Lexan Rear Hatch for Porsche 944

Lexan Rear Hatch for Porsche 944

944lexan

In order to improve the aerodynamics of our Porsche 944 ChumpCar racer, we decided to add a Lexan hatch. The ChumpCar rules require all glass other than the windshield to be removed. For our first race, we removed the glass and ran just the hatch frame. After looking at the other 944s racing against us we decided to add a Lexan hatch like they had.

We ordered the material from Five Star Race Car bodies on the advice of one of the other teams. This is the same material sold by Porsche specialty shops for about $100 less. The material surprisingly comes rolled up in a small box so shipping costs were reasonable.

Since we already had the glass out of the hatch we were able to start right away. Removing the glass from the hatch frame is challenging and requires a lot of patience. I have seen youtube videos of people breaking theirs out but they still had to deal with all the little pieces in the channels. I used an oscillating tool to cut the bonding material and carefully removed the glass. I had a heat gun for some places but mostly where the bonding material was cut, the glass lifted out.

We began by laying out the screw holes making sure there was no more than ten inches between holes. We paid extra to have the material cut to the size of the original rear glass. We may have been better off buying the oversized version as ours was just a little smaller than we would have liked.

We marked and drilled all the holes in the perimeter of the frame. Then we set the Leaxan in the upper groove and pressed it into place. We then carefully drilled through each hole into the Lexan. I found that if the bit ran too fast, the material would melt rather than drill and would refill the holes when the drill bit was removed. After a few holes I had the technique down. The biggest trouble we had was finding the right place to drill the holes. The best spacing away fort eh edge of the window put us in a ridge on the inside of the frame. This caused some of the holes to be angled which gave us trouble later.

We used a hand brace and a large drill bit to cut the counter sinks. We used the screws provided in the mounting kit from Five Star. The kit seemed a good value as it came with the right screws, locking nuts and a drill bit.

Due to the way the nuts hit the back of the frame, the ridge caused the nuts to not seat right. We ended up using a cutting tool to notch the frame at each of the screw holes so the nuts could sit flat. This also allowed us to use the shorter screws in the kit allowing the hatch to fit better when back on the car. Notching the frame took away some strength but once careful handling allowed us to get the Lexan mounted without it bending. Once the Lexan was in place the rigidity returned.

We added the two required one inch wide aluminum strips over the hatch and bolted them top and bottom. We then put all the rubber trim pieces back on the hatch to cover the holes and retain the look and function of the original spoiler.

The new hatch is very light weight and looks nice. We hope the performance improvement will be worth the cost and two weekends of work required to make the swap.