I’ve sold the Corvette.

The replacement autocross car is a 2008 Cayman, 2.7 liter model, to be prepped for and run in C-Street. I appear to be in a significant minority of autocross racers who think this a competitively-viable plan! C-Street is presently spec-ND2 Miata. I’ve driven that car in a couple of events. It’s definitely a very fast autocross car, often raw-timing B-Street, but it’s not perfect.

The non-S Cayman is one of a group of cars moved down from B-Street this year. Those are the turbo 4-cylinder Supra, the 2006-08 BMW Z4M, the 4th-generation Corvette and the Cayman. I believe that the only one of these four that’s shown up so far this year at a national event was a Corvette at the Red Hills Tour. It didn’t do well, but I have no idea of the skill level of the driver. I hope to take the Cayman to the Bristol Pro-Solo and Tour July 4th week.

The general consensus is that the only one of the four that might be competitive is the Supra. This may very well be correct, but I have no interest in owning that car. I’ve always wanted to own a mid-engined Porsche and my performance-predicting spreadsheet indicates that the Cayman is the one that can be the most competitive with the ND2. On paper. Not counting certain intangibles.

I ran the car in its first event on fresh tires this past weekend. In summary, I believe the car shows promise but driver and car must both evolve to be threat to the ND2 in C-Street.

The car was run stock except for 255/285 Stones on 8.5” and 10” rims. I’d maxed the front camber to about 1 degree in front with healthy toe-out. I left the rear as I received it at 1.5 degrees with very slight toe-in. There seems to be a little more camber to be had when I look at the eccentric.

Handling was very balanced. At times I was 4-wheel drifting in decreasing radius corners. Elsewhere I was power-sliding out from an apex. Not necessarily fast, but these antics happened naturally while hustling my chosen line. Great fun, very controllable, no understeer. I very much like the mid-engined, short wheelbase dynamics and how fast the car rotates. Steering precision and feedback is fantastic. As expected it is not as stable under braking as a Corvette or ND2 due to rear toe instability over bumpy surfaces inherent in the strut geometry. Like the ND2 it’s easier to drive than the Corvette thanks to not having to manage big torque. On the other hand, it sometimes seems to take a long time to get from one corner to the next. I was looking for some reading material or contemplating the meaning of life and autocross which are, of course, the same thing.

I started tire pressures at 30F/34R. Grip was not great… it felt like too much pressure. So, I dropped one psi each run and it felt better and better. I ended up at 26/29 and the grip was fantastic, probably also because the tires were coming into their own. AT LEAST a match for the ND2 when it comes to grip.

Lack of an LSD was only a problem when launching at the start and then turning hard at the light with full power in 1st gear. I had to drive smoother to stop that and optimize speed at the light but I was able to do it. This issue may go away when the front roll stiffness gets increased as planned. I never had inside wheelspin in 2nd gear… just not enough torque from the little 2.7 liter engine!

First run I had a problem with stability management kicking on (though nominally turned off) when one tire would begin to enter ABS activation. (This is the way non-Sport Chrono cars work.) This went away by the 2nd run as I lowered pressure and got more grip, plus I was driving better. 

The car was slow in the long slalom when compared to the ND2s I’ve driven lately. To be expected with stock springs, bars and shocks, I guess, and it’s wider. Also, I’d replaced a disintegrated front bumpstop the day before the event with the one I’d bought for reference. Just weaving down a city street I can feel that the side with the new bumpstop is stiffer than the other, even though the old bumpstop on the other side is intact. The roll is snubbed earlier and the car turns faster. This shows how much these Porsches depend upon good bumpstops for proper handling. And, I hope, also how much things will be improved with stiffer ones.

So, how did I place? We had a CS class of 10. Five are what I’d call fast. I was 5th. The four above me all paxed in the top 10 out of 125 drivers. Also in that top 10 (and not in CS) were two multi-time national champs, 2 more Nats trophy winners and at least one other that could win a Tour if he ever went to one. I paxed a slightly disappointing 22nd with a significant error on my fastest run.

I’ve done the calculations and ordered aftermarket bumpstops last night. I’ll play with those first on the stock shocks and then maybe with Bilsteins once I get them. I’ve ordered a manual-hydraulic spring compressor to make things easier and safer to do all this strut assy/disassy. Sway bar decision to follow. If all is good except for some lack of damping then shock valving will be the final step. At least that’s the plan.