fpena944

I got around to taking a bunch of pictures tonight instead of waiting until the weekend. Here we go:

Riff

Beautiful Cab! Is that the Rootwood accents sprinkled through interior?

fpena944

Thanks!

Yes there are wood accents on the steering wheel and parking brake handle.

black944 turbo

Very nice car Fernando, how many miles does it have? More pics, especially of the interior please!!!

Ray S

Let the mods begin....

Some good places to start IMHO

- clear corners
- Porsche x74 or aftermarket coilover suspension
- PSE Mk II mod
- Short shift kit
- Aerokit sideskirts

and that's just a good start.

Mark944na86

I'd actually start on the interior... "deplasticising" it, where possible.

One of the criticism of the 996 you often hear from 911 purists (snobs?) is the "plasticy" interior... I have to say I agree. Looks surprisingly cheap and down-market for a 911. A bit more leather, or even leather-look, would go a long way.

911 purists also complain that the 996 has lost the classic 911 body shape, but that doesn't bother me at all -- I quite like the lines of the 996. But I think I'd have to do a serious makeover of the interior...

black944 turbo

Have you been in an early 911? They are 1000000 X more plasticy than any 996 variant. I for one think the 996 interior is very nice, early cars up to the 993 are very cheap looking in my opinion (although I do love 993s etc.).

Mark944na86

I think early 911s are very _spartan_, but I wouldn't say plasticy. I like 964 interiors -- very nice balance of style and function, I think.

Ray S

+1 The 996 has no more plastic in the interior than a 964 or a 993 and on the plus side it's more modern and confortable. Furthermore, the interior could be spec'd with full leather throughout (dash, door planels, etc), carbon fiber, wood, or a combination of those materials.

Here is an example with full leather and carbon fiber. Call it what you want, but "cheap" is not what come to my mind when I look at it.





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Looking at the OP's, pics I'd say his interior looks pretty good also.

fpena944

You read my mind...But do the sideskirts look okay without a new front and rear spoiler?

I think most of the complaints came from some of the earlier cars that really did have a lot of plastic. It's hard to see in the photos but the texture of the dash is improved from those earlier models. I would like to make some modifications to break up some of the monotony in terms of the single beige color but I'm actually pleased with it so far.

I wasn't sure I liked the exterior of this model without the aerokit but the more I look at it the more I appreciate it's curves with a modern yet classic appearance.

Thanks!

Mark944na86

Agreed. That's why I suggested a makeover. Even though the CF is a bit "bling" for my tastes, the leather + CF has certainly eliminated the "plasticy" impression.

Still looks very "plasticy" to me... but hey, obviously it's just a matter of taste, and I suspect the Porsche marketing people had done their homework on what was likely to appeal the majority of potential buyers.

If the OP likes it, all is good!

Riff

The later 996's interiors are a league better than the first ones. The first ones had gloss finish on most of the buttons/switches and that looks pretty awful and that is how I think the cars got branded as "plasticky". My father has a '99 C4 w/ the gloss parts and it turns me off. Only saving grace is that it also has almost all of the CF bits as shown in the other pics and those are very nice.

Ray S

You be the judge.

Here are a few pics of my 986 and 996. Both stock front and rear bumper with sideskirts in these pics (I did add the aerokit front bumper to the 996 later after this pic was taken).





Stock front no skirts


Stock 996 front bumper w/skirts


GT3 front bumper w/Cup lip and skirts

black944 turbo

Ray, very nice interior. Mark, as much as I hate to say it our interiors are more plasticky than the later 996 cars.

GloriaRedStang

I have to agree that the later 911 interiors are very plush and well appointed. The opposite of spartan. "Plasticy" is not the description I'd use. It may have lots of plastic (I don't know) but the interior pics from the OP look very nice to me. Nice color.