James Bullen Herts, UK
@greenandtheblue Model 991 50 JAHRE Year 2014 Acquired 2022 Model 991.1 GT3 Year 2014 Acquired 2022 Model 996.1 CARRERA CABRIOLET Year 1999 Acquired 2022
As is often said, the 911’s versatility means there’s a flavour for everyone, and whether it’s your first or your 21st car, finding something to suit you is a big part of the fun. When you’ve been around the brand long enough, you also realise just how passionate owners are about their own particular model preference. And there’s one category of owner in particular that’s hard to surpass for its fierce loyalty and vocal support of their preferred neunelfer. I’m talking about 996 enthusiasts.
I confess that for many years I eschewed Porsche’s first water-cooled 911 not because, like many, I disliked the styling, but due mainly to the fact that by the time I had moved on from Boxsters to 911s, it was already an older model and, I felt, outdated. Looking back, I suppose I viewed the 996 as too young to be classic and too old to be cool, caught somewhere in no-man’sland and depreciating to the point that at one stage it looked destined for 924 price territory.
Reviving the 1999 Carrera Cabriolet that’s been in my joint custody since last summer has helped me appreciate just how good the platform was and how engaging a drive it remains today, with its finely balanced combination of performance, technology and proportions. At the 991’s introduction a decade ago, the gulf between thethen latest generation 911 and the 996 seemed vast. It cast the older car further into the abyss for many people, because it looked so far removed from the modern-day Porsche and yet nothing like what most considered to be a classic 911. Ironically, I believe it’s taken the most technologically advanced 911 yet – the 992 – to help rewrite the 996’s place in history. The car suddenly looks like more of a 911 than it’s ever done, in comparison to the leviathan that is the eighth-generation model.
Although billed by Porsche at its launch as highly advanced, it is in fact the 996’s simplicity that now appeals to me most, especially when jumping between it and more modern 911s. I especially believe the first-generation 996 deserves a revision statement when it comes to styling, since it now looks elegant and its silhouette is very much ‘classic 911’ compared to some of its progeny. The once-lambasted headlights look better than ever and the famously ‘cheap’ cabin materials aren’t quite as bad in hindsight.
Having now got our Zenith Blue car up to a great usable level and considerably enhanced its aesthetics along the way, myself and co-owner Rich can’t wait to start adding some hood-down miles once spring arrives.