Hardback

C4S you get more than than the wide hips... 11" rear wheels, big red brake setup, 30mm lower suspension and full leather interior all standard. essentially you get a fully loaded car. If you can swing it buy a 4S. You will never regret the decision. Now, if you want to skip the Carrera all together and pickup a GT3 then.................................................................... ........................................................................ ......................................you will make more than a few of us jealous.

Good luck with your purchase. Cant go wrong with any 996 at these prices.

Einsteiger

Great thread. [no vote - I love'm both]

soverystout

I like them both. My wife prefers the "996 with the red brake calipers" I guess a tip C4S is in her future. The more the merrier I always say.

Gaspasser19

Narrow body cab, wide body coupe

I love the cab. and I really want a turbo cab for my next car but it's just too busy looking for me. I'm trying though!

Yomi

I wish I could have the opportunity to pay a reasonable amount of money to autocross a C2, C4S, Turbo, and GT3 at the same event, plus a little street cruising test. My family would prefer a non-GT3 as the kids use the back seats. I like the widebody look best, but am pining after all the GT3 goodness, wondering what I'm missing from a good RWD version (e.g. 40th), and curious what all that Turbo power would be like for hardly any more money than I paid for my C4S (latter from dealer, former from some of the better Rennlist deals).

I've only driven a 1969, 1977, 1995 C2, and now my 2004 C4S, so am clueless how different they are while driving or autocrossing them (I view the two as quite different -- I don't slide my car around multiple corners on the street, nor do I evaluate the comfort during a serious run). Edit: by this I mean that I can't compere driving narrow body vs. widebody in a single generation. The 1969 was light, reasonably fast at autocross, but I didn't like the car -- truck shifter that needed babying and not enough power for my taste. The 1977 was basically that but heavier. The 993 was ok but darn that engine in the back wouldn't let me forget that it wanted to drag the car with it. My 996 is by far my favorite of each of them, and nice to drive on the street as well as autocross.

B r i a n

I concur: Narrow body cab, wide body coupe.

But as with all things: beauty is in the eye of the beholder

Ahmet

I've owned/instructed in and did many time trials in many examples. The bigger brakes are nice but practically will never come into play from a performance perspective. I can see if you're using the car as a dual purpose vehicle how the C4S may get by on track with just the dealer sport pads, though the narrow chassis is not exactly lacking in brakes with just more aggressive pads. I also found the widebody cars to be noticeably quieter. I would think an MK2 Carrera would be very close on track or auto-x to a Carrera 4S. The 4S is slightly slower but does have more grip -which is generally attributed to the AWD system and this is not the case. The widebody chassis offers more mechanical grip under neutral throttle conditions as well. In fact no Carrera has trouble putting power down (even in the wet they're fine) so the AWD is not required. Obviously the turbo is much quicker and can seldom make use of the AWD in the dry (of course it does come in handy in the wet often) but both the widebody cars are more planted/less nervous none the less.

As I said above I find the Carrera 4S to be the most supple and "nicest" of all of them and prefer them in looks over a turbo but if you have the money I'd be willing to put up w/the turbos rear end and side intakes for the extra performance even though it comes with another incremental weight penalty.

Though some of us (me included) may overlook the 996 GT3's shortcomings, it really does make a terrible daily driver. It's loud, rough, low ground clearance and very little power down low even into the mid range. It's fantastic on track, but that's not what most owners do with them.

SSST

One thing I've noticed about the AWD (at least in turbo trim) is that the cornering at moderate speeds is more neutral than in an RWD. I was used to steering a bit with the throttle through a tight turn. I know it only sends a small percentage of power to the front, but this is enough to make a difference at moderate speed.

With the AWD, you have to be going a lot faster to get the throttle steer effect. It does have the effect of feeling heavier, but the good news is that as I get used to it, I can do things that I wouldn't try in a RWD.

I don't think it is less responsive. It's just different.

Ramp

Well, its about a month later and I'm closer to a decision to go for the first 996 C4S or C4S Cab that makes the grade at a good price point.

Re performance, I think I'll prefer the extra grip of the widebody.
Re looks, I keep reminding myself that when I owned the narrowbody I kept saying next time it will be wide.

Sorry for the delay and thanks for the responses. Keep you eyes open and send me a message if anything comes around.

Chaos

I like big buts

SSST

Look at my Avatar. How can you not love those lines on the widebody cab?

Fat bottom girls, they make the rockin' world go round.

Good luck on your search.

stairmasterman911

for sure C4S... i'm looking at mine right now out the window -- awesome looking car.

Dennis C

I like the C4S the best of any 996 variant in terms of visual appeal. I've never felt that mine was too heavy or underpowered. I spent quite a bit of time driving a 997 C2S, and while that car was more powerful and responsive than my C4S, the difference was small.

vange_c4s

my vote - wide body. they look great.

Ramp

Send any my way - preferably near NY but would not rule out distance purchase.

Any thoughts on the price range for a C4S ? Looking for a mid mile, accident free, well maintained , close to perfect paint/ body, seal grey preferred exterior, gray, red or black interior - not tan

Other options don't really matter as I like to mod later