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Hi V.... Sounds like you and the dealer have some disagreements. Again, the US didn't get the Mk I, but, the HVAC system must be the same as that of the normal 996 of those years. I can't address all your issues about where sealing foam might exist. I can, though, confirm the dealer's assertion that some amount of air will always come through the system. All HVAC systems on most all cars do that these days.....probably because designers agree that the occupants need at least some fresh, outside air no matter what the HVAC settings. When you say the 'center vent', do you mean the vent on top of the dash at the base of the windshield?......or the center vent on the dash above the radio? If it's the windshield vent, the system will probably put out some amount of air to that vent no matter your settings. Also, If you leave the AC on, (snowflake symbol appears on the display), the AC will dehumidify all the cabin air, minimizing fogging of the windshield.

Hi V..... Here's a few thoughts and comments. I hope I'm not being redundant or preachy here. There are safe ways to install restraint systems....and some very unsafe ways. Lap belts should fit low and in front of one's hip bones. It is MUCH safer to have a 5 or 6 point system where the lap belt is held in that low position and the 5th/6th belt(s) prevent you from 'submarining' under the lap belt in the event of a frontal crash. Shoulder belts need to be held close to one's neck (not drooping over one's shoulders) AND the angle of the shoulder belts behind the seat should be not much below horizontal to prevent spinal compression in a crash. As you are saying, that requires some sufficiently strong mount high enough behind the seat.... such as the roll structure that you refer to. If you have the stock ROW GT3 seats with the holes for shoulder belts, you are good. If you have the factory sport seats without shoulder belt ports (as were delivered in the US), you cannot get the belt to stay on your shoulders=dangerous. Also, the angle of the 5th/6th/Sub belts needs to be not far from vertical which mandates a sub belt port through the seat cushion between your legs and a solid mount right below that port. Many track day sponsoring organizations require most or all of the above. If you have a roll structure and it does not supply the right shoulder belt mounts, try Brey Krause at: http://www.bkauto.com/porsche/porscheindex.php

Welcome, Harley! Very nice looking car. We didn't get the Mk I on this side of the pond. I had to wait for an '04 Mk II. Seal Grey.

Great new look, Loren! Thanks!

GT3 Owners.... Yes, rattle on start-up is a standard 'feature'. It does, as the dealer suggested, have to do with oil coming up to pressure and actuating tensioners and valve lifters. It is not a problem. All the GT3's of which I know, do it, as well as GT3 Cup race cars.

Sticky.... Please see my post above. It's not the flywheel making the noise, it's the lash in the gear train in the gearbox.

Hi Kimbo77..... Manthey Racing has been very active in racing Porsches, and especially, GT3 models in Europe for quite some time. They sometimes get unofficial factory support in doing so. They are credible producers of aftermarket racing parts for GT3s. That said, I have no personal experience with their products, although, I've lusted after quite a few.

The rattle you hear is from the gearbox and is normal with a single mass flywheel. At idle the individual cylinder-fire pulses are passed through the flywheel to the gearbox (with the clutch engaged) and those pulses rattle the gear lash/play in the gear train. A dual mass flywheel effectively has a rubber(or otherwise) damper in it which smooths out the pulses and reduces the gear lash rattle. A dual mass flywheel is also heavier and, therefore, has more angular momentum, ie, spins up and down more slowly.

Yup....still enjoying! 2500 mile Road Trip through western Montana just last month!

Hi Guys..... Yup, that can happen. I had it on my '99 C4 with ROW M030 suspension.....and have had it happen a few times on my '04 GT3. On the '99, the tech diagnosed it as worn/binding front strut top bearings. The weight of the car sits on those bearings and, especially with lowered front ends, (M030, and GT3) they can bind and wear. It's not uncommon. It's not serious and usually only happens at some amount of steering lock (when the front geometry can 'pry' on the front struts). You can go to the trouble of having the struts R&R'd and replace the bearings and associated spacers and things.... or you can just drive it, enjoy it, and worry about it only if it really bugs you, and/or if it gets any worse.

I think you are asking if US GT3 Mk IIs had any stock suspension differences. To my knowledge, all US 2004-2005 GT3 MK IIs(excluding the RS) had the same suspension parts from the factory.

I installed the "Aero Kit I" on my '99 C4 and now own an '04 GT3. I can confirm that the wings and engine covers of both are composite, fiberglass. I don't know if they are interchangeable, but, doubt that it would be a direct swap.

I posed this same question to Jeff Stone of Kelly Moss Motorsport a few weeks ago at the PCA Club Race at Road Atlanta. Jeff has seen most of the available options for the GT3. He is of the opinion that the quality of the all the US manufacturers of after market exhaust for our GT3's cannot match the quality of the several European products. He particularly likes the quality and sound of the Europipe exhausts from Belgium. As said above, I've also heard good things about the Cargraphics products as well.

Hi plima..... Yes, the GT3 Mk II has just one radiator fan.....but, it's on the left side.

Generally, there are two kinds of over-revs. The first is when you just leave it in a gear under acceleration. The limiter will work in that case to limit revs well before any kind of engine damage occurs. (assuming you have factory stock engine maps and not after market ECU code). The second kind of over-rev occurs when you downshift into a lower gear that is too low for the road speed. When you let out the clutch, the car's inertia then drives the engine speed up to the danger zone. The limiter can't help you in the second case. If your's was the first kind, you should be fine. You can also use or get a read out of the ECU/DME and read out the number and kind of over-revs. Have a look at: http://www.durametric.com/

Hi Juanfer..... Congrats on your 997 GT3. As you know, tire balance and geometry is very important. Some balance jobs are better than others. Watch the balance tech and see if he sets his machine to read in grams, not, just ounces(the default is usually ounces and you have to enter a key sequence to switch it to grams). There are about 28 grams per ounce and the resolution can be better with the gram readout. Get it to zero grams in two planes. Are the tires round? Watch the circumference as they spin on the balance machine....look for 'lumps'. Are you using the stock wheels? After market wheels can add additional things to look out for, such as hub concentricity and proper wheel bolt seating (I've seen HRE wheels with the wrong size/shape bolt seats that would not stay tight). I've seen after market wheels that require a hub insert ring to fit a Porsche hub....and the ring comes out and concentricity becomes impossible. If all that is correct, a tire could still be defective such that it's shape changes at speed and makes for vibrations. Lastly, you might check the brake rotors for flatness and shock/damper health. Let us know what you find out.

The Cup Spoiler Lip/splitter is a direct replacement for the stock and is part number 996 505 986 91. I got mine from The Racer's Group. I carry a good supply of the plastic rivets that help hold the thing in place too. Street rivets are listed at 999 507 427 40 or 999 507 497 40, Cup as 999 507 557 40, all will work. In any case you should consider the spoiler lip as a "consumable item". You will scrape it, and, likely, rip it off at some point no matter how careful you are. Mine has even been bent backwards, and ripped off by insufficiently flattend road kill. I bent the lip under the car, then ran over it and it flew into a farmer's field. I retrieved it and, other than some scratches, it still works fine. My experience: if you just stick it on with the plastic rivets it can even blow off at high speed. I've finally had good luck by thoroughly cleaning both the lip and the bumper with adhesive cleaner, then using Porsche's double sided sticky foam tape (part number 000 043 206 04, which is made by 3M) AND the plastic rivets, AND then sealing the joint between the lip and bumper with 1.5" wide stretchy vinyl tape. The tape helps by keeping road grit and gravel from jamming into the joint and prying it open at speed. For the double sided tape, you can substitute the strongest 3M stuff you can find at the hardware store, but, it will likely be white. The Porsche part is dark gray. This process will keep the lip on through most abuse, and still let it tear off the bumper in a major impact (mine was a racoon) without tearing the holes in the bumper. All this is easiest done with the bumper taken off the car. You might take the bumper off every year anyway to clean all the junk out of the radiators. Good luck.

Hi Gator..... The Cup front air dam for the 996 GT3 is a small amount deeper/wider in the front/center, but is maintains it's width all the way around to it's ends near the front wheel arches. The stock dam/splitter tapers from the front corners to the ends at the wheel arches. The difference may not appear great, but, the aerodynamic difference must be measurable. The Cup dam is cheaper too.

Welcome, and Congratulations, Frank! I share many of your feelings for my own '04 GT3. Enjoy!

Hi Inverter..... Just my personal experience here. I have 22K miles on my '04 GT3. 90% of that are road miles. You are correct that alignment makes a huge difference on the GT3....and that good alignments for street are VERY different from good track alignments. All my personal experience is with the stock suspension and ride height. I set my street alignment for good road trip comfort (minimum twitchiness) and to maximise tire wear. (With PS2 street tires you will spend roughly as much for rear tires as you will for gasoline). For street only, I adjust to -1 degree front camber, +0.07 degree front toe (+0.14 degree total front toe); -1.7 degree rear camber, +0.23 degree rear toe (+0.46 degree total rear toe). Repeat, this is street only and biased for maximum highway controllability and maximum tire wear. Your mileage may vary.

I do not have personal experience with that Fabspeed kit. My GT3 is a MK II and is stock. I did experiment with various intake mods on my '99 C4. I did get more intake sound for my money. I agree with you, 14 HP for changes upstream of the MAF seems like a huge gain and I would be skeptical.

I think Dan is referring to the shims available to adjust the angle of attack on the wing of the MK II GT3. They are orange, wedge shaped, and come in 4 and 8 degree pairs. I have/use a pair of both. According to the parts list, they do not apply to the MK III GT3 wing. The parts list for the MK III includes parts 997 512 635 90, and 997 512 636 90: "Fastening Angle Rear", left and right. I have no personal experience with the MK III wing, but, those parts might adjust the wing angle.

We didn't get the MK I GT3 in the US, so, we may not be familiar here with what the ECU is recording and can report....but, I would think that a leak-down test could be diagnostic. Warning: leak down tests can report false positives.......like due to a bit of carbon temporarily holding a valve open. If a leak down shows good even pressure, though, that would give you peace of mind.

Hi Ed.... Congrats on your GT3 ownership. I am the original owner of an '04 GT3, and have several friends that do, or have owned MKII GT3s. We have ALL had issues with clutch chatter. All of us have had dealer techs evaluate them. All have been told that the chatter is not bad enough to warrant replacement.....and, really, although the chatter can be annoying, it's not really that bad (our experience). I found that I quickly learned the throttle/clutch/engagement process that avoids the chattering. Our experience, like yours, was primarily a chatter in reversing. The clutch design in the GT3 is quite 'heavy duty', as your left leg can attest....and, that probably contributes to it's tendancy to chatter. Drive, and Enjoy!

Did you happen to add any "octane booster/improver" product to your gas tank for the weekend?