996.solo2

Three pages into the post and you still seem to have trouble focusing. Whether he was joking or not, white out was talking about putting an LS engine into a 996. The purists I was referring to are the ones that would think it sacrilegious stuffing a Chevy engine into a Porsche. Talk about missing the point. Anyway, there are only a few hours left in the year. Maybe you'll learn to not let things bother you too much in '15. Happy New Year, all! :D

I saw the black 996 you did on rennlist...excellent work! At the risk of offending the purists, the LS swap is indeed a good bang-for-buck option, should the M96 go kaboom. I've seen a couple of E36s with the same and those cars are really impressive! The fact that you can go to your local AutoZone for parts is a big plus...

No, never got the 996 dyno'd. But you do feel the difference, for sure. No placebo effect. Power-wise, I think the OEM cat is the biggest bottleneck for the stock car... And don't get me wrong. I'm not arguing the importance of actually learning to drive these cars as opposed to modifying them. Many moons ago, I was once an instructor for Bill Scott Racing, done DEs here and in Europe, held racing licenses with two different organizations and had my share of motorsports competition. But the OP was asking about Porsche 996 performance modifications...

Oh, I forgot about the intake. Still, only the lazy, brand-loyal or frivolous would pay seven bills for an intake! A quick search on Rennlist or 6speedonline and one can find used intake for $100 or so. If one must have a new intake, it can be had for as little as $320. And that was found with just a quick search. There might be better deals out there if one takes more time to look. As for the tune, you can actually get it for either $800 (3.6) or $720 (3.4) if you take advantage of the sale... With a bit of elbow grease, everything installed for still under $1500.

Long before you would burn a piston, the car would code, even with the stock DME flash. And to go back to what Loren already stated, "on a normally aspirated 996 you can spend several thousand dollars and maybe get to an additional 30 HP", and that would be on a ten-tenths prepped car. We have had customers literally go the full boat (headers, sport cats, exhaust, intake mods, and even multiple DME re-flashes) and barely get that level of increase on these normally aspirated cars on a good dyno. We have also had owners try multiple brands of component's (headers, exhaust systems, re-flashes, etc.) end up with more spare parts than I have in my shop and a wallet that is easier to sit on, but not much more of an improvement, which was also completely born out in track lap times. It is not easy to get a ton more performance out of these cars, and quite plainly many owner's end up wondering if the view was really worth the climb. For 996 NA cars - as I'm sure you'd know - tuning is more about the driveability, throttle response, air/fuel ratios...about maximizing the gains from the headers and cats you just added to the car. Then again, feel free to nitpick and focus on certain points of my response to benefit the lesser-informed. Or if you simply wish to discredit my suggestion. The mods I suggested can be done for under $1500, if one has decent DIY skills. Headers, 200-cell cats welded in place of the OEM ones, a $720 tune such as this. Relatively affordable for the Porsche-owning high-rollers, right? Again, remember the OP's question. While at no point did I mention anything about "a ton more performance," my response simply offered the biggest bang-for-buck suggestion. Power-wise, it's where NA 996s get the most noticeable gains for the least outlay. No more, no less.

I'm not going to go back-and-forth with what headers and 200-cell cats can do for NA 996s. The ones who've actual experience with such upgrades don't need convincing. As far as the custom tune, that bit isn't just about power. It's also about making sure your motor isn't running on the lean side with your new bolt-ons so you don't burn a piston. It's about making sure that the power that you do have is nice, linear and without flat spots. And yes, it's also about maximizing the output from the said bolt-ons and getting every hp you can...

Sorry but this is completely bogus. A "custom tune" is getting you nothing on a M96 except a lighter wallet and probably pushing your engine out of spec. And I take it you speak from experience? If so, please share... And while *most* comments here are indeed helpful, it really takes away from the OP's question: What is the easiest & cheapest way to add horsepower and performance to this car? Suggestions are great but if the OP was looking to trade in the car for a Turbo, maybe he/she would've asked a different question. If he/she was looking to improve his/her driving skills in the immediate future with DEs or such, same thing. Why for once can't folks just give a direct answer to a simple question?

Follow Chapman's advice and add lightness. Not always free but it does wonders. However, to actually add power, I'd start with a good set of headers, a set of 200-cell cats and a custom tune.

That makes sense. Good opportunity for the GBox bits, too. Thanks for the info, JFP!

I understand that...am not planning to DIY this one. I just wanted to know if any other parts are needed.

When installing an aftermarket torque-biasing diff (on a '00 C2), is it a simple remove-and-replace deal or are there any other parts that need to be added/replaced during the process?

If you have the equipment & materials to fab a tool, I won't discourage you. Then again, no need to make things more complicated than necessary. I see no point in making a special tool when the bolt can get the job done (without damage) in a fraction of the time it'll take to make the special tool. Stock pulley bolt wasn't too difficult to remove either...a decent breaker bar and you're good to go.

No need to get fancy or buy a special tool for this job. When I installed mine, I just used a bolt that fit through the pulley and into the hole in the block. The (relatively) difficult, time-consuming part is shaving off the timing boss...

No worries...glad to answer your question! :)

Another rennlister has the same intake. See HERE.