Slippydiff
Imola
- Joined
- 22 Nov 2007
- Messages
- 870
MOD COMMENT: Split into a well deserved thread of it's own. 27/8/17.
Getting up to the first twitterings of the dawn chorus yesterday morning at 4.15 meant something pretty special had to be in the offing. In this case it meant experiencing the new owner's GT3 from the passenger seat, this whilst we drove around the best driving roads in N.Wales.
The car is a credit to it's previous owner, put simply, it's in superb condition, and the list of mods is far too long to list here. So I'll cut to the chase.
Forget all the b*ullshit superlatives you've read on forums, in Porsche magazines or seen in videos on Youtube (irrespective or the of whether the title contains "insane" or not) :roll: about modified, large capacity GT3 engines.
This is the real deal, one man's dream made reality, a genuine 500 normally aspirated horsepower shoehorned in to the back of a Mk1 996 GT3. The thick end of 4.3 litres of ITB'd, custom built flat six madness.
Early yesterday morning N.Wales was stunning, the hills and mountains bathed in sunshine, the temperatures warm and more importantly, the roads all but empty.
The usual Mk1 996 GT3 lazy starter motor solenoid greets the first turn of the key initially, but another attempt and the six pot masterpiece fires up. The overall impression is of standard Mk1 GT3 sound but inside the car at tickover the decibel count is marginally higher.
Moving off, the paddle clutch makes getting away tricky, add in the long duration, high lift cams, ultra lightweight flywheel, ITB's and mapping designed to to ensure that magical horsepower figure, and balancing throttle and clutch for a smooth getaway isn't for the faint hearted.
However once underway, the engine's character soon comes to the fore. The beautifully sculpted exhaust (the whole lot from cylinder head to exhaust tips is inconel and work of art in itself) is actually remarkably quiet (to ensure it'll satisfy the noise Nazis at pretty much any track in the UK) no, the most dominant and mellifluous sound in this flat six orchestra emanates from the ITB's. And what a noise !!!
Those of you that have experienced a 964 RS with a Cup pipe, decat and a drilled airbox at maximum revs, will have an insight into the sound I'm alluding to, this is THAT same sound, but turned up to 11...
The noise ramps up in stages, the resonances in the custom carbon air box (yep, you read that right) go from a rattling noise under load at low revs, to a roar that dominates proceedings above 5k rpm, but that's only the start. As the needle sweeps past 8k rpm, it does actually start to hurt your ears to a degree that makes you wonder if they'll start to bleed.....
If any of you have experienced a Mk1 GT3 fitted with a Manthey K400 engine upgrade, you'll know just how manic the rush to the 8000rpm redline from 6000rpm, is. It's deeply impressive, but it's not a patch on this engine. The torque and horsepower above 5k rpm have to be felt to be believed. It is SO strong, there's absolutely no sign of the top end breathlessness whatsoever, it just pulls cleanly and incredibly strongly all the way to 9k rpm without a hint of duress.
The 996 chassis (even fettled to the degree this car has been) struggles to contain the pent up ball of fury lurking under the engine cover. Put bluntly, the Cup 2's and a Cup diff have their work cut out.
Speeds which require commitment to reach on the road in any 996 or 997 GT3, are easily attained in the bat of an eyelid in the slippery Mk1 shell with 500hp at its disposal.
Rest assured, this isn't a chassis/engine combination for the inexperienced. The new owner kindly offered me a stint behind the wheel. I declined on this occasion, but if he offers again, I will take him up on his generous offer.
The result of one man's dream and his subsequent dedication to endowing the 996 chassis with levels of naturally aspirated horsepower its manufacturers could only have dreamed of when the car was first built in 1999, have produced a masterpiece.
Getting up to the first twitterings of the dawn chorus yesterday morning at 4.15 meant something pretty special had to be in the offing. In this case it meant experiencing the new owner's GT3 from the passenger seat, this whilst we drove around the best driving roads in N.Wales.
The car is a credit to it's previous owner, put simply, it's in superb condition, and the list of mods is far too long to list here. So I'll cut to the chase.
Forget all the b*ullshit superlatives you've read on forums, in Porsche magazines or seen in videos on Youtube (irrespective or the of whether the title contains "insane" or not) :roll: about modified, large capacity GT3 engines.
This is the real deal, one man's dream made reality, a genuine 500 normally aspirated horsepower shoehorned in to the back of a Mk1 996 GT3. The thick end of 4.3 litres of ITB'd, custom built flat six madness.
Early yesterday morning N.Wales was stunning, the hills and mountains bathed in sunshine, the temperatures warm and more importantly, the roads all but empty.
The usual Mk1 996 GT3 lazy starter motor solenoid greets the first turn of the key initially, but another attempt and the six pot masterpiece fires up. The overall impression is of standard Mk1 GT3 sound but inside the car at tickover the decibel count is marginally higher.
Moving off, the paddle clutch makes getting away tricky, add in the long duration, high lift cams, ultra lightweight flywheel, ITB's and mapping designed to to ensure that magical horsepower figure, and balancing throttle and clutch for a smooth getaway isn't for the faint hearted.
However once underway, the engine's character soon comes to the fore. The beautifully sculpted exhaust (the whole lot from cylinder head to exhaust tips is inconel and work of art in itself) is actually remarkably quiet (to ensure it'll satisfy the noise Nazis at pretty much any track in the UK) no, the most dominant and mellifluous sound in this flat six orchestra emanates from the ITB's. And what a noise !!!
Those of you that have experienced a 964 RS with a Cup pipe, decat and a drilled airbox at maximum revs, will have an insight into the sound I'm alluding to, this is THAT same sound, but turned up to 11...
The noise ramps up in stages, the resonances in the custom carbon air box (yep, you read that right) go from a rattling noise under load at low revs, to a roar that dominates proceedings above 5k rpm, but that's only the start. As the needle sweeps past 8k rpm, it does actually start to hurt your ears to a degree that makes you wonder if they'll start to bleed.....
If any of you have experienced a Mk1 GT3 fitted with a Manthey K400 engine upgrade, you'll know just how manic the rush to the 8000rpm redline from 6000rpm, is. It's deeply impressive, but it's not a patch on this engine. The torque and horsepower above 5k rpm have to be felt to be believed. It is SO strong, there's absolutely no sign of the top end breathlessness whatsoever, it just pulls cleanly and incredibly strongly all the way to 9k rpm without a hint of duress.
The 996 chassis (even fettled to the degree this car has been) struggles to contain the pent up ball of fury lurking under the engine cover. Put bluntly, the Cup 2's and a Cup diff have their work cut out.
Speeds which require commitment to reach on the road in any 996 or 997 GT3, are easily attained in the bat of an eyelid in the slippery Mk1 shell with 500hp at its disposal.
Rest assured, this isn't a chassis/engine combination for the inexperienced. The new owner kindly offered me a stint behind the wheel. I declined on this occasion, but if he offers again, I will take him up on his generous offer.
The result of one man's dream and his subsequent dedication to endowing the 996 chassis with levels of naturally aspirated horsepower its manufacturers could only have dreamed of when the car was first built in 1999, have produced a masterpiece.