This is handy, just bought a track 944

[GC8]

The flush fitting windscreen is a nice addition (presuming its not an inset screen on built-up adhesive).

[iguana]

Looks like it could be a fun base car, lots of scope to build a proper car out of it over the years to come.

I'll try & find my track 924s thread on pcgb site for you. Was a ace car the ledas made handling really terrific, lack of pace & no LSD were really my only issues, all resolvable but for a price.

[GC8]

Chim said:

Thanks for all the replies guys, will have my list of look for bits and questions ready now for Sunday. It is a road legal car, I will though not be using it as such. It really is very much a base to go with for a long term project for my lad. Not worried about spending money on it and intended to do this anyway to get it right and ready for racing so not having race suspension is not an issue and will be our first task

What I really want from the car as I said is good base to start from and it looks like it is.

Id also pay particular attention to the cage, ensuring that it is properly mounted on compliant feet. If this is wrong then youd really be better buying a reasonable 944 and doing it all yourself.

[andy97]

GC8 said:

A couple of further observations: 'polycarbonate windows' fitted, but no mention of the rear. Theres little advantage to fitting PC to the side windows if you dont swap the extremely heavy hatch for an extremely costly formed polycarbonate hatch.

EMC Motorsport, who know a thing or two about prepping race and track 944s, reckon that the poly rear hatch swap actually ruins the handling by making the rear too light, despite the disadvantage of the weight being up high.

Maybe an compromise would be to fit a poly rear hatch but put some weight in low down in the spare wheel well or in the two spaces in the boot behind the wheels.

[GC8]

I disagree with Kevin on that, and suspect that its because he prefers glass to get a shine up on!

[GC8]

Seriously though, its too much to remove the glass hatch, spare and tools on a series one or 924S roadcar unless you swap the wings and bonnet for GRP too. Im not sure about a series two, but presume that its similar but to a lesser degree.

[trackerjack]

Well my little daughter successfully raced a 924 with a poly hatch and they are just a 944 but not so wide, the front runners get in amongst Boxsters with twice as much power so handling and cornering not a problem.
She left off the spoiler and was still lapping brands in under a minute.

[andy97]

trackerjack said:

Well my little daughter successfully raced a 924 with a poly hatch and they are just a 944 but not so wide,

Apart from the different engine and transmission etc.

I know the 924 series racer race with the poly hatch and don't report any problems in handling due to the swap of the glass hatch but they also have fibreglass front panels and a different engine, which I'm guessing is lighter than the 2.5 in the 44.

[GC8]

Id go as far as to suggest that you need to fit a polycarbonate hatch if youve replaced the wings and bonnet with GRP.

Kevin told me that he didnt like polycarbonate windows because they didnt polish up as nicely as glass.

[trackerjack]

andy97 said:

Apart from the different engine and transmission etc.

I know the 924 series racer race with the poly hatch and don't report any problems in handling due to the swap of the glass hatch but they also have fibreglass front panels and a different engine, which I'm guessing is lighter than the 2.5 in the 44.

You would think the 924 engine would be heavier but it is an old fashioned cast iron block and the 944 engine is all alloy with steel sprayed pistons and according to a book I have the 944 engine is lighter.
They do lighten everything though and put the weight back down low in the car because they have to weigh a certain amount.
My daughter did have steel weights screwed to the passenger floor to meet regs.

[iguana]

I really struggled to find a poly hatch whenI had my track 924s, supply seeemed to have dried uup completely & after many a call could only find 1 at a pretty silly price.

Is a big weight loss & worth doing well after light bonnet, battery & sunroof panel, but you might struggle to get one.

[GC8]

I have two. Im a bit of a hoarder though.

[trackerjack]

I made my daughters from polycarb rather than perspex. If you can find a big pizza oven and a former, perspex is easy poly has to be forced into shape by being overbent.
Oh and I must confess I made an error when I said that the 944 engine was lighter. I was wrong it is apparently the same weight as the iron 924 lump.

Edited by trackerjack on Monday 13th January 16:29

[NJH]

GC8 said:

Id go as far as to suggest that you need to fit a polycarbonate hatch if youve replaced the wings and bonnet with GRP.

I would go further Simon. Recently got another 30 Kg out of mine with lexan marguard side windows and quarter windows, removed PAS (again!), removed all winder/electrics from doors and removed handbrake assembly and some more odds and ends. There really is nothing left to remove from the middle and back of the car without cutting panels or rear hatch. The weight distribution is very close on 50/50 but up front is fibreglass bonnet/wings/badge panel/front bumper with no head lights, no PAS.

The point I am making is that its easy to loose weight of the rear of these cars, much more expensive and difficult from the front unless one does stupid things like removing the alloy structure that connects the front chassis rails. Without doing all the weight loss possible from the front first one is only going to end up with a front heavy car. Mind you I am light myself which helps a lot but still I think the point stands.

100% the best place to spend money on these cars is chassis setup as I have very recently found.

[GC8]

I see that as a challenge Neil. I wonder whether you can unpick and cut away the extra metal that a sunroof car has? With the fully welded in cage that Kevin fits you could cut the whole roof off and weld a non-sunroof and part pillar section in.

You then lighten this by having a thinner roof panel brazed on 937 GTS style.

[NJH]

It is but I am close to sub 1100 Kg now, realistically I am about 20 Kg or so over the Dunlop Porsche Cup class 3 limit. If I do anything more it will involve a much lighter bonnet and maybe some other odds and ends like stripping the dash down more (if allowed), passenger side door bar etc. As we found before a few years back Simon the dash is surprisingly heavy in the late 944 cars, its about 10 Kg with all the plastic bits in it and glove box (already binned that and the lid). It all costs time and money though. Setup and confidence worth far more than a few Kg.

[GC8]

A wet laid carbon fibre replacement would be nice, but no one seems to be making one in RHD...

Id always try to get under any class limits and make the car as light as possible, because you get to put the weight back where you like.

With judicious cutting I believe that you can make the steel doors virtually as light as Pro-9s GRP offerings, but with the advantage of their fitting.

[NJH]

Well that is the thing as my corner weights came up almost perfect recently and this is more important than achieving the lowest possible weight IMHO.

[GC8]

Be nice to have matched corner weights and a lower centre of gravity too.

[martinnitram]

GC8 said:

With judicious cutting I believe that you can make the steel doors virtually as light as Pro-9s GRP offerings, but with the advantage of their fitting.

What would you cut away to achieve this ?