996 Cab Road Trip

[911Tring]

Hi, I've been an avid reader of this forum for many years and thought it about time I contibuted.

I bought my 996 C4 Cab with a view to using it as a GT car rather than a track day weapon. Many people have told me they make terrible GT cars, so I have always been a bit apprehensive about how good it would be.

Long story short, a mate of mine met a girl , got married and moved to the middle of Sweden. One night after a few beers I hatched a plan to drive to see him. Afterall, Sweden isn't that far away , is it (oops)

The preparation;
Having read the forum I had a good Idea of the things I would need to do to get the car ready for such a trip;
1. Wind deflector - essential for any long distance , high speed trips. I got mine off ebay for about £150 which seems to be the going rate. Works brillinatly and I wouldn't be wthout one now
2. DAB Radio - I got a Kenwood clearance radio with Bluetooth from Halfords for £79 and had it intsalled by an Audio specialist for £50. The car is non BOSE so it was a straightforward installation (i'm told ) and it works brilliantly.
3. Cup Holders - Genuine porsche airvent type from Design 911. Look flimsy but work well . Be careful not to catch them when you get in and out of the car!
4. Made to Fit Holdalls - I got two identical holdalls off ebay that fit the space uner the wind deflector perfectly. Cost £10 each and then jazzed them up a bit with some Martini Racing stickers. Kept the Frunk clear for beer and other goodies being transported from the UK

The route
London to Harwich , Night Ferry to Hook of Holland
Hook of Holland to Hamburg and then Ferry to Denmark from Puttgarden
Puttgarden to Copenhagen
Copenhagen to Malmo and then destination in Karlstadt
Total Round trip 2073 miles
Total Fuel 85 Gallons
Average MPG 24

What I learnt
Sweden is a bloody long way away
There and back in 5 days was pushing it
Autobahns are a lot of fun especially when you come across Cayenne and other Porsche Drivers!
A 996 makes an excellent GT car. Ignore what anyone says!!

I've posted some pictures on Flikr if you are interested

https://www.flickr.com/photos/143167962@N05/albums/72157666844312833/with/27491018106/

Overall the car perfromed flawlessly although it develped a metallic rattle from the exhust close to home. I'm assuming prolonged distance at 120mph+ has dislodged a bracket, but its booked in to be investigated this week.

Now to plan my next trip...Stuttgart has a particular appeal...any suggestions?

 

[infrasilver]

I once booked a week in Amsterdam just to party for a week but got bored after 3 days, so I hired a car and the remaining three of us drove up the same route as you but to Gothenburg then left onto Oslo where we knew some Norwegian girls, spent the night there and then got the 24hr ferry back the next day to Denmark with the same girls. I've also spent some great weeks and weekends in Sweden as I was seeing one for a couple of years. I've not been that way for a few years now and I miss it.

I'm still longing to head up the west coast of Norway and the ferry company are currently in talks of resurrecting the ferry route from Newcastle to Kristiansand, as soon as this happens I'll be packing the car.


I've never heard anyone say they are not good GT cars, I think they are one of the best.

Your metallic rattle will probably be just an exhaust heat shield.

 

[Halcyon]

Brilliant write-up! And thanks for the advice, I chortled at your statement "Sweden is a bloody long way away"

But tell me more about these made to measure bags! They sound fab!

I drove up from Calais to Amsterdam, then over to Spa, Nurburgring, Hockenheim, Stuttgart, then down through Colmar to Mulhouse for the Bugatti museum.
Well recommended!

 

[911Tring]

Thanks for the comments, here is the ebay link for the holdall. Two of thes fit perfectly across the folded back seats. Theyre not going to win awards for robustness but were perfect for my needs.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/141708435...49&var=440839169662&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

I also bought one of these as the 996.1 doesn't have a glovebox and I needed something to put passports, tickets, iphone chargers , spare sunglasses etc in.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/360977906...49&var=630539594782&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

 

[Les]

I'm planning to take mine to italy with my wife later in the year. No perticular reason, just fancied doing it. Did the same trip on a Ducati 20 years ago and had the time of my life. I'm write it up once completed.

 

[Halcyon]

Thanks for the comments, here is the ebay link for the holdall. Two of thes fit perfectly across the folded back seats. Theyre not going to win awards for robustness but were perfect for my needs.

look good value

 

[911Tring]

Metallic Whine from rear of car has turned out to be a knackered air con compressor. :nooo:

 

[DaleD53]

Brilliant write up with interesting pics - much appreciated and well done - can't beat taking on a road trip :thumb: