Thursday 27th November 2014

RPM Technik Porsche 996 CSR: Driven

Affordable, underrated and ripe for a bit of modding, RPM Technik finds the hidden magic in the 996 Carrera

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A classified search for sub-£15K coupe manual 996 Carreras can be found at the conclusion to this story. What follows may be considered inspiration to click on it.

Ducktail is RPM's signature 'CSR' look

Like me you may consider a Porsche 911 an attainable dream. Like me you may well be bitterly disappointed, whether staring at an optioned up 991 Carrera costing over £90K or wondering what happened to all the cheap 964s. Dammit, even Targas are on the up, leaving just the Tiptronic cabrios. Well, those and early 996 coupes for little over £10K. Blobby looks and accepted wisdom that critical engine components are fabricated from chocolate play their part, the thud of early 997s bottoming out in the low 20s keeping this affordable first rung on the 911 ownership ladder within reach of many.

If you're enlightened enough to realise the 996 isn't a complete snotter and willing to wait it out until everyone realises (may take a while) RPM Technik has come up with a most entertaining way to pass that time. We've already had a go with its 997 'CSR' and it's now offering a similar package for the 996.

Weather for Silverstone sessions was ... fowl

Built for comfort AND speed
It's not been stripped and caged into a wannabe GT3. Nor has it fallen into the backdate trap, the soap bar shape and unfashionable fried egg headlights sparing the 996 that fate. Rather the CSR takes the best bits of a standard Carrera and tidies up the remainder. The result is a convincing vision of a robust, compromise free 911 suitable for daily use, Sunday B-road blasts and the occasional track outing.

Some tasteful decals, a GT3esque front bumper and side skirts paired with, in this case, some rather extravagant HRE wheels (£6K extravagant...) and RPM's signature carbon ducktail give the CSR package its distinctive look. This car also has a carbon front lid, colour matched mirrors and a few other tweaks but you could, of course, keep it sleeper and invest purely in the mechanical upgrades.

Webbed feet possibly an advantage in these conditions

Which, if seemingly subtle in purpose, are extensive in range and convincing in application. A KW Variant 3 suspension kit, including top mounts and drop links, is matched with Powerflex bushes and Eibach hollow anti-roll bars with geometry to RPM's preferred CSR settings. The engine is compression tested and borescoped before being reassembled with an uprated IMS bearing, lightweight clutch/single mass flywheel and RPM's custom made sports exhaust. A Wavetrac limited-slip differential is also fitted. The upgrades are finished with an uprated throttle body and intake plenum with BMC air filter.

Mix and match
The CSR can be bought as a package or the upgrades can be added in stages according to taste and budget. If the aesthetics appeal RPM's Darren Anderson advises you can "save yourself a reasonable chunk" by starting with an Aerokit Carrera that already has the nose and skirts in place. Depending on the spec and extent of any remedial work along the way he reckons on an all-in cost of between £16-£19K, with a decent car achievable for less than £30K including the potential donor vehicle. Strong money for a 3.4 996 Carrera but, it could be argued, wisely spent if you want a thoroughly sorted Porsche for driving rather than posing or charting investment potential.

Rest assured this is one 996 that won't go quack

My drive in the CSR demonstrator kicks off at RPM's Buckinghamshire base, destination Silverstone GP. A perfect demonstration of the car's dual purpose brief and, in theory, an idyllic way of spending a Sunday morning. Were it not for the hour and fact that a rib with an outboard would appear the more suitable rear-engined transport for this venture.

No matter; for the KW dampers on the 996 RPM has backed off somewhat from the more "feral" (Darren's words) set-up of the Ohlins equipped 997 and the CSR feels pliant and accommodating. The exhaust booms across the still dark countryside and there's very little bob or weave, just a sense of a car that's been very thoroughly sorted front to back, inside and out. And doesn't the 996 feel small compared with a 991 or even 997!

These B-road proportions are more in keeping with traditional 911 virtues of course, likewise an interior that's workmanlike rather than bedecked in bling and stiction-free steering that chatters away in your hands without ever dominating the conversation.

Fits the bill as an all-round 911 for road and track

All in the delivery
The flywheel - half the weight of the standard item - and uprated clutch mean throttle response is beautifully crisp and undiluted, the rev counter very happy to swing through the entirety of its travel and leave a charismatic booming flat-six howl in its wake. It's a gorgeous noise but one likely to trip track day noise meters - slip-on cans are available if required.

Built for durability and response rather than headline grabbing power graphs no numbers are quoted, 3.4s as standard producing 300hp and 258lb ft. By the seat of the pants it's rapid enough to make enjoyable, invigorating progress without the need to flirt with a prison sentence. Like the size, this makes a refreshing change from many current Porsches.

At the track the conditions are even worse but the CSR remains wonderfully predictable and the softer set-up works well in the wet without any sense of wallow. It manages to find decent turn-in even through the standing water and under power the diff hooks up brilliantly, the characteristic 911 traction advantage evident on corner exit and the rear end utterly planted even in torrential conditions. If not seemingly that fast at first it's actually deceptively keen to pile on respectable three-figure speeds down Silverstone's straights. And carry a significant proportion of that through the corners in a fluid, flowing style that's utterly joyful to behold.

No longer the ugly duckling (Enough already - Ed.)

That crisp throttle response and the delicate steering are all set up for a neat, tidy driving style and the 996 feels entirely comfortable skating in that limbo between grip and slip. It's a car to drive precisely, a soaring flat-six crescendo on the way up the rev range and finely metered blips on the way down providing a soundtrack to prick the hairs on the back of your neck as well as any 911. Proper job, in other words. And, visually, it proves how little work is required to make the 996 look properly purposeful too. OK, six-grand wheels are an indulgence but as a package it looks distinctive without trying to be something it's not.

What was I saying about that classifieds link? Here it is...

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PORSCHE 911 CARRERA (996)
Engine: 3,387cc flat-6
Transmission: 6-speed manual, rear-wheel drive
Power (hp): 300@6,800rpm
Torque (lb ft): 258@4,600rpm
0-62mph: 5.2sec
Top speed: 175mph
Weight: 1,320kg (DIN unladen)
MPG: 23.9mpg (NEDC combined)
CO2: N/A
Price: c. £10,000-£15,000 before conversion, RPM Technik 996 CSR as tested sold for £29,995 (not including HRE wheels shown)

RPM TECHNIK 996 CSR CONVERSION
- Carbon ducktail (colour coded), CSR side skirts, CSR graphics package, colour coding of mirrors to wheels, GT3 front bumper, GT3 wheels, CSR carbon sill trims
- KW Variant 3 suspension kit, Powerflex bushings, Eibach anti-roll bars, CSR geometry set-up, uprated brake fluid and pads
- CSR Wavetrac limited-slip differential and short-shift kit
- CSR lightweight flywheel/clutch, IMS bearing upgrade, Evans waterless coolant, low temperature thermostat, CSR sports exhaust, full engine inspection
Price: £16,000-£19,000 fitted, dependent on final spec, see RPM Technik for details

Photos: Anthony Fraser

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With thanks to Silverstone. For information on 'Your Car Our Track' days, including Taster Days from just £45 per session, call 01327 320298, email [e-mail] or see the Silverstone website. To celebrate the end to an amazing Grand Prix Season Silverstone is now offering 10 per cent off all three-day, adult-only, grandstand tickets*! To book your 2015 Formula 1 British Grand Prix tickets call 0844 3728 300 or book online.

*Subject to availability; offer open for a limited time only.

[loveice]

IMO, Gen 1 996 (beside Gen1 996 GT3 front bumper and side skirts) is how modern 911 should look like. Beside the interior, the exterior of Gen 1 996 has the best surface design (all the surfaces flow together, all the shutlines go somewhere meaningful), best proportion (not too wide, too big) and details (all designed to suit the surface flow) of all the watercooled 911s. Gen 2 of 996 has the wrong headlamps. And CS4/Turbo's proportions were wrong. 997s and 991s... well...

Edited by loveice on Thursday 27th November 09:49

[loveice]

findtomdotcom said:

997s and 991s are fantastic, so much better that the 996...... Horses for courses my friend.

I'm only talking about the exterior design from pure automotive design point of view...

[loveice]

Vacationboy said:

is it just me, or is the 993 getting uglier and uglier - and the 996 the other way.

used to LOVE the 993, now the 964 looks much better.

design hasnt aged well imo.

I think in years to come, more and more people will release early 911/912 (long nose), narrow body 964 and Gen1 996 (without GT3 bodykit) are 'classic' 911 exterior designs.

[loveice]

billywhizzzzzz said:

Not so sure. The front end of a 996 is so awful - those lights in particular - and ruins the rest of the car. From an industrial design perspective, the 997 is more cohesive, more purposeful and a little less blobby. The 996 doesn't have a similar tension its form like all pre 996 911s - and for me I'll save my cash thanks and have a 997.

If the aim was to keep the twin round headlamps and two separate side lights/indicators design units at whatever the cost, then the current 991 certainly has the best front 3/4, due to its better integration of those two elements with the front side wings, bonnet and bumper.

However, if we are talking about an evolution design of the twin round headlamps and two separate side lights/indicators, then when you look carefully at the front 3/4 of 996.1, you should see how beautifully those two elements are integrated with the front side wings/bonnet/bumper. All the surfaces and shutlines flow together. There isn't a surface been used to specially accommodate a particular design element. In fact, I'm sure when they did the clay model of the initial 996 design, the modellers didn't even need to know where the headlamps, sidelights and indicators are. They could simply make the smooth surfaces first. Then, the designers would just use a knife to 'draw' out the headlamp units on the finished surface.

There are just too many designs for the sake of design on modern cars. 996.1 however is quite different.