Building a Top Level Time Attack Car

Light Weight

Rules for the fastest class state that a car’s minimum weight is whatever the lightest version of your car was from the factory—think any factory special editions—minus an additional 20%. It’s a great rule of thumb for estimating extreme weight savings. Most of these modifications are free, but some—like seats—can knock off enough weight to justify their hefty price tag. From there, it’s a matter of getting everything packaged neatly and towards the center of the car to allow for faster rotations in transitions.

PRO TIP: Check out Kirkey seats. They are among the lightest in the world and the cheapest you will find with a proven track record.   

Flat Floors

Most enthusiasts talk about wing size like it’s the fountain of youth when what really matters is floor design. Look underneath any Pro Class World Time Attack car and you will see flat floors at a bare minimum with curved profiles being featured on some of the big budget cars that can afford to hire ex F1 designers. Designing your own venturi style underbody is incredibly difficult, but you can design a flat floor that will reduce drag and give real benefits. 

PRO TIP: Do your homework. Flat floors can be done in a DIY fashion but you need to choose materials carefully and make sure there is adequate cooling. Do lots of homework! 

>>Join the conversation about building a proper time attack car right here in the Rennlist Forum!

Alternative Fuels

This is almost standard practice now and if you’re not taking advantage of it the only thing you will miss out on is more torque/horsepower. When the RP968 car debuted it was the engine that seemed to be the crown jewel: large displacement, compact design, and boost that enabled quadruple-digit horsepower. It was all thanks to a well-built engine that burned alternative fuel which increases the octane rating. This tech is available to you right now. 

PRO TIP: E85 is the most cost-effective way to burn fuel that will increase horsepower. Other more exotic fuels can seriously stress engine components. 

>>Join the conversation about building a proper time attack car right here in the Rennlist Forum!

Keep Their Cool…Just

Purpose built race cars are fascinating from a design compromise standpoint. What will increase cooling will also increase drag and what will reduce drag will also hurt cooling. Look long enough and you will begin to notice the front bumpers only have as wide of openings as they need to. Nothing more…nothing less. This is a great lesson for the DIY aero guy or the enthusiast who is purchasing a front bumper that might leave undesired openings which cause drag. Little tricks like sealing off these unused openings can find you precious tenths at the race track.  

PRO TIP: Stable temperatures are great on the race track, but reducing drag is also important. Don’t miss free horsepower (aka reducing drag). 

>>Join the conversation about building a proper time attack car right here in the Rennlist Forum!

Sequential Shifters

While there is nothing cheap about the last modification it’s a stone cold fact. None of the top level guys are shifting traditional gearboxes anymore. Time Attack teams are spending some pretty serious coin these days to ensure they get to the next gear faster than the competition. If you have a Porsche and only care about lap time then a PDK transmission is a no-brainer, but only to a point. Big torque figures put big stresses on transmissions which is just one reason to upgrade. Customizing your gear ratios is another and is worth its weight in gold. 

PRO TIP: You will never be as fast as a dual clutch or sequential transmission, but with the right mods and practice you can get close.  

>>Join the conversation about building a proper time attack car right here in the Rennlist Forum!

Final Thoughts

Building a car that can win at a serious level will require all of these things plus parts that work together and a team that works efficiently. A world class driver never hurts either, but these are more or less the core values that all cars share. You could say it’s like a template, but the moment you hit the track the template goes out the window and it’s a constant struggle to stay ahead of the curve. Everyone is pushing to the max in this sport and it will be fascinating to see what unfolds in 2019 as the sport progresses. We can only hope there are more Porsches taking the podium.  

>>Join the conversation about building a proper time attack car right here in the Rennlist Forum!

For help working on your Porsche, click over to the how-to sections of RennList.com.