PORSCHE

The 996 generation that rocked purists turns 25

Aficionados were amazed when they saw it for the first time at the 1997 Frankfurt Motor Show. It was a car that broke with the conventional. With the exception of the iconic, heavily modified 911 design and the 6-cylinder boxer rear engine, everything was new. It used water cooling instead of air and an innovative shared-parts concept with the Boxster 986. Up to the B-pillars, the internals of the 996 and Boxster were identical. Engineers and designers were determined to take completely new paths.

It was time to “break with the old habits”, recalls August Achleitner today. From 1989 to 2000, he held the position of Director of Technical Planning for Vehicle Products, Concepts and Formats, including Special Projects. As such, he was strategically responsible for the overall concept of the 996. “Porsche needed a car in a lower price segment to help generate higher sales volume. So that led to the idea of ​​the Boxster and 996 sharing parts.” There was no doubt that the new 911 had to look like a 911, but which engine would be fitted to the rear was initially unclear. “We experimented with the engine because the air-cooled two-valve-per-cylinder designs were at the end of the road technologically, in terms of emissions and power,” he explains. “And the air-cooled four-valve boxer wouldn't work due to several hot spots that we couldn't control. In 1989, a compact V8 was even installed in the rear as a test, but that idea was also discarded. So that led us to water-cooled four-valve boxer engines.”

The Shared Parts Concept...In the 1990s, Design Director Harm Lagaay laid out the main lines of the 996. He remembers how surprised he was by the strategy, unique in automotive engineering at the time, of creating a mid-engined roadster. and a rear-engined coupe, completely identical from the front to the B-pillar. “The task was a big challenge. But we excelled by first designing a series of common parts for the Boxster and 996,” he says. Due to time constraints, modelers had to work directly on the 1:1 scale models. To get everything done on time, Porsche added a large number of specialists to Lagaay's team, up to 80 members at peak time.

Due to the success of the Boxster concept car on its debut at the 1993 Detroit Auto Show, the selected design proposals closely resembled it. This prototype excited the public and was named “Best of Show”. “I immediately realized that the front of that show car would also fit the 996,” comments Lagaay. “What people forget is that we were working on all three models at the same time (996, 986 and the concept car). Otherwise, it would take a long time for the public to get to know the cars.” The Design Director was, of course, aware of the risk of merging the Boxster 986 and 911 996 models, but other concerns were more pressing: “The pressure and imperative to save the company was top priority.”

The new concept of common parts affected all departments involved in the front, from the suspension to the electrical system, the body and proportions. “The program predicted that we would sell a total of at least 30,000 units of both vehicles with a good return on investment,” adds Achleitner. This was also why the Boxster was launched in 1996, a year before the 996, which was introduced in 1997. And the plan worked: more than 30,000 copies of the 996 generation of the 911 were sold a year, with total sales that fluctuated between 50,000 and 60,000 units.

Internally, the concept or design was never criticized. On the other hand, the shape and effect of the headlights, with their integrated turn signals, did not please the press after a few months. It came as a surprise to the designers, as the design had been highly praised on the Boxster prototype shortly before. “The design was totally unique: five functions in a single module that was inexpensive and could be installed on the assembly line in minutes,” explains Lagaay.

The Cabriolet followed in 1998...In April 1998, the Cabriolet was joined by the Coupe, with an all-electric top that opened and closed in 20 seconds. When it retracted, it disappeared under a metal plate, eliminating the need for a protective cover. About six months later, Porsche added the all-wheel drive 911 Carrera 4 to the range, in Coupe and Cabriolet versions, both with the bodywork of the basic 911. This all-wheel drive Carrera and all-wheel drive 911 Turbo, which were offered from January 2000 with a 420 hp biturbo engine and a top speed of 305 km/h, were part of the product planning from the start. Achleitner comments: “In the design of the 996 we made the transmission tunnel big enough to fit a camshaft for all-wheel drive. This required some compromises: due to the shared parts plan, the Boxster also had this same detail, although it was never available with all-wheel drive.”

While the Turbo and Carrera 4 versions were planned, the 911 GT3 launched in May 1999, on the contrary, came about almost by chance: due to changes in the competition regulations, Porsche built a 360 hp version of the 911 as a vehicle homologated for road and successor to the 911 Carrera RS. “The commercial success and the number of units were not great at the beginning”, acknowledges Achleitner. "And yet the 911 GT3 has established an independent brand, because with the 996-generation 911 GT3 we were able to clearly distinguish between an everyday 911 and a racing-inspired road car." It was followed in January 2001 by the 911 GT2, based on the 911 Turbo, with a 3.6-liter boxer engine and 462 hp. It was the first model with ceramic brakes as standard.

The 996 generation was renewed in 2002. The displacement increased to 3.6 liters and the power to 320 hp (in the Carrera and Carrera 4 versions). The 911 Targa and the 911 Carrera 4S Coupe with the wider body of the 911 Turbo have joined the family. The open-top 4S version arrived in 2003. For the 2004 model year, Porsche also offered a convertible version of the Turbo and, as one of several special models, the 911 Carrera Coupe '40th Anniversary' with 345 hp, sports suspension and roof electric solar. From 2005 onwards, the Turbo S was available in Coupe and Cabriolet versions with 450 hp. Never before had there been so many versions of the 911 as in the 996 generation. Porsche would sell around 175,000 copies.

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