Rivarama

Thanks a lot for your answers. One more question - one of the 3models of '03 4S I am interested has an Auto/Tiptronic transmission. I know all porsche fans will scream at the thought of driving an automatic porsche, but I am wondering whether driving a manual 4S in heavy traffic as a daily driver (lots of stops & go's) is 1) annoying after a while? and 2) shortens the life of the gearbox/clutch much faster?
Finally, are there more problems with manual or automatic transmission? how about the clutch?
Thanks a bunch
paul

pcarro

Great post Chad, very helpful info. Much appreciated!

Randy V

Rather than keep this old topic stickied, I've added a link to the Forum Guidelines thread located at the top of the 996 forum for easy acccess.

fayraree

hey everyone, sorry to revive an old thread but i'm having trouble trying to figure out the diff between a 996 s and non-s.

I recently rented a 2004 c4s cab for 2 weeks and absolutely loved. i'm having trouble liking my poor 2004 m3 cab again, LOL! (poor baby).

so i'm really confused as to why both S and non-S have 320 HP. what's the diff? i tried searching, sorry if my n00b research abilities are unrefined as of yet!

Marlon

...perfect for commuting - coffee, smokes, phones, etc. - no problem. Plus, with my Sprint Booster installed it gits up and goes lickety-split. Rain - snow (w/blizzaks) - no problem, and the list goes on...

jasper

Right - in the world of 996 only the C4 came in normal and S versions. The C2 came only as a C2. Unlike the 993 that came before and the 997 that followed, there is no 996 C2S.

The difference between the C4 and the C4S is that the C4S is a turbo in most every way except it doesn't have the turbo motor.

OK it doesn't have the gaping holes in the fenders or the turbo tail, but it has the brakes, suspension and fat fenders from the turbo, as well as the 4 wheel drive (of course) and the luxury doodads. You can liken it to the old M491 "turbo look" 3.2 Carrera back in the day.

It's the same 320 hp M96 motor between the C2, C4 and C4S though....as you've discovered already. It was the same with the 993. The S versions had the same motor pushing around more iron. I'd complain that Porsche was cashing in some of their legacy goodwill, but they sold the farm already (in my opinion) when the normal 911 became known as the Carrera back in 1984...but that's another rant.

For me it's a lot of unnecessary weight...and I've never been a big fan of wide body Porsches, but that's just me although I do prefer the 997S to the 997 normal.

Now go ahead and ditch that Bimmer.

medtech

Huh, are you sure there's no such thing as a 996 S?

And I was under the impression that the C2 and C4 were only about 300hp?

gota911

Med,

2002 - 2004 996 C2 has 320 HP. There was no C2S, only the C4S, which had the same 320 HP engine, but other goodies like wide body, full leather, turbp type rear bumper cover, etc.

jasper

[QUOTE=medtech;6711857]Huh, are you sure there's no such thing as a 996 S?
QUOTE]

Have you ever seen one? Yup I'm sure.

wellcraft

By reading the buyers guide I see something about sunroof delete. What is a sunroof delete (is a Porsche with no sunroof)? Does this 966 have problems with the sunroof?

GothingNC

Sunroof delete is prefered if you track the car.

More headroom for the helmet and weight removed where it is not needed, up high.

John

wellcraft

Thanks, I thought it was a problem with the sunroof.

jasper

I think it's the same sunroof design Porsche has been using for the last 100 years or so. Not bulletproof, but good for many years of service. I don't know for sure because my 2002 sunroof has not required any work at all. I have fixed Porsche sunroofs in the past - they're pretty simple to work on.

I do know that mine, and many others I have heard of, need a gentle helping hand once in a while otherwise the stop in their tracks and require a backward/forward thing. Not a problem. When I close the roof I sometimes just reach up and push it along a bit. Part of the mystique.

pcocja

Chad, thank you for this information as I am now in the process of buying a 911. One question for you...
I can either afford a 997 911S with 50K miles OR a 996 911S 2004 with low miles (15K-25K). What would you do?

rpm's S2

997 if it is in comparable condition.