My ocean blue 1999 996.1 C2

[tob_today]

The car looks great with those seats and shifter. Is it 996 shifter cables that you have fitted, or 997 ones? I'm still not entirely happy with mine.

996s do have 2 stage seat heating but it works differently from the 997.

Glad you're enjoying the car now :thumb:

Ah interesting, good to know on the heating switch. Precision are currently investigating options.

OEM 996 gear cables were fitted. I could tell the change immediately as the sponginess disappeared and the spring action to centre was so much better. I suspect the engine mounts help with the actual gear engagements, and the knob with the feel more generally. All together well worth the relatively limited expense, although I already had the 997 GT3 shifter installed, which is now perfect for me.

 

[sp1ke]

dropped mine off at Precision on Saturday AM, & noticed "syx" sitting out front.

Lots of changes since I last saw it at CG. The new steering wheel is looking very nice :thumbs:

 

[tob_today]

dropped mine off at Precision on Saturday AM, & noticed "syx" sitting out front.

Lots of changes since I last saw it at CG. The new steering wheel is looking very nice :thumbs:

Ha thanks! My 996 is turning into another project car, so currently I have 2 cars in various states of bits (also my 993) - it's all part of the ownership fun :lol:

 

[Rich_r]

Love the mods OP. The car looks very clean as well. I've had experience with CG and Chris before, he really knows his stuff and takes time to explain it and show you.

 

[tob_today]

Well it's been quite some time, and the 996 has practically been living at Precision since Jan for last 6 months.

It's now fondly referred to as 'Project 996' at Precision as I keep tweaking various things with the dedication & patience of Iain doing all the work (aka deMort but don't tell anyone!) and Andy coordinating everything. I can't say enough about these chaps & everyone else at Precision. They happily put up with all my requests & unusual asks.

For example, I'm sure not many people give them instructions to drive their car around for a couple of months to fix squeaks & rattles - not an easy task in a 100k mile early 996!

I've lost track of all the bits & pieces done during this time. Let's just say it's a long list. Quite a few mods, some fixes, and number of preventative maintenance items to make it best possible for long term.

I'll just detail some of the interesting ones here. Starting with an unusual one: install sound deadening in rear of car.

Why? During the extensive suspension development & testing with Chris @Centre Gravity we identified internal sound resonance that Chris explained was similar to being inside oil drum which is effect of the rear shocks pulsing the air within the stiff shell. Fix? install sound deadening.

So we installed around 4 kg of Dynamat in rear of car. Does it work? Yes absolutely, to my ears at least. Although I'm known to have sensitive hearing. Just ask my long suffering wife

 

[tob_today]

Next challenge for Iain - make the 997 heated sports seats work in 996 that didn't come optioned with heated seats.

I won't go into all the details as this is purely Iain's brilliant work (and it's too clever for me), but let's just say it wasn't simple plug-and-play & needed his ingenuity to get it working, and it now looks as though these lovely heated seats came like this from the factory.

 

[tob_today]

So now the black 997 sports seats are fully functioning and look great. Super happy. I wasn't sure how they would work with the space grey interior - but they work perfectly & feel wonderful. Much lower & hugely more supportive. I love them

 

[tob_today]

Oh did I mention Iain spent a huge amount of time tracking down squeaks & rattles? This shows the extent he went. This was one of 30+ little buggers 🤣

 

[tob_today]

So after half a year, the team at Precision were much relieved to see 'Project 996' finally come back home. I missed this car - and now it's driving soooooo good

 

[tob_today]

To celebrate the 996's return home I took it to the great Flat Six event at Goodwood on 9 July. The sun was shining, it was a glorious day with lots of amazing cars. And even with all these other cars, I loved my 996 C2 more than ever...

 

[tob_today]

... and those of you with good eyes for detail will have spotted another cheeky little addition while the car was at Precision: a subtle little front lip spoiler. For me this completes the look of the car. I'm not one for big aero or spoilers personally, preferring simple clean lines. Spot on :thumbs:

 

[tob_today]

So that's the big update done & we're up to current date. I bought this car as a really solid base platform to play around with. I didn't really know where it would end up, however it was always destined to become a project car.

I was asked recently: why do I invest so much in a standard 996 knowing I will never recoup that money?

My answer: because I'm already lucky enough to own fantastic 993 and 997 cars, and I don't want a GT3 (I know, crazy right!) - so instead I'm going to make this 996 my own, just how I want it. After all, that's been the 911 philosophy since they appeared all those decades & models ago. And the fact it's an underdog model just makes it better!

So where will 'Project 996' go next? Time will tell...

 

[wellsy]

Lovely updates and all credit to you for lavishing so much attention on a 'lowly' 996! It never makes financial sense to keep them absolutely tip top and to make them your own but its a great car that deserves the love. I bet Precision hope you don't leave them otherwise their annual revenue will take a knock! The car is looking great, simple clean lines and I like the subtle chin spoiler. Goodwood looks great too. I missed the flat 6 event but have been to several others there this year and love the relaxed vibe of the place. Your photos with the classic 911 in the background are awesome by the way.

Look forward to reading about what's next :thumb:

 

[tob_today]

Lovely updates and all credit to you for lavishing so much attention on a 'lowly' 996! It never makes financial sense to keep them absolutely tip top and to make them your own but its a great car that deserves the love. I bet Precision hope you don't leave them otherwise their annual revenue will take a knock! The car is looking great, simple clean lines and I like the subtle chin spoiler. Goodwood looks great too. I missed the flat 6 event but have been to several others there this year and love the relaxed vibe of the place. Your photos with the classic 911 in the background are awesome by the way.

Look forward to reading about what's next :thumb:

Thanks Wellsy - it's great to see other people with passion for these under appreciated cars. Personally I think they are in a unique sweet spot in terms of drivability and simplicity. There were a few things I had to get sorted on mine as they were blocking my enjoyment (as I've documented in this thread), but now they are fixed with other improvements it's like polishing an uncut gem. They are fantastic platforms & great cars, and I love mine 😀

 

[Hugh_]

I had missed your July update on this following the completion of that tranche of work at Precision. How are you getting on with CG and their development of bits of the C2? I'm going to press mine back into regular use next year so thinking more compliancy than my current M030 would be worth investing (who am I kidding!) in.