Gary R.

Champ - you quite clearly insinuated I was saying your mechanic was dishonest ("he's not there to rip me off" was the term you used). If you got that from my saying it makes sense that shops stick with what they know and steer their customers that way then I guess there is nothing more I can say without this turning ugly...

Good luck selling the RS!

ECS

Had an '02 996 (bigger engine that year and I believe they changed the oil pan to a beveled one for better oil circulation). I tracked it quite a bit driving it back and forth to the track. The mods I made were MO30 sports suspension (factory european sports suspension), short shifter (definitely needed on that car), Brey Krause harness bar with six point harnesses, a race seat, and a fire extinguisher. That was basically it and it became a great dual purpose car. I didn't run "R" compounds so I can't say how the engine would last given those extra g's but I am sure there are Rennlisters that could speak up. Loved the car.

JimB

Pretty easy choice. The 996 starts out as a better track car and when you start modifying it you will have the 996 cup car and R/RS/RSR parts bin to pick from. You can build one into a pretty amazing track car.

David Ray

FWIW: I haven't seen to many DE / TT prepared 996 cars out perform the 964s or 993s at CA SP, Button Willow or Willow Springs. 996's are naft, if you go this route you need to go 997. JMO

A.Wayne

Get the 996 , not a 99 , go for a 02, you can gradually upgrade as you go..

RS 197

964...........

The 996 engines can't handle the track. I have seen at least 3 of them blow up on the track...
The engines were not made for the track..... Subaru engines,waterboilers.... Too heavy...... Not a big fan of anything 996. Except of course the GT3. That is a real Porsche, ready for track day fun....

A prooerly set up 964 will out run and out last any 996.

JimB

Where do you guys come up with this stuff? PCA correctly places the 964 two classes below the 996. The 964 3.3L turbo is one class below the n/a 996. The 993 is one class below the 996 and isn't really very competitive there.

The 996 is matched with cars like the 993 RSCS, 993TT and the 964 3.6L turbo. The 3.4L 996 struggles against the fastest of these cars but the 3.6L 996 does just fine. My very well sorted X51 996 got bumped a class because the RSCSs, 993TT, etc. kept bitching about getting beat.

Judging by the prices the buyer is looking at its safe to assume he's comparing a plain 964 with a plain 3.4L 996. I'm a big fan of 964s but there is no comparison between these two when it comes to track performance.

BTW, comments like the Subaru one above really **** me off. Can you tell?
Jim

kurt M

Get the newest and best condition Porsche you can. I think this has held true year in and out. Each model brings improvements over the last. Spend more time looking to spend less money buying.

MUSSBERGER

02 996

Wow! I can't believe I said It!

Chaos

996 and the parts are cheaper !

Johnny911

First, let me say thank you to all of you who have responded. The 964 / 996 question in the end centers on $$$ and, it seems like the “bang for the buck” nod goes to the 964. Are the newer cars better, I’m sure they are, as Porsche always improves every year. Heck, we’d all be driving 997 cup cars if we could, no? A 3.6L 996 would be terrific, but with prices over 35K, its way out of range. Bottom line, I’ve been away from the sport for a couple years and want to get back in with as minimal $$$ outlay as needed. The 964 sounds like a good choice for this.

Sean F

What about an SC

FredC

Johnny911: I agree with the 1957 356 on this.

Johnny911

Probably the most fun until you get to the straights and turn into a speed bump...

Sean F

Not so fast there Johnny. Take a look at some of the PCA racing track records that were set in the car that Fred now drives (then driven by Mike Iapaluccio). A well prepped, well driven SC will give an average driven 996 and 964 all they can handle.