Basalt Black 996 Targa (4.1)

Hi all, I’ve been a lurker to the site for quite some time - have aspirations to work with these amazing cars at some point, but for now I have taken custody of this very tidy 996 Targa in Basalt Black (Black interior). I am a tinkerer at heart, always trying to improve what came out of the factory, but to keep the heritage and core values of the car. I like to do track days and so there are a number of modifications that will happen to accommodate: better braking, better cooling, more power, better damping/suspension adaptability. 997 C2S was my original target, the styling, interior and generally newer tech/design is more appealing, although price was always a significant factor. I am mindful of some of the limitations of the M96/97 engine, including oil starvation under heavy loads and the usual suspects in IMSC/RMS/Borescore, so I wanted a car that either had those issues, so that I could start fresh with putting my own stamp on it, or had had open heart surgery in Bolton by the guys at Hartech. I could never quite find the right spec at the right price, under the right circumstances, and to be honest the thought of the time and cost of the engine work did make me recoil and consider my own sanity at times. I started looking at cars that had already been given a second chance, but found still couldn’t find what I was looking for, and started to get a bit disillusioned and then I found this. As I said, I wanted a 997 C2S, so a 996 Targa is quite some jump from where I wanted to be - older, more flexible, more squishy, and generally more retro than I wanted. The headlines, though, were very appealing - 120k miles in 22 years (regular use rather than garage stored) refreshed brakes, suspension components, brake lines, coolant hoses, new clutch and the main event, a 4.1 rebuild using Hartech’s technology. I made the phone call and arranged to go and see it. I had already seen much of the car as the seller sent me photos and a walk around video, including the underside, but when I got there, the appeal was instant. The bodywork presents tidily for the age and mileage, a couple of areas that will need some attention in the future, but on the whole a lovely thing. The interior has faired well over the years and wears its 90’s style proudly. It’s not immaculate, 120k miles of use ensure that to be the case, but it still feels like a premium place to be, and I really like it’s nostalgic charm (don’t forget that the design is 30 years old!). Initial thought when climbing inside the car was that I didn’t fit! Although not the largest fellow, I’m 6ft and most of that is leg, so the lack of movement of the steering wheel was worrying. However, after lowering the seat to its lowest setting, pushing it as far back as it goes and adding a bit of recline, it accommodates me snuggly - including with helmet for the track. It’s not so much a 2+2 as a 2+1 as only the smallest child (or amputee) is going to fit behind me! Luggage space it is then! The coup de gras with the Targa, though, is the glass roof. For the purist sports car that I wanted, it’s a complete contradiction but, having owned various convertibles in the past, including a Honda S2000 that was a daily (the roof was down if it wasn’t raining) and an E92 M3, I fell in love with the amount of light in the cabin, and the ability to retract the roof and feel a little like it’s a convertible, without the total compromise of the shell rigidity. The car is a bit of a jack of all trades, but that suits me - I want to be able to hit Wales, take in the scenery, drive the roads, track day at Anglesey and enjoy the journey back home. I bought the car from Tobias, formerly of Hartech and now owner/operator of Kraft Independent Porsche Specialists Ltd, Bolton. Tobias had bought the car when it came into Hartech and the then owner did not want to put the engine rebuild costs back into it, following the dreaded borescore. In his own time, Tobias extracted the 3.6 M96 lump from the car and rebuilt it with the associated engineering to take its capacity out to 4.1l, carrying out the refresh of the components listed above. Following this rework, the car now generates 355bhp at the crank, with 327 lbft of torque, which is 996 GT3 territory. The torque curve sits over 300 lbft from 3k rpm, so it moves through the gears nicely, as well as being incredibly docile in town. It really is a lovely thing to drive. Having agreed a price, I asked Tobias to do some work on the car before I collected it - parts started arriving at his place pretty quickly, braided hoses, upgraded brake fluid, RST3 pads (these are a bit noisy, if I’m honest, I’m having to change them out to take Mrs T away to the Lake District in it!), GT3 brake cooling deflectors, PCCM+ (which is a great enhancement - modern functionality like it was part of the original design), as well as the key part of the track day armoury, a Hartech deep sump. This gives me anxiety at times, as it sits lower than the stock one, but it helps to reduce the symptoms of oil starvation, both by restricting oil flow in the sump so that the collector is never sucking in air, as well as allowingr extra oil capacity so that there is sufficient lubrication whilst the oil makes it’s way back through the oil return (gravity fed) and is less impacted by oil being trapped in the head. The car is currently undergoing some minor changes; I’ve added a little jewellery in the cabin - a Rennsport shifter on a shortshift mech attached to a 997 linkage cage as well as a Porsche Tequipment handbrake (2nd hand). I’ve also added a charge pad in the cubby to take my iPhone so that I can wirelessly connect to the PCCM+ and charge the phone at the same time. Mechanically, there is an IPD Comp plenum to be fitted with a new 82mm throttlebody, a BCM air filter, new TopGear equal length headers are on their way, a set of 200cel TG cats are also sat in the garage, alongside a set of H&R ARBs and a set of Ohlins Road and Track to give me the versatility I want. The rear springs on the coilovers are being changed for 100N/mm ones to help to reduce some of the harshness that will inevitably effect the glass roof and hatch - tape and oil has also been purchased to start the process of eliminating the squeaks as they set in! There are also some lovely RSR style alloys that are wrapped in Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2’s to go on when the suspension is fitted. All told, I am in pretty deep to this car now - there are very few components left to buy and fit - * I need to decide on topmounts so that I can get the suspension in, being a Targa, I don’t want to introduce too much more noise, harshness or vibration, as it will become annoying to drive in a civilised fashion. * I want to fit a Wavetrac LSD, although I suspect I could fit a suitable ATB diff without noticing too much difference, I don’t expect rear tyres to be airborne!! * Potentially a set of valved back boxes. The standard ones are restrictive, but with Bedford being a regular haunt, I am happy to run them for a year or so before trying some alternatives. Then, it will be the paint work - either a full respray with the small areas of corrosion treated, or it will be a colour change with the same. Some of the PTS greens that are currently available appeal, Jet Green, Forest Green, Brewster Green especially, but I need to consider the shape, especially of those lights, so I may just go black! A shout out to Tobias at Kraft, his attention to detail and his willingness to help with this has been brilliant - the car is on it’s way back to Kraft later this month (from the midlands) for it’s MOT and service - as well as an alignment and corner weighting as I intend to fit the coilovers in the next week or so (when I order the top mounts at least!). With Hartech no longer providing servicing outside of the engine rebuild programme, Kraft is a very credible alternative for people in the area who want someone to look after their car with as much passion and dedication as they have themselves, I could not recommend the guys at Kraft more. They are having an open day on 22nd March, if you are in the area, a good opportunity to drop in and see what they are about. **Disclaimer, I am not in anyway associated with or engaged by Kraft, other than through the purchase of this car and my own experiences with them to date.

Congratulations on reaching the end of your quest. It looks like you've found a great car. The fun starts now.

Indeed - digging for oil as we speak!!

Nice hens tooth find, welcome to the madhouse FYI I had a 997 C2S from new for 3yrs, I never fell for it the way I did the 996, my 996 also had a Hartech rebuild but to standard 3.4. I’m a bit out of love with it at the moment but that’s another thread. Yours looks lovely, just make sure you keep on top of the Targa roof maintenance as here can be troublesome.

nice post @<RT>

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Thanks Baron, Had a read of your thread - sadly age comes to us all!! With what you’ve already spent, you’ve covered off most of the bigger ticket consumables and whilst there can always be a nasty surprise, I guess the question is how much more is there? That said, at 180k miles, it becomes a labour of love, I guess. How much are you willing to spend to keep it on the road, compared to the depreciation of a newer car? Hope you’ve find love again soon!

Great car with a fab engine upgrade

Welcome to the 'light' side (weather permitting!). With all those mods and upgrades, you will embarrass some much more exotic machinery on track days....enjoy!

Thanks - looking forward to the good weather to get the most from it! I suspect it is already more capable than I am, but my aim is for an oem+ feel (more gt3 touring than gt3rs in comparison!)

Thats a very cool car and love the upgrades, i went down a similar path with mine, lots of money spent but no regrets! (I'm still £100k+ in pocket compared to the cars im sat behind on the road trips i go on, bargain! )