Upgrades for 996 Targa

Hey everyone, I was hoping to get some advice on some potential upgrades to my targa that I was planning on doing over the next few months. I'm hoping for a good balance of street use (serves double duty often as daily and weekend car) and potential for the occasional track day. Currently the car is completely stock, but I want to change the suspension (thinking PSS10s but I'm open to other suggestions), as well as a new intake and some other more subtle performance mods. The other big changes I was also looking into were new sway bars and new exhaust (want to get under the car and get as much done at one time as possible). Any suggestions on exhaust set ups and other suspension upgrades I could do? Thanks in advance!

I'm sure others will be along in a minute with suggestions, but save your money and don't bother with the intake!

Yeah the intake in terms of performance for the money isn't necessarily all that great. Do you have any input on the quality of the DesignTek system you have or how the M030 suspension stacks up vs the original? Thanks!

I went for the DesignTek because the exchange rate at the time made it an exceptional deal, even with shipping. No regrets at all, it's a quality product - but so are many others, and I'm not sure whether it's better / worse than any of them! Some pictures of the DesignTek bits before installation here: https://flic.kr/s/aHskBeeRVM Also very pleased with the M030 but all I have to compare it to is the previous setup, which was H&R springs and worn out stock shocks. If you're heading to the track there are probably better options but for DD use, which is all mine sees, the M030 is great.

The best possible upgrade for a Targa is a Cab��

I just upgraded my suspension on my 03 Targa for less than $1,500.00 Bilstein B8's, H&R Sport Springs and Rear Adj. bar including alignment. No parts needed as mine had 31,500 miles when I started. Always garaged. I upgraded to 997 shifter $220.00 New brake fluid w flush. $55.00 My Car has new Conti's, though i want to go back to Michelin's PS2 or use my older Pilot Sport Cups at track. I replaced all filters, fluids and belt. $200.00 I might replace the pulley for little money and hopefully worthwhile gain. Headers, Cats, and rest of exhaust expensive, mild gain. Best investment is getting experience behind the wheel, either at AutoX or DE Let me know if I can help. Mike

When I first got my Targa in 2003, I wanted it to stand out, so Invested in a Aero Kit I bought from Vivid Racing and then I upgraded the Power via Fabspeed Headers/Exhaust/Cats & Finally BBS wheels, 14 years later, she still looks Sexy as hell, not to mention, I have yet to see a Targa Aero in NJ or NYC since.

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Fister muffler update for a few hundred $. Great sound, low price, big improvement in fun factor for these cars. OEM intake box with a silicon hose to improve sound & resonator delete ($40). I did this after removing an aftermarket intake that started to throw codes. H&R sways & Tarett adjustable drop links are a great way to firm up corner entry and overall responsiveness of the car. $350 or so for sways & $400ish for drop links. The drop links paired with sways have made a big improvement in canyon driving for me. Less understeer and more point & go feel from the front end. Sweepers are more enjoyable now as well as the car stays more level. If you want top quality sways you can get the GT3 set $1,000.

The Power Agency Exhaust for the money is a much better option than the Fister, with little hp gains - I believe I got a set new for $700 for one of my 996's - not as aggressive as my Fabspeed MaxFlow but good for the $. One thing to me mindful of, once I had my suspension upgraded, I started to experience a little noise from the Glass top during hard cornering, I guess the tightness increased the stress against the pillars\glass roof, regardless, the Targa is truly the best of all worlds.

Thanks everyone for all the replies! On the exhaust upgrades, do you all feel that just upgrading the mufflers is a better bet than doing headers as well? I was just wondering because I have been looking a lot at Tubi and Fabspeed (havent looked at Fister yet but will be checking out their stuff as well as B&B) and their systems seem to be best when done complete rather than just in parts. Also for suspension, I've gotten some messages saying that I'd be better off just getting the x74 sway bars (sway bar upgrades is something I intend on doing as well) and other parts from porsche dealers/second hand sales. Is there anyone who could comment on this? I'm looking for a smoother ride, not necessarily totally autoX or track ready set up because while I intend to take the car to those events, It will spend likely more than 95% of its time on back roads for fun or even the occasional rotation as a daily driver.

Exhaust options: FisterD setup - $350 or so, no performance gain, great sound improvement Agency Power & other system mufflers - $1,000 or so, small performance gain, variable sound improvement & weight savings Sport cats - $500-2,000 - some weight savings, better sound, expensive $/hp ratio Headers - $500-1,600 - some weight savings, better sound, expensive $/hp & torque ratio I like performance mods and have a few on my Carrera. But the price and gains found in 996 n/a systems have me using Fisters without any regret.

I think for the exhaust I'll keep looking into the options but I like what I've seen/heard from the fister mufflers and seeing as theyre way simpler and cheaper to do than swapping headers and doing a full exhaust system they may be the direction I go. Also RangerRick, how does the aero package affect the visibility from the rear window (especially when the top is down)? I was thinking of installing that and I found it on Pelican for a pretty good price for the full kit (front clip, side skirts, and wing for less than $900) but I was wondering how it affected being able to see out of the back as well as the usability of the rear hatch with the wing in place.

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My experience with exhaust is as follows for my 996 C2 3.4L: 1) Speedtech Catless X-Pipes (new for ~700) 2) B&B Mufflers (used for 500) I absolutely love this set-up. Great sound, much lighter overall, small/noticeable throttle/hp improvement at the higher RPMs. As others have mentioned, hp is not easy to increase with these motors. I try to pick the best parts considering performance, lightweight and quality. I have nothing against the Fister mods, but would much rather get a high flow, light weight solution. As for pure sound, I felt like B&B and Milltek had the best sound to fit my liking. I then waited for used parts to become available. It took about 6 months.

I would do: tubi exhaust or quicksilver or any other exhaust Ohlins road and track coil overs and new polyurethane bushings. Will make your car comfortable and handle amazing. Evo ms intake. bens ball bearing short shifter.

When I was looking, like a month ago, Ben wasn't making his shifter anymore... You might need an alternative. There is a big jump in price from the B&M style to the ball bearing shifters like the Numeric. There is the ShiftRight, but if you need to buy a shifter too, you are into Numeric money.