYTHING. If I had slowed down any more, though, I could have been slammed from behind. There were cars coming, after all.

Here are two clips.. my start and first lap with the PTE cars, and the moments before my STUPID STUPID GOPRO cut out.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/9kxyYtc_8FA?list=UUKaZNdZvc3rW9hZGVi1sA4g

The second clip is really just to let you know how angry I was at my GoPro: https://www.youtube.com/embed/l2tIu690eEg

Classifying the 944

Ok Mad_Ratel, here's the info!

Ron took my car to the dyno during one of my Friday classroom sessions. Here is the power output:

That's about 140 hp peak, 143 ft-lbs peak torque, on the best run of three.

In GTS-1, you can use your average in the power band, which in my case is 132.1. GTS-1's allowable weight:power ratio is 18.5:1 on DOT tires. So my declared weight is 2444 pounds.

My ACTUAL weight is... wait for it... 3012 pounds including driver and a little over 1/2 tank of gas. So I could lose 568 pounds and still be legal in my class!

Also, I think this was the end of my trusty Nitto NT01's that came with the car a year ago. After all, the manufacture date on them is April 2011, more than five years ago (!)

Time for some new rubber, and time to put this car on a diet. First to go will be the door guts. The car still has power windows and power locks, after all! Then things that aren't necessary for legal use on the street, such as the fog lamps, rubber bumper protectors, etc.

I'm all ears for more suggestions. Battery? (including relocation)...

I can also increase power instead of dropping weight. Lindsey Racing sells an MAF conversion and chip kit for $600 that supposedly bumps a stock motor's hp by 5-10 percent.

But I could also run in Performance Touring (PTE), which has its own crazy set of rules.

Speaking of PTE, I met a new friend at the track. Jack H. would have run GTS-1 in his 944 as well, but he unfortunately blew his engine on Friday, I believe. His car is certainly far more developed than mine, but I took pictures just to get an idea of where the weight would come from.

Turns out his son is a GRM editor! Anyway, Jack has an idea to develop his 944 built to PTE rules. If he goes for it, I might just steal his notes and build me one too. The PTE class already had five or six in it, so if we both joined the class, maybe PTE could reach a critical mass in NASA Mid-Atlantic Region in 2017!

In reply to Ed Higginbotham:

How could you ever leave The Land of Pleasant Living?

CrookedRacer wrote: Speaking of PTE, I met a new friend at the track. Jack H. would have run GTS-1 in his 944 as well, but he unfortunately blew his engine on Friday, I believe. His car is certainly far more developed than mine, but I took pictures just to get an idea of where the weight would come from. Turns out his son is a GRM editor! Anyway, Jack has an idea to develop his 944 built to PTE rules. If he goes for it, I might just steal his notes and build me one too. The PTE class already had five or six in it, so if we both joined the class, maybe PTE could reach a critical mass in NASA Mid-Atlantic Region in 2017!

Hey I know that guy.

Pity about the motor. My little brother was also out there in HPDE1 doing his first ever track day in my old Miata. He managed to lock the transmission in reverse and had to leave it at the track. Not a banner weekend for team Higginbotham haha.

And I'll be back up there someday with the GTS1 crew! Got my restrictor plates last night.

I've begun to put the car on a diet. I'll be using some straps to hold the windows in place when the car is parked in the driveway, or driving in the rain. When on the track, I'll be removing the glass altogether.

There's some nice looking protective edging on Amazon that I will probably buy to cover the sharp edges. Does anyone have experience with it or would you recommend something different?

Trim-Loc edge protector on Amazon

I also plan to relocate the door pull either to the door bar or to the sheet metal above its current location. It can go anywhere, really.

Finally, I'm going to back out all the door's wiring, but I'm torn as to what to do with the rear-view mirrors, which are electric. It would be nice if there was a way to convert them to manual. I wonder how much the little motors in there weigh?

In reply to CrookedRacer:

The mirror motors don't weigh that much, but the mirrors themselves do.

Dropping the electrical wiring to them won't stop them from being manually controlled, just requires more effort.

Personally, I'd build a base plate from the stock piece and mount whatever mirror of your choice to it.

Hey CrookedRacer....it was a pleasure meeting you and I do look forward to racing against you next year. Regarding the door, I just trimmed it up and left it alone, but I like the idea of the material you linked. Regarding the mirrors, I ripped out all the electrics but kept the mirrors which i adjust in the old fashioned way. Works great, and stays put. I'm not sure what you did for the windows but I will post what we did...ripped everything out but welded in a tab and ONE 10mm bolt to secure the window in for transport and storage. It's neat and keeps everything cleaner in the cockpit without adding weight. Yep, I am planning a PTE build, because the guys in this region are cool, the racing is hard but clean and the fields are pretty healthy. I have some learnin' to do to be competitive, but I'd like to try to keep the old 944 competitive if possible. You looked great out there...kept it clean and quick!
Ed, glad you got the plates for the E36. We need to converge on a track. Lil'Bro got the MIATA going last night with the backup light switch access trick.

I just got back from Watkins Glen with NASA-Northeast! This was an advanced-only DE , racer practice, and TT weekend. There were three run groups, and we all got five meaty sessions each day. I ran in HPDE-4 / TT group, which was open passing, point-by optional (I always pointed by). I did my best to stay out of the TT guys' way.

First, though, a little bit about Watkins Glen you should know. It's an awesome place, and not just for the track! Stay at Seneca Lodge (or just visit the tavern sometime). They're nice and the place is a lot of fun!

Your change usually comes in rare but legal tender denominations... silver dollars, $2 bills, 50 cent pieces.

It's across the street from Watkins Glen State Park. Walk in, and it's free admission. The hike only takes about an hour.

I actually arrived on Friday night, and Porsche Club was at The Glen on Saturday and Sunday. So I joined PCA so I'd have some affiliation and came to the track after my Saturday morning hike in the park. I found some scrappy 944 owners that I felt comfortable around, and with the director's permission, I parked the car and trailer in the paddock so I could roam around with the truck. I did a little work on my gutted door with duct tape to be sure it didn't slice me up, and then I did some more exploring around town.

On Sunday, I spent the day with the car in the paddock doing a few things I'd been putting off... like tightening swaybar links and investigating muffler rattles. The U-haul trailer made a great lift for that.

Another little project I did was add a side mirror that wasn't obscured by the window net, which completely covers the left side mirror from my vantage point:

As you can see from the above picture which was taken from where my eyeballs normally are, the stock mirror is worthless. The new one zip-ties to the cage and bounces right around that net, giving me a complete view of what's next to me. It's actually a cheap water skiing mirror. Very lightweight plastic.

CIBA Mirror on Amazon

It sticks out the window, actually. Which can be good and bad. It scoops a lot of air and cools me off, and by the same token, it probably shaves 1mph from my top speeds on the straights.

It can be turned sideways and out of the way when I install the window glass for transport and storage:

In these pictures you can also see the duct tape I used to protect me from the ragged metal door edges temporarily.

So for the past couple events, I've noticed that the dipstick pops out of its sleeve whenever I take the car out on track. It just rides against the hood from then on until I push it back down. It must happen at fairly high revs and loads because I can't make it happen in the paddock.

Obviously there's some sort of crankcase pressure pushing it out. But it got worse: Next the dipstick sleeve's tab actually broke where it attaches to the intake manifold casting. I had to borrow some safety wire to wrap it on. I had bought my own safety wire, but of course, I didn't bring it with me. :-(

Then the little tab that was wired up also broke off. So I had to borrow MORE safety wire and wrap it more positively all the way around the dipstick tube and over the other side of the tab. That held it for the rest of the weekend.

So I had a fantastic weekend of driving. I had brand new Toyo Proxes RR tires in a 245/45-16 square setup, thanks to Radial Tire Company in Silver Spring (Thanks Paul!).

So the handling was epic. But at the end of my last session of the first day (Monday), I noticed a vibration that I didn't like. It turned out that it was probably rubber I had picked up while remaining wide to allow a Time Trial-er to pass cleanly. But in addition, I felt some play in the front bearings.

Back when I replaced the rear bearings, I bought front ones. But I never got around to pressing them in.

So I went to a parts store in town, picked up some quality grease, and re-packed all the front bearings that evening. I finished before dark with the help of a couple beers. The spindle, races, and rollers were all in great shape, aside from being loose and needing adjustment. The grease that was there before was in good shape, too. So I felt good about putting these bearings all back together and running the rest of the weekend on them.

On Tuesday I ran all day uneventfully, and on my last 35 minute session, I was one of maybe five cars on track, ticking off fast laps. A couple laps after pulling my fastest time of the weekend (2:26), I noticed the car had less power.

I pulled it in about ten minutes early and it was making a fairly loud ticking noise that you couldn't notice when the car was revving.

Here's a video of my fastest lap and at the end you can hear the noisy engine. Something's really wrong.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/dhM14HMgfCk

The car is at home now but I haven't even looked at it yet.

JH36, I'm ready to build a PTE car along with you! I'm taking this one off the street, so I can gut heavy things like pop-up headlights, dash, and heater.

If I had driven the car itself to Watkins Glen instead of U-haul, I'd be really hosed right now.

I love driving the Glen. When I go up there for the PCA events my wife and I always stay at the Seneca Lodge. It is reasonably priced, and the food is always good.

What did you think of the track with the new pavement. My 924 loved it. Lots of more grip and it drained really well when I was up there.

Car looks great.

Mike Kirby

In reply to Mike924:

Thanks Mike!

The track is smooth as silk, and probably had a lot more grip than I was giving it credit for. More specifically, in the big sweeping righthander after the bus stop, I probably could have carried a lot more speed.

And I know it's mental there. I watched a lot of videos before I went the first time in my Fiesta ST (April 2015). And one of those videos was a little in-car-camera nightmare where a well-prepared Civic race car ever-so-subtly lost grip in the rear halfway through that turn, came around, and slammed into the outer tire wall. That kind of haunted me then, and it still does for some reason. I imagine everyone has a turn that personally intimidates them. That one is mine, and I sort of allude to that in the video.

Fortunately we had sunny warm weather all weekend long, so I can't speak to drainage. But I do like the curbing throughout the track WAY better than the old ones - the 6" tall, abrupt, painted asphalt curbs you'd be more likely to see in a residential subdivision.

But I do like to brag-complain about those old curbs... it's just an excuse to brag that I drove The Glen before the re-pave... when we kicked it old-school!

Diagnosis: Nicht Gut!

I posted on Rennlist and received a diagnosis from Van Svenson, a Porsche 944 racer and youtube DIY video legend. His many helpful how-to videos have made most of my work on this car a straightforward process.

Van says it sounds like rod knock, and I'll need a new engine. The loss of oil-pressure helps to confirm it. I believe him, particularly because I couldn't find an instance of severe over-revving in my video footage at any point after my fastest laps.

Watkins Glen has a few extended corners where side-forces on the car may cause oil starvation to the crankshaft bearings. 944's are well-known for this, particularly on the #2 bearing. I was advised/admonished early on to get myself some sort of Accusump oiling system which might prevent this. Of course, for every Accusump advocate, you'll find someone else who will pooh-pooh such a system. So a spun bearing on one or more of the piston rods is a very likely culprit.

Sourcing a Replacement Engine

I had already lined up a replacement engine - an '88 like mine with the high-compression pistons. John (at Just Joshin' Porsche 944 Parts) says it has good compression but he hasn't tried to start it. It's been sitting indoors for 12 years, so it will probably take some care to get going, but it's complete.

He also has known running engines for less dough, but not the highly sought-after high-compression type. I think it would be nice, after all is said and done, to have two matched engines.

The transaxle he sold me has been fine, even if it's a little noisy. It's been through a lot in the time I've had it, so my experience with his parts and support has been very positive so far.

I'll pick up the engine this Sunday.

Doing The Deed

The procedure on Clarks Garage for engine removal has the engine departing the car through the bottom after removing the subframe crossmember. I would rather bring it out the top, and I've seen folks do that online too. So I have a decision to make - up and out? or down and out? My first hurdle is finding jack stands tall enough for the 21" of clearance I'll need under the car. That and an engine hoist, and an engine stand.

It also may be possible to just remove the oil pan and replace the rod bearings, if the crankshaft isn't scored. I'd still need something to support the engine while I do that. And I'll buy that other engine in any case, just to have a spare.

I've done both ways of engine removal on a XR4Ti and out the bottom is alot easier. you use the hoist to lower the motor to a dolly or something that rolls. Then use the engine hoist to raise the body of the car while you roll the motor out the bottom.

In reply to GPz11:

Thanks! I believe that's how I'm going to do mine too.

On Sunday I picked the engine up from John at Just Joshin'.

Kendra says, "wtf?"

After a visit to Harbor Freight to pick up a 1-ton engine hoist for $119, my new engine is in the garage ready for teardown.

Getting the clutch bellhousing off was a real bear because of this little guy:

It was completely seized in the casting with rust and pitting. I ended up using a hammer drill in hammer-only mode to push it out from above. I was relieved that it was just stubborn and that I hadn't forgotten to remove some lock pin or something. Fortunately the bellhousing wasn't damaged or anything.

The clutch, flywheel, and pressure plate were completely rusted out. No chance of using any of this. I'll either use what's in the car now, or purchase a new lightweight flywheel and SPEC Stage 1 clutch.

While removing the pressure plate from the flywheel, one of the allen socket-head bolts stripped. They are so soft! The good news is that they are so soft, so it was easy to drill out.

Here's the pressure plate after knocking the surface rust off. It's gone gone. Scrap.

I have to think the reason this car was parked 12 years ago is this clutch. Nothing left of the rubber-center. It actually looks like it was driven for some time after this let go, because the fail-safe metal tabs that it bottomed out on were pretty beat up.

Much better. A little cleanup, and this crankshaft is ready for its new rear main seal, and its new pilot bearing.

The exhaust came off without breaking any studs!!!

It's ready for new oil cooler seals and some more cleanup.

I'm now following this thread more closely as tomorrow I'll be picking up a somewhat similar car to yours . Reading through I enjoyed the commentary and vids of Dominion in particular, as it's only 45 minutes south of my house so I'll definitely plan to run down there when the opportunity presents itself (most likely in the stage rally car with some star specs slapped on lol). Boy, though....all that concrete makes me mightly nervouse - especially on the inside of that turn, as you mention!