My daily driver (albeit not very much driving lately due to semi-retirement) 2013 Boxster S is nearing 100k miles. I've had regular / recommended servicing / maintenance performed throughout its life. I attended a few HDPE events several years ago at much lower mileage however I'd like to get back into the events now that I have more time on my hands. My concern is that at 100k miles on the engine and PDK, pushing the car hard at HDPE events would likely lead to (premature?) engine and / or transmission failures. Any thoughts or experience with something similar? Thanks.
Tracking a 100k mile daily driver?
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Haha!! $ure is!!
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My current Boxster is now 15 years old and I do tend to treat it a little more gently than I did with previous cars when they were newer. Older cars obviously have more weaknesses that will show themselves with hard use. But a 981 Boxster S with PDK is a good strong platform and should be able to take the hard driving without showing signs of abuse.
My 981 Cayman GTS (when I had it) was an outstanding car for DE and autocross.
My 981 Cayman GTS (when I had it) was an outstanding car for DE and autocross.
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My opinion is that nothing on a 100k motor will fail just because of a DE event unless it was going to fail anyway.
Now if you told me all 100,000 miles are track miles, then I might tend to agree that it's time for a motor refresh
But no...I don't see any issue w/ taking your car out there.
Now if you told me all 100,000 miles are track miles, then I might tend to agree that it's time for a motor refresh
But no...I don't see any issue w/ taking your car out there.
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Depends. In a fast run group of experienced drivers where the sanctioning region lets the cars run hard and close—Chicago, Nord Stern—my experience is that the amount of time at WOT is similar to a wheel to wheel race. Race
engines subjected to that level of stress are refreshed as low as 20-30 race hours, in some cases. The greater the stress, the more likely something will fail at the weakest link. “Links” wear and weaken with use.
engines subjected to that level of stress are refreshed as low as 20-30 race hours, in some cases. The greater the stress, the more likely something will fail at the weakest link. “Links” wear and weaken with use.
I've put 20+ track days on a 987.2 with 90K and did have a PDK failure (shift rod distance sensor, common problem). That said, It was the heat that killed it, not the mileage. The 981's have better cooling on the PDK, so less likely. This year I went back to a 981 with 125K miles. I've put 9 track days on it. So far the only problems were failed coil packs. I'd recommend you replace them all if they have not been previously replaced. In fact, plugs, coils, and all fluids, filters, etc would be in order before taking it to the track. If you're not doing engine oil analysis, I'd recommend you send a sample before track services and then monitor at each oil change. If you see increases in metals in the oils, you will know a problem is coming.
+1 on making sure all fluids are fresh as well as plugs/coils. And most importantly I would make sure the water pump and thermostat have been replaced. The cooling system gets pushed at the track and a failure can be very expensive - not to mention dangerous for those driving behind you.
One thing i notice after changing coils… the spark is so much better the start up rich smell isn’t nearly as bad… de-excel off throttle smell isn’t as bad either.. it just runs better
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In the past, I tracked both a 1986 911 Carrera and a 2005 Boxster S, both with 100,000 miles on the clock. I did swap out the suspension on both cars prior to taking them to the track. In the Boxster I added PSS9’s, GT3 control arms to allow for more negative camber, track brake pads and brake fluid. I learned the hard way that I should have added a deep sump oil pan, and modification to slow down the power steering pulley. The deep sump oil pan would have helped prevent oral starvation during hard cornering, and the power steering pulley adjustment would have kept the power steering lines from overheating and melting. Other than that the cars were a blast to drive even at over 100,000 miles. Plus, with the high mileage, I really wasn’t worried about damage to the cars, as I had already enjoyed so many hours with them. Hope that helps.
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