nowata

I recently purschased a 1999 996 coupe for use as a DE track car. I chose this car because of it's driving habits and the fact that many of them appear at track events.

anyway, the motor suffered a broken cam chain over the weekend and may have damaged the valves on the right side of the motor. motor has 53k miles.

after this happened, several mechanics gave me the "duh, what did you expect?" response. apparently, in their opinions, the 996 was never intended for track use. they attribute much of this to the lack of a dry sump. they claim that the GT3 is the only street car that can be tracked.

it appears that my only option is to replace the 3.4L motor which may lead me down the same path.

does anyone else share these opinions? i am left wondering about all the other 996's i have seen at track days.

any input or suggestions is appreciated.

dresler

A lot of people say "duh, what did you think?" to appear smarter than they are. Is the GT3 the only street car you see tracked?

You will find many people here tracking any 911. examples coming up:............

nowata

thanks. i am sick of these porsche shops that are more than eager to sell the gt3 seats, suede take off wheel, roll bar, slicks, lightweight wheels, etc. but seem to forget that the 996 is an "inferior track car" until you limp in on 3 cylinders. what the hell do they think i'm planning to do with the car? i understand the profit motive, but what about customer retention?

i hope to see more examples.

MagnusB

Huh? What in the world are you guys talking about??
Inferior track car? Compared to what??

Patrick

Bought my 996 new in '01. Been tracking it since spring of '02. 93 days on the track so far. It doesn't even burn oil.

JimB

I was under the impression that you broke a water line and continued running the car until you cooked the engine.

BTW, the shop that you're referring to also built my 996 which didn't miss a race because of an engine problem in 4 years of club racing.

MagnusB

I confess, my 996 is not as good a track car as a Ferrari F430 Challenge for instance.
It would be truly insane to drive a 996 around a track, it might fall to pieces or even self ignite.
And all those people driving sedans (BMW) around tracks must be really insane, what are they thinking?

So if you have a 996 it's much better to buy expensive new suspension, seats, tires etc and just be a poser.
I just have some more track days I have to do since I already booked and paid for them but then I'll stop and become a poser.

evansaero

How do these guys come up with this crap.

A porsche without a dry sump does not = broken cam chain

Really sorry to hear about your car.

nowata

Hi Jim,
Your shop isn't the only one I'm referring to. I've also talked to 3 or 4 other shops to get more opinions. Your experience and your car came to mind as I was being told that the 996 is not intended for a track. Does your 3.6L have a dry sump? If not, do you run a higher oil level?

nowata

oh and the water line broke once Bob V found some wetness around the nipple. when he touched the water line, the fitting shattered. it was a coincidence, not the cause. the temps had been normal. the techs at Maplewood ran the fault codes and suggested that the chain broke, throwing of the cam position and damaging the valves.

JimB

No dry sumps on any 996s short of the GT3. I don't think oil starvation had anything to do with your timing chain breaking but who knows. My 3.4 did not have an oiling kit but my 3.6 does. You don't want to add extra oil. It will puke it up through the intake. Ask me how I know.

The problem with a used car is that you have no idea how it's been maintained. How often the oil was changed. If it was run low on oil, etc. I was really sorry to see your problem. Let me know if there is anything I can do to help.
Jim

SMR996

Jim... once again you are spot on....

I am sick and tired of hearing " I went to the track and my 996 broke "(fill in the blank)". If you are taking your 996 to the track you had better be prepared to fix what breaks when it breaks..... and something will break..

So far I have had the oil separator go causing the car to smoke like a crop dusterand oil down the track (this made me real popular), blown the gear box to pieces, and many more issues that have cost me track time, cut my weekend short, or required a tow home..... I've fixed the tow home issue and purchased an enclosed trailer today... now when something breaks I'll push her into the trailer and drive myself home....

Let's be honest... when you push anything mechanical to it's limits it will break.

Stepping off soapbox... flame suit on....

J-RAD

There's certainly some truth in that but in all fairness, I think you've missed the point.

While he's obviously bummed that it broke (who wouldn't be), it could've simply been bad luck. Who knows? But I don't think that's so much the issue. He's trying to determine what to do with the car - sell it, rebuild it, upgrade it, whatever. While trying to understand his options, he talked to several PCA members and contacted a number of respected shops around the country. In doing so, what he heard came as a bit of surprise - and is certainly news to me as well. A couple of these very well respected shops told him that the 996 essentially wasn't a good choice as it wasn't designed for any type of track use, even for a relative novice to DEs (no record lap times are being threatened here). If you were told that, what would be your response? Wouldn't that raise some larger questions with you as well?

As such, he came here to have an honest discussion about the topic before he spends thousands of dollars. It's a discussion that I'm very curious to hear some objective answers to as well.

MagnusB

J-RAD, I think you got your question answered :
https://rennlist.com/forums/racing-and-drivers-education-forum/376255-the-996-is-a-poor-track-car.html

mooty

yes, compared to GT3, a 996c2 c4s is not "intended" to be tracked.
but that does't mean it's a bad track car. compared to 90% of the cars out there, it's an incredible track toy.