The YouTube channel “Seen through glass” is a great place to see some amazing and rare vehicles. Sam – the presenter of the channel - spends as much time exploring the automotive world abroad as he does with his own cars. In this case, it’s the latter, as he walks us through a very rare and forgotten version of the Porsche 911 – the 996 40th anniversary. He spares no detail talking about this modern classic and there’s actually a lot to talk about.
The Porsche Itch
Sam has never been a Porsche guy, but this is his third Porsche, which confirms that Porsches have a way of worming into your brain and heart. Some praise goes to the Porsche community, which, according to Sam, “opened their arms” for him and now he just needs to own a Porsche. After selling his Carrera T, Sam needed another Porsche to fill the void and this was it.
The best 911 for the money
Sam, of course, does not forget to mention the controversy surrounding the 996.
Think of it as a 911 GTS
Throughout the video, Sam mentions that this is so much more than a silver 911. “Think of it as a 996 GTS”. The Porsche 996 was never offered as a GTS, but this 40th-anniversary edition is the closest it can get to one. Sam quick-wittedly explains that “essentially, the GTS is the top-spec you can get, before the motorsport team gets involved. It’s the best standard 911”.
The car ticked off all the options while celebrating the 911’s 40th anniversary, and just 1,963 cars were made. This isn’t a random number, as the original Porsche 911 was introduced in 1963.
GT Silver
Those of you who are 911 fanatics would recognize the color of Sam’s 996 “Vierzig Jahre” (40 years). It’s called “GT Silver” and was never offered on the 996. Instead, the 40th anniversary borrowed it from the Carrera GT mid-engine supercar.
The most driver-focused modern-classic?
Sam continues explaining how this is a narrow-body, rear-wheel-drive, manual 996 and he didn’t get a 996 Turbo because he wanted to celebrate the normally-aspirated 3.6-liter flat-six. Another great thing about this 911 is that it’s very lightweight – just over 1,300 kg (2,886 pounds). A proper Porsche then!
Unique body kit
Okay, “unique” is a bit of a stretch, since the front bumper is borrowed from the 911 Turbo and the side sills – from the GT3, but the combination of elements is unique to the car. The polished wheels, however, are bespoke and match nicely with the GT Silver.
Performance enhancements
As mentioned earlier, the 996 40th anniversary ticks off all the options. This includes all performance upgrades you can get on the normal 911. These include the N030 suspension package, which lowers the ride height, a limited-slip differential, and the X51 power upgrade, which, according to Sam, gives 20 extra horsepower.
The luggage pack
The options for the 911 include “the very sought-after luggage pack” – a set of bags that came standard with the 40th anniversary. Sam explains how “Back in the day, some Porsche dealers were a bit naughty and when the cars went back on sale, or even before they originally went for sale, sometimes these were taken out and didn’t come with the car”. Of course, they sold aftermarket for huge amounts of money. “On eBay today, these can go for multiple thousands of pounds” Sam exclaims.
Almost ready to be enjoyed
Sam explains that he has already done about 350 miles on the car since it needs some work. He quickly puts our minds at ease, sharing that the car runs great and has not shown any of the usual 996 weaknesses, but he’s just not ready to “floor it” just yet, as it needs a bit of TLC in order “ bring up that mechanical level, so it’s in real tip-top shape”.
In the end, Sam is stoked about properly putting the limited-edition 996 through its paces, as he had never driven a 996 before. With this in mind, we can expect future videos of this car to be a pure and unadulterated impression of what a 996 feels like.