I'm wondering what is the best way to get Boxster S off the line? I'm not necessarily talking about on a drag strip, but more so day-to-day, off the lights.

The reason I ask is because I find that there's not much power below 2000rpm and often bunny-hop or stall the car when trying to move off the line in a hurry. And the emphasis here is on "in a hurry".

I'm mostly interested in experiences with the 295hp 987.1, but presume that it'll be the same for all Boxsters. Oh, and I'm talking about cars equipped with manual gearbox.

 

Just to establish some baseline:

What other daily drivers with manual gear shift did you used to drive?

 

Realy? no power below 2k? mine is a 986 with 310 hp I would assume that's close enough but I question how much experience you have had driving a stick.
The closest I could equate this is when you are sitting at a stop sign on a steep hill. Starting out without using your handbrake. I don't know if this makes sense or not but I never even think about what I do. I just rev and go, it come automatically. If you rev too high you will get wheel spin and just kill your tires. It's a combination of rpm and skill at letting out the clutch without slippage. Hope this helps

 

What other daily drivers with manual gear shift did you used to drive?

I'm coming from a 350Z ... which has much better bull below 2000rpm. And in particular right off idle. Before that I had an S2000 ... which had all the pull above 6000rpm. I've never ever had a car with automatic.

The problem I'm experiencing with the Boxster is that it seem to need 2000rpm+ to get really good forward drive ... below that it feels like it's struggling a little bit. It's not slow, but it's not fast either. Ideally, I don't want to ride the clutch, neither I want to spin the wheels (much) in a quick getaway from the lights. So I find myself (fully) engaging the clutch at ~1000rpm, and then if I give the car too much throttle it either stalls, or bunny hop as it's out of it's 'operating range'.

I've had the car for only a week .. so maybe I'm not used to it yet, but I'm curious to see what other people do.

That brings up another question ... Has anyone managed to get clock their own Boxster with a performance meter? if anyone has data-logger / performance meter data then I'd love to see it as well as hear about the launch technique.

I question how much experience you have had driving a stick

Driving a manual is not an issue. I am hoping that there is a way to get close to optimal launch from a Boxster without riding the clutch or spinning wheels. 350Z could do that ... so my thinking is that Boxster should be able to as well as it's lighter, has similar size engine, and hence should have similar torque. What I'm asking is specifically what is the best way to get the car off the line quickly ... not how to get the car off the line.

In a 350Z you had really strong pull from 1000rpm onwards so all you had to did is engage the clutch quickly at idle, and then feed the power in. In the S2000 you had to drop the clutch from ~6000rpm. Each car seem to like something else.

 

I hope you don't think that I was trying to offend. You did not mention any experiance that you had, sounds like you are new to the boxster and yes it is a learning curve, every car is different in that aspect. Even your car can be different from mine. A lot of factors come into play that make it so. You are right about having to throttle it but it's all about timing, just like you did in your z car. you sould be able to let out the clutch quickly and hit the throttle simultaneously with good results. I did a lot of AX's last year and launching is a big part of it. I did take first place in my class (modified) Remembering back, it took me a while to get the launches just right. Keep practicing, you will eventually get it.
Harry

 

I agree. Every car is different so try to get use to this one. One day you will get it just right.

 

I hope you don't think that I was trying to offend.

No, not at all. I did try to make sure that the reply did not come across that way ... but that's not always easy on the net. So please do provide any advice/suggestions that you may have.

Though, like you both mentioned - maybe I just need more time. I just surprise myself how often I stall it.

Another thing that could be exaggerating the issue for me is that the Boxster S does not have the same throttle response as 350Z when in neutral. You just need to breath on the throttle and the revs shoot up, while the same throttle prod barely moves the tacho needle on the Boxster. Though, I am getting used giving it a bigger blip off idle.

 

There is a thread on planet 9 discussing deleting a "clutch delay switch" you should check out. It does improve off the line performance but also increases your chances of stalling.

 

planet 9 discussing deleting a "clutch delay switch"

At the risk of sounding stupid - what is "planet 9" and "clutch delay switch"?

 

Here is the link. Sorry I didn't post it earlier but I was in a hurry.

http://www.planet-9.com/cayman-boxst...eated-joy.html

 

The 6cyl. VQ engine in the 350Z has gobs of off idle torque. Porsche 6cyl. do not so to have the torque output at clutch engagement point that you are used to I would guess your Boxster engine needs to be at about 2500rpm. I came to Porsche driving from a 400+ cid. upbringing & Boxsters are the most difficult car to start off from a stop.

 

Another thing that could be exaggerating the issue for me is that the Boxster S does not have the same throttle response as 350Z when in neutral. You just need to breath on the throttle and the revs shoot up,


Sounds like you want to give Softronic a look, after I installed that all you have to do is breathe on your throttle and it goes, but I know what you mean. (I occasionally stall mine but if you tell anyone I will deny it)
Besides the throttle response it also adds another 20-30 hp
http://www.softronic.us/buynow.php

 

Define "best way'. The torque curve gets nice around 3K RPM, so if you want maximum punch, you need to get those revs up. If you want something less noisy, you can trade off the torque by starting with less RPM's.

 

Here's the engine diagram for your boxster (it's in the owners manual). There really isn't much else to say. A boxster is not a 350z.

 

Define "best way"

The quickest way without spinning wheels (much) and not stressing the clutch. I don't ask for much ;-)

The torque curve gets nice around 3K RPM, so if you want maximum punch, you need to get those revs up.

I guess my question here would be - what's the quickest way to get the engine to 3k rpm without spinning wheels or riding a clutch? If there is such thing.

Sounds like you want to give Softronic a look

Sounds like a good product ... but my car is still under warranty so I don't think I'll be changing too much on it. I just need to get used to the differences and adjust ... just like any other car.

deleting a "clutch delay switch" - http://www.planet-9.com/cayman-boxst...eated-joy.html

Wow!! That was an interesting read ... I'll have to try this out, but it would make a world of sense in regards to what I'm feeling.

Here's the engine diagram for your boxster (it's in the owners manual). There really isn't much else to say. A boxster is not a 350z.

hehe - I've already had a good look and could not see why the Zed has such a noticeable advantage off the line. See below the torque figures across the rev-range for both cars ... yes, the Zed does have a torque advantage at the lower revs, but it's only about 10%. The weight difference between the 2 cars should compensate.