Testing Anti-Porsche Porsches

TL;DR

Three heavily modified Porsches — an off-road 944, a slammed widebody 997, and a drift 996 — prove purists wrong by doing exactly what Porsches were never meant to do.

Key Points

• 1.Nick's off-road Porsche 944 was built to reach alpine free-diving lakes in Washington. It runs 3-way adjustable external bypass coilovers with 6-inch long-travel suspension front and rear — 100% more travel than stock — and is built light with a carbon fiber hood, fenders, and lights.
• 2.The 944 has competed in real events, not just fun runs. Nick drove it 12 hours to Montana for the Fat Ice Race, then straight to Nevada for the Mint 400, demonstrating it as a fully functional, road-driven off-road machine.
• 3.Tristan's 2008 911 Carrera S (997) wears the first Pandem widebody kit for a 911 sold in the United States. It rides on Rotiform ROC-H five-spoke wheels and is being painted Zuro Hyperion Blue, inspired by a Ferrari F40 owned by the Sultan of Brunei.
• 4.The 997 widebody build caused serious engineering headaches. The radiators and AC lines run directly through the wheel wells, requiring extensive bending and trimming, and the modification dramatically reduced the car's turning radius.
• 5.Tristan admitted he regrets widebodying the 997 and now understands the purists. He acknowledged he can't make a full turn and the bumper rips off on speed bumps, but still argues the one-of-a-kind result justifies the trade-offs.
• 6.Adam's 996 is claimed to be the world's only fully purpose-built Porsche 911 drift car. It uses a 997 motor with a Vortex supercharger producing 500+ hp and 424 lb-ft of torque, and features a modified S14 Wise Fab suspension kit giving 55–60 degrees of steering angle versus the stock 25–30 degrees.
• 7.The 996 drift car swallowed its own tire rubber through the intake during hot laps, choking power mid-run. Because the engine sits in the rear, the intake draws air from underneath the car, sucking in vaporized rubber — a problem front-engined drift cars never face.