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Building what some would call the Antithesis of a GT3
Flame Suit made of Vibranium On Figured it was time to post some details on my “new to me” 997.1 GT3. I’ve spent most of my Porsche ownership with Aircooled cars, owning both 964s and 993s. I loved the analog feeling, sounds and smells of those cars but I found myself always modifying them (full suspension, etc) striving for a driving experience that I soon realized I would never achieve without building a $50k+ motor and tranny. Then, on a whim, I went to drive a 997.1 GT3 that was for sale locally to me. From the first 5 minutes behind the wheel, I realized it was everting I was trying to build with my aircooled cars, but right out of the box in stock form! I was hooked and my search for the right example started. That was over a year and a half ago . I worked with Doug at Switch Cars to help me find the “perfect” car, which I soon realized was a daunting task. Doug presented a bunch of really good options to me and finally I found the right one that checked all the right boxes! Basically the way I would have built it if I ordered new back then. I purchased from Holt Motorsports, where I actually got my last 3 cars from. Tim is a great guy, super easy to deal with and always has pristine examples!
The car had 35kmi, full front PPF and was completely stock except for an M&M full exhaust system which I loved at first, but soon realized it would be too loud for my tastes (you’ll understand when you see what came next). So I searched the country (I must have called at least 25 shops) for a complete OEM take off system and finally found one at Cantrell Motorsports on the West Coast. OEM headers for these cars are to come by. Honestly, the car sounds so good in stock form IMHO, I’m not sure I’ll ever touch the exhaust again…..maybe some valved side deletes, but we’ll see
Part of the reason I wanted a 997.1, was the ability to fairly easily add rear seats, since most of the mounting hardware is already there. 997.2 removed the mounting sheet metal for rear belts and 991’s have nothing left as far as I know. On the .1, all the holes are there, but plugged. Its just a mater of sourcing the side brackets to hold the rear seatbacks in place. I sourced the parts from forum members, DC Auto and PCNA (where I felt new would be best and safest). Most say, “if you want back seats, but a turbo”, but we all know those are totally different animals. Nothing beats winding these cars out!!
Last up to to tackle the audio system. I love the sounds this car makes bit for those longer drives, and when the kids are requesting the Frozen 2 soundtrack, something had to be done. My car was optioned with Sound Package Plus. I think my iPhone sounds better then that system (LOL smiley). It was important that I kept things simple and in factory location so we used a nice set of Morel point source coax speakers and installed them in the factory woofer door cage, added an Arc Audi mini amp in the factory amp location in the frunk and installed a Kenwood HU with proper color matched trim kit and Porsche logo boot screen (from Rod at CAI). System sounds amazing and didn’t add much weight, if any at all.
So, at the end of all of this, I did the opposite of what a majority of GT3 owners would do - I made my GT3 quieter, added backseats for the kiddies, upgraded the audio and, IMHO, build the perfect car for me! I f’in love this thing!!
More to come as I do more.....I usually can’t help myself but to tinker (SMILEY).....maybe DSC, maybe KW clubsports, dundon stuff.....we’ll see.
Love it! I think its the perfect gt3 as well. If I could only have one car, it would be a gt3, and this is what I would do to it (I have four kiddos!).
looking forward, i would be interested to know what potential buyers are going to say. yes, i know you built it for yourself, i'm just projecting. i think it would be interesting to see what people think/say. someone might love it for it's functionality, just like you do.
Everything seems reversible so I don't think the OP's mods are going to have any impact of future value. Kudos for making your car YOUR car. Too many people care about what others will think and don't enjoy what they have and make it their own.
Originally Posted by rsabeebe
looking forward, i would be interested to know what potential buyers are going to say. yes, i know you built it for yourself, i'm just projecting. i think it would be interesting to see what people think/say. someone might love it for it's functionality, just like you do.
Thanks for sharing. You have a really nice car. Ultimately I don't think anyone should have an issue with the mods you did. Everything is reversible and it really looks like you made the perfect road trip car or something that you can enjoy with the family. Quieter is good in many cases, specifically long drives or around town. The back seats means that you can enjoy the car with more people. The audio system also means that you can truly enjoy the drive with music and also bluetooth audio and CarPlay. Enjoy the car. Share what else you do to it. Interesting to see how people enjoy their GT3's in different ways. For some it's sitting in the garage looking at it, for others it's track time, for others it's backroad drives and some it's cars and coffee.
Nice example, the full leather package really adds that "premium feel" to the cabin too... and that leather wheel isn't a bad move for a road car either, the Alcantara wheel goes to cr*p and is harder to stay on top of! A "smart spec" by the original owner.
Here in Australia, there is a number of 997.1's getting around with 4 seat compliance tags (basically road legal plate) from new (however still only front seats fitted), so there are guys who've added the rear seats and the car is 100% legal without jumping through the hoops, I am not sure how it works stateside but here by default GT3's were only complied as 2 seater, so its a bit of a process to get one legal if you didnt find the 4 seat complied examples.
As such, I have a couple mates who, like you, added the rear seats... why not share an awesome car with your kids I say? Kudos
I love it. I have one that’s too big for the back seats now and another that will be soon so enjoy it while you can. We’ve had some good times in our 911s over the years.
Your flame suit is not required here, as you have personalized the car perfectly for your own tastes and situation. Looks like a job well done...congratulations!
Thanks guys! Appreciate all the kind words/comments.
I treat every car I own as if I'll keep it forever so resale is never really on my mind. If/when I decide to sell, I'll figure it out. Everything is reversible but I also believe that there will be a few who want back seats, etc but don't want to go thru the hassle of sourcing and installing the parts themselves.
Right now, I'm just driving it and loving it! Put 2k miles on it in the 2 months I've owned it
Next question is a simple one....vanity plates. I've had them on all my aircooled cars but on the fence about getting another for this car. Here are a few I'm considering:
Love this one, but is it really true? 997 was the last Mezger used in a GT3, but it was technically the .2 or even the RS4.0 that was the last. this one seems fitting for the rear seats...for those who know just know
10-29-2020, 02:00 PM
Building what some would call the Antithesis of a GT3
Figured it was time to post some details on my “new to me” 997.1 GT3. I’ve spent most of my Porsche ownership with Aircooled cars, owning both 964s and 993s. I loved the analog feeling, sounds and smells of those cars but I found myself always modifying them (full suspension, etc) striving for a driving experience that I soon realized I would never achieve without building a $50k+ motor and tranny. Then, on a whim, I went to drive a 997.1 GT3 that was for sale locally to me. From the first 5 minutes behind the wheel, I realized it was everting I was trying to build with my aircooled cars, but right out of the box in stock form! I was hooked and my search for the right example started. That was over a year and a half ago 
. I worked with Doug at Switch Cars to help me find the “perfect” car, which I soon realized was a daunting task. Doug presented a bunch of really good options to me and finally I found the right one that checked all the right boxes! 
Basically the way I would have built it if I ordered new back then. I purchased from Holt Motorsports, where I actually got my last 3 cars from. Tim is a great guy, super easy to deal with and always has pristine examples!
