Benefits of Lighter Flywheel/Clutch Assy for 996

I am thinking of installing the lighter flywheel clutch assy onto my 99 996, which is simialar to the one on the GT3, made by Sachs for Porsche. The flywheel on the 996 weighs 28 lbs vs 8 lbs on the GT3. As far as the cars ability to rev faster, would the lighter flywheel have that much of an effect? What other effects would it have?.. Thanks.

Given that the GT3 has a different tranny than the stock 996, have you confirmed the GT3 flywheel will fit a stock 996? Or is the flywheel you're talking about "like" the GT3 flywheel but made for the stock 996? I would assume a lighter flywheel will help the engine rev more quickly and it shaves off 20 lbs of weight, which doesn't hurt either. It may also be tricker to engage and create some drivability problems on the street, not sure. Karl

Be careful here....the idea is to reduce the weight that the motor has to "throw" around and give it the capability of revving up more quickly. Be aware that this has been done on several 993's to more or less mixed reviews. For one thing the engine control electronics have to be altered because just as your car will spool up much faster so too it will spool down much faster. This means that is some instances you can stall the motor coming up to a stop. Also the motor may tend to "hunt" at a stop as it searches for a stable idle point. And, there have been reports of more gear whine and chatter in the lighter flywheel cars. I think the bottom line is that if you are a "speed is the thing and comfort is no big deal" person it may be worthwhile. If not it may not be worthwhile. Definately though I would review the availability of altered engine control electronics before I made this step.

The flywheel is not the GT3 one, but a light model made by Sachs for the 996. I also questioned the idle and the driveability - I can't see it being anymore difficult to engage then thte GT3's. The person I asked about it is a mechanic/racer in my area and considered the best here in my area...everyone takes their car to this person. All of the parts that he installs on his cars are from Porsche Motorsports, he won't install any aftermarket items. Considering that the 996 is pretty quiet to begin with, I won't mind the gear whine. But I don't want the stalling. As for idle, I sometimes find my 996 "hunting" for stable idle as it is, when I have just come down from a fast run.

roschpe -- Most interesting, ...... please keep us informed on your progress. Seems it would be of great interest to us all that track the 996. Thanks.

Viken, do you have any thoughts on this?

roschpe; Look through the 993 archives on the subject. It's been done by several persons over there. I personally know one gentleman, Tom Randel who went to the light weight version and then went back up one level to the "less light weight" version because of driveability issues. I wish I could recall the nomenclature and designations but it should be in the archives as I've mentioned. If your mechanic has done it for others, take a ride in the car and get a "seat-of-the-pants" feel for it and tell us all about it! Good luck!

I am not familiar with any lightweight flywheel for the 996. However, I do know that the 993 RSCS flywheel is a huge improvement over the standard dual-mass unit otherwise installed at the factory. The weight difference is about the same as your stated figures above and the revving is much quicker. On the post-95 993, there were no other modifications required. I suggest you check with someone familiar with the 996 to see if this change may have an impact on stuff like idle etc.

Thanks, yes I asked him about the idle issue, many people have asked him as well about that, but it doesn't pose a problem. The unit is made by Sachs, who makes the flywheel clutch assembly for all Porsche's anyways. There is a company out of Germany - the owner is ex-Porsche Motorsports...they put a lot of these light flywheels on 996's. The car rev's so much more quickly, it will leave you thinking where the "extra horsepower" came from....

My experience would suggest Steve is the guy to ask about this: http://www.rennsportsystems.com/~porsche/1-d.html

Go to www.evoms.com There they have the lightweight flywheel, clutch assy, made by Sachs. They also have a turbo kit for the 996. Stage 1 420hp Stage 2 520hp. Does anyone have experience with turbo kits, in particular this one for the 996?

I had a light weight fly wheel put in my old 911 and YES it makes a big change in spool-up and down!!! It did make the car a little easier to stall in a VERY abrupt stop situation at very low speeds (parking lot speeds). I would be very carefull since the 996 is a different breed of porsche and the computer may not be as nice and overlook such a change. It will cost you gas in the long run since on the highway putting energy into the fly wheel means the engine has to work less to keep it constant. It does have to work more to get it there but you spend more time at constant speeds on the highway. I suspect it will effect your low end speeds a lot....let me know how it turns out as I liked the effect on my old 911

The lighter flywheel can only be installed with the mods made to the comp program which is also being done..so there are no worries about the motor accepting the new flywheel. I've also installed GT3 catalytics on the car..sound is cleaner, deeper and the car pulls noticeably stronger..I wouldn't hazard to guess any hp gains, but there is a definite difference in how the motor runs.. I am also installing Porsche Motorsport headers with the new flywheel.

Roschpe, Are you sure you're not destroying your car's warranty by doing these modifications? I have not been able to move because of the fear that PCNA will not fix parts, even original factory parts for European spec 996's from PAG. If you were guaranteed not to lose your warranty, then do it, and please let us know how it goes.

There are no guarantees in this world Arthur, but when you have a guy who knows what he is doing, you won't have to worry.

How much would a lighter clutch and flywheel improve the acceleration of a car? Would it void the transmission warranty? Does anyone know how much the clutch and flywheel are?