Atgani

Former 996.1 GT3 ("Comfort" and Clubsport), 996 GT2, 996 GT3 RS, 997.1 GT3, 993 RS, 964 RS and 997 Cup engined 996.1 GT3 owner here.

Now 996.2 C2 and 997.2 C2 S owner ...

1. Seats. You don't need hardcore motorsport seats, just something more supportive. A gamechanger. The first of my two 996 GT2's had comfort sports seats, the second car had "Elephant ear" OE buckets. I'd forgotten just how instrumental the latter were to the GT car driving experience.

2. Steering wheel. 996 Momo Cup wheel (now available again from Porsche Classic) or if you're on a budget, a Momo Mod 07. Another game-changer. Smaller diameter for faster responses, but also much lighter, so all but removes the damping effect the stock airbag wheel provides, so the steering feels more alive and tactile.

Here's my 996 "fun HQ" :





3. I know nothing about Feal dampers, so I'm in no position to comment on them. But I do know that when it comes to dampers, you really do get what you pay for. And having used KW V3's, Manthey KW V3's, Bilstein PSS 9's, Ohlins remote canister, 3 way adjustable ex-996 GT3 R/RS/RSR racecar dampers on my 996.1 GT3 (completely rebuilt using longer shafts and re-valved/re-sprung) and latterly Ohlins R&T on my 996.2 C2, I wouldn't fit anything less than Ohlins R&T to these cars.

4. Lightweight, single mass flywheel. A couple of years ago I drove a 997.2 C2 S with a few RPM Technik CSR mods, one of which was the fitment of with their single mass lightweight flywheel. It was a game-changer. The 3.8 Gen 2 engine is great motor, but bogged down by a heavy dual mass flywheel. The fitment of the single mass lightweight flywheel alone, was enough to "uncork" it, and talk of it impacting on refinement, was greatly overstated IMO. Fitting a 964/993 RS or 996.1 GT3 with a lightweight SMF IS a recipe for making the transmission incredibly noisy, especially once hot, but the 997.2 with it's vastly improved NVH insulation, ensured I was barely aware of the LWT flywheel (other than the motor's vastly improved response, and the need to make my shifting snappier, to avoid the revs dropping in between selecting gears)

Here's the RPMT 997.2 CSR





5. If you're wanting to further improve throttle response, I'd suggest the M&M/FVD headers and cats and the requisite ECU remap. They, allied to the lightweight flywheel will make the car feel and sound closer to a GT car.
As for the noise ... :


6. Alas, you've fallen into the age-old 997.2 GT3/RS shifter "upgrade myth".
The 997.2 GT3/RS shifter does on the face of it, look like an upgrade, but beyond those cool looking aluminium support bosses lurks the very same soft, squishy and hopeless plastic bushes found in every 986, 996 and 997 shifter ever manufactured by Porsche :







Yep, that's right, you and literally thousands of others have been (and are being) fleeced to the tune of $550 + when you buy a 997.2 GT3 RS shifter ...

At the very least, buy an upgrade kit, or be a little bit more patient and I'll soon have an OEM ++ full billet shift option available.

Just don't forget, that whatever you do, you'll never get the full on GT shifter feel, because the GT gearbox internals (synchro hubs/baulk rings etc) are stronger (made from differing materials) and the external shift levers on the GT transmission's are reduced in length, to make the shift action shorter and weightier. Because let's not forget, ultimately Porsche are THE masters of making GT cars feel more precise, more tactile and more engaging over their "standard" cars, and all with some very clever tweaks and upgrades.

7. Make sure your brakes are in tip-top condition, I engineered my own upgraded, increased sized, two-piece rotors for my car, and even with standard pads, they provide more bite and more reassuring stopping power than the stock, heavy OE single piece rotors (my moto, don't buy it if you can built it better yourself !!) :





Shortly before driving the RPM Technik CSR, I drove a couple of stock 997.2 C2 S's and a stock 997.2 Carrera, all were wonderful cars, but it wasn't until I drove the RPMT CSR that I realised how "soft" they'd become, and that a few well chosen (and that's the important bit) tweaks could transform them into something far more fun, tactile and engaging to drive. The 996.2 I bought shortly after the CSR road test, has been my rolling development car, and I've been careful NOT to ruin it by making it into some noisy, harsh, hard-riding, track- focused GT car wannabe, rather I've gone the RPMT CSR/OE ++ route, and my recently acquired (today) 997.2 C2 S will be getting suitably modified with similar upgrades over the next couple of years.

Good luck in whatever you decide to do from hereon

hexagone

Consider what you want the car for:

Sporty and reasonably comfortable driving on the road 90% of the time: the base 997.2 C2 is more than you'll ever need.

Razor sharp response and equally tiring experience for anything that's not a spirited drive: GT car

I lived with a 997.2 C2S and a 997.2 C2 race car for about 6 months. The C2 had a tune, headers, all the GT3 suspension bits and seats. Absolutely phenomenal to drive and all my friends wanted seat time. But absolutely exhausting to live with at any point I wasn't driving the hell out of it. Jarring and darty over expansion joints, the light weight flywheel was obnoxious and the JRZ suspension paired with Recaro SPGs to really make your bum clench. That was about $30k of parts towards the C2 to make it feel that way. Assuming your 997.2 is worth 50 - it gets you into GT4 territory at which point I'd say ditch the 911 all together.

It's really pick one or the other - or just go to a much more capable platform all together - IE 991 or 992. But you're not going to get GT liveliness with base livability.

Atgani

This ^
I too learnt the hard way that "Racecar on the street" rarely makes for a good long term relationship with a car.

Hence my caveat in the post above :

"The 996.2 I bought shortly after the CSR road test, has been my rolling development car, and I've been careful NOT to ruin it by making it into some noisy, harsh, hard-riding, track- focused GT car wannabe, rather I've gone the RPMT CSR/OE ++ route".

CarreraAlex

Just chiming in as having spent a fair share of time in a 997.1 Gt3, 991.2 GT3 and Gt4s on and off the track (including an unruly 991 RS) as well as some air cooled cars and turbos.

On my 997.1 S i’ve basically decided long ago that i’d rather build this car exactly how i want it rather than get a GT3 and basically have no funds for any modification (which would drive me nuts).

Far from an engine build (which is my ultimate goal, looking at you 2026!) I have found that the mods I have done greatly improved the fun aspect of this car, and made my butt dyno very happy.

I have as follows:
RSS engine mounts
Eibach Springs on stock PASM
DSC Box
TPC sway bars
GT3 Endlinks/LCAs
Drop in filter
IPD plenum (say what you will but honestly get it for the sound)
GT3 throttle body
FVD Headers, Cats, Mufflers -> center outlet
FVD custom tune
Numeric Short Shift Kit
third radiator
+ .5L ‘deep’ sump
(i’m sure i’m missing something)

and the honest to goodness favorite for butt dyno:
Sprintbooster set to Sport 7.

My getty duck tail saves a bit of weight and adds a lot of engine noise to the back, Oh and good tires on light wheels.

All of these combined have made for a really amazing, spunky-yet-controllable and predictable car that i’m not afraid to thrash on. The engine mods + exhaust have helped in the midrange of the powerband, and even if it is a slight increase in power per dollar it’s a hell of a lot of whacky fun and noise, plus for all intents and purposes - feels OEM enough.

With all spent at this point including my gt3 rear bumper conversion I could have bought a well sorted 997.1 GT3 or a mint turbo but that would have been the end of my budget and half the fun for me is making a car my own. each to their own but there’s my 2 cents.

Le Petit Garage

I would focus on touch points first to give you that extra "feel" and then work down after that.

- Shifter
- Steering Wheel (Great OEM Options)
- Seats (Recaro Pole Positions as OEM Buckets are too expensive now)
- Pedals

After that / in conjunction with, a proper exhaust + ohlins. Your car will feel very very very exciting for not too much $ invested.

hexagone

If you want another sense of occasion - spring for a wing (I took one off my race car and put it onto my C2S)

Also a plug because I have an aerokit 997.2 wing available - but I also ran a duckbill for a long time but found it a little soft.

You'll at least get the appearance of a GT car:

quickxotica

OP, you've gotten lots of great responses so far, so congrats on asking the right question. Many good points have already been made. I will add just one more:

GT3s are more difficult to learn on. Your objective is to become a better driver, yes? If so, be happy. Your car, even without modification, is an amazing platform. And because it has lower limits than a GT3, you can explore them (and thereby learn) more safely than in a GT3. To learn the ABC's of track driving, the base Carrera is actually a very powerful and capable platform. Many instructors would tell you to start in something with smaller tires and far less power. A GT3 would be a huge step in opposite direction -- it's limits are higher, sharper and less forgiving. It will let a new driver get away with murder up to a point, making them feel invincible, until suddenly they sail blindly over the line and have an incident at very high rate of speed. It's an unforgiving tool to learn on.

As far as street driving, what everyone said above is true.

Be happy with the one you've got. Mod slowly and carefully. Get seat-time. Get coaching. Practice/Learn/Repeat. Enjoy!

rileyracing1

GT cars are great but lets face it the vast majority of our 911's are still way more car than you need for our less than perfect roads and besides most of us if we are being totally honest could use more seat time in our cars to drive them better. I know I am always a better driver come end of season then the beginning of the driving season which is part of the fun of owning such cars driving them well and not always at warp speeds.

Carrera2RS

In direct answer to the specific question, my answer is yes. I love my 997.2 Carrera and have a 991.1 GT3

With a good suspension refresh and coilovers, wheels and tyres, quick shift, FF mounts and bypass pipe it feels great, add a bit of alcantara and it does feel special, it's obviously not as quick and responsive as the GT3, but it's very linear and mechanically honest (For me rear wheel steering and electronically controlled dampers do an amazing job, but I am 100% happy to forgive the 997.2 for just doing what it can, no surprises, even if they are better for it in the GT3)

I think you should look at your suspension settings and see if you can dial in a more responsive chassis. For me adding an IPD plenum and possibly some of the RSS/GT3 lower and rear arms could take the 997.2 C2 to my near perfect every day car, one I am genuinely happy to think and decide which I would enjoy more to drive on the day C2 or GT3.

(By the way, I have never used a comfort button in any car, never used cruise or never used an auto in a PDK, so it's nothing to do with comfort that helps with any decision making)

You're car looks great and I think you are 90% there, personally engine mount choice, suspension settings, tyres (including pressures) and suspension components are key in moving an okay old car to an amazingly rewarding sports car

Spastblast

Get 993RS motor mounts, e.g.: https://www.carnewal.com/products/99...ts-for-996-997

No more wobbly feeling when hard exiting corners. A lot more connected, without too much noise.

smrpr

I think this part is the most important one of all of your message. It's super easy to make a car a racecar, just swap the engine mounts for some solid ones, remove the cats, remove the insulation and you'll feel like you're in a racecar. Having some tasteful mods that increase the response of the car and make it nicer without changing the way it is or was intended to be from the factory is a complicated thing.

I had never thought about the flywheel but it makes sense.

My list of mods (ongoing and planned) for my base 997.1 Carrera:

- Numeric shifter
- Function first motor mounts
- DS2500 brake pads
- Equal length headers
- 200 cell cats and crossover pipes
- Stock mufflers with Fister mod
- Bilstein B16 PASM coilovers
- GT3 LCA
- DSC controller

I think this set of mods will be enough to make the car sportier without making it undrivable as a daily car.

PatrickBateman

Love this response and it’s largely exactly the type of perspective I’m after.

Have seen your Carrera and GT3 here and admired the setup you have on your C2!

Glad to hear you can enjoy it still. I just ordered some really cool parts that I think will add to the sense of occasion.

Great tip re Alcantara bits! Any specific ones outside of shift **** you can suggest? Here’s my interior as it stands.

Hella-Buggin'

Steering wheel feels nice in alcantara. Seat inserts unless you're going to get some new seats. That adds a little but grip and a subtle visual break.

BRN9121

Let me share an experience.
Once a year, I help a dear friend of mine out by taking his collection of P cars for their annual DMV inspection runs. So in a span of about an hour or so, I drove his 997 GT2RS, 991 GT2RS and 996 GT3RS. I can tell you with 100% conviction, that getting back in my 997 C2 was a blessing.

Basically, what I'm trying to say is that, driving GT cars keeps your adrenaline going and you can only handle so much. A human body needs to relax and unwind eventually LOL.

Another few hours in those cars and I would have had a cardiac arrest!