9Werks Porsche 996 Anniversary Celebrations at Heritage HQ

We joined forces with friend and Porsche journalist Lee Sibley last weekend to host a celebration of the  25th Anniversary of the Porsche 996 at our West Sussex warehouse. 

Lee, who runs Porsche media platform 9werks.co.uk has become an ambassador for the 5th generation 911 model, and his presence on You Tube, Social Media and via the 9werks Podcast has only encouraged more enthusiasts to take a seat in these much under-rated modern classics. 

On top of bringing a whole group of owners together to share stories, and enjoy each others vehicles up close, Lee aimed to lay on a display showcasing one of each 996 models produced. And we got mighty close, with just a 996 Turbo S model keeping us from a full house. 

The 996 and wider Porsche community has really embraced the controversial 'fried egg' lights design in the past few years. It may have been a rainy Sunday morning in Shoreham, but spirits were high and the cars were all sunny side up for us! 

Speaking of headlamps, the green and silver cars are both Gen1, easily identified as the bottom of the headlamp is flat. The yellow and red examples are Gen2, as the headlamp drops down into the front bumper. 

As part of the event, we ran guided tours around our warehouse, giving further insight into how we operate and letting enthusiasts get a real taste of how big Heritage Parts Centre actually is. 

Here is Chris, our Porsche Business Development Manager, probably talking about Goods In, our 365 Day Returns Policy, and how we photograph all our own parts in a shed! 

The pinnacle of the 996 Rennsport range, the GT3 RS model was available in two colour schemes which paid tribute to the '73 RS. We were most pleased to have both colour schemes on show, and positioned facing each other at the front of the yard. 

In another considered side by side pairing, a beautiful Lapis Blue Turbo was adjacent to a stunning black GT2. Both were purchased from the Paragon Porsche showroom, the blue example is in private ownership and the GT2 belongs to Jason, one of the Paragon Sales team. 

We were also treated to a number of other Turbo models, including a lighter blue example seen driving here - there were no trailer queens, despite the weather. 

Not wanting to leave any models out, the 996 Cabriolet in both C2 and Carrera 4s guise were on display alongside the glass roof Targa model. 

A big thanks to Chris from Crew Cab Coffee for serving the masses with a decent brew and a selection of tasty snacks too. You'll be able to check out his Barista skills and his cool early Bay Crew Cab at our Heretics meetings too. 

A quartet of Carrera models spanning C2 and C4 in both Gen 1 and Gen 2 was parked together, but many more could be seen parked around the premises. Of these, some sported the optional Aero kit, bringing them a few steps closer to the much revered GT3 specification. 

The track focussed GT3 is a real gem, and despite rising values, many are still getting used for what they were intended. We had a Gen 1 (red) and Gen 2 (yellow) example parked next to each other, but another couple also popped up in the rest of the yard. 

Only two 996 models were made with a numbered production run, and they were the Millenium edition of 2000 and the 40 Jahre Anniversary edition of 2004. The earlier of the two, the Millenium edition was finished in Violet Pearl chromoflair paint with a tan leather and wood interior, and based on the Carrera 4 platform. Originally carrying a £5000 premium when new, only 911 were ever produced. 

The 40 Jahre is a slightly more common sight on the roads as 1963 were made. All finished in GT Silver the Carrera 2 narrow-body sports a Turbo style front bumper and GT3 sideskirts, it also had an X51 power kit delivering a further 25 bhp to the rear wheels over the typical 320 bhp from the 3.6 flat six.  

Often overshadowed by GT cars or Turbos they have unique 911 badging on the boot lid and a numbered plaque inside. If you find one, buy it... their value and appeal are rising!

Two extra special examples in attendance sported RTurbo badges. The red car is an original RUF-built RTurbo, unusually developed on a narrow body chassis. The black widebody Turbo was retrofitted with all the RUF goodies after leaving Stuttgart so still legally identifies as a Porsche, but still mightily impressive. 

Whilst the primary focus was on the 996, we also had a bunch of other lovely Porsches turn up too. Here's what else parked up to join in the fun. 

Lee's own car, an Irish Green Carrera 2 hotrod, is instantly recognisable and stands out in a crowd. Before we packed everything up for the day, we wanted to roll it inside our warehouse to grab a few shots. Here are a few of our favourites. 

We'll wrap this up with a few lines of thanks, and a couple more photos. A huge thanks to Lee from 9Werks for asking us to get involved with this event. Thank you to Chris at Crew Cab Coffee for keeping everyone fed and watered. A big shout to our team for being on-site keeping everything running smoothly, and lastly a big thank you to everyone who came out in the rain to spend their Sunday morning with us. Especially the chap who drove from Derby, hats off Sir! 

Like the look of this? You'll love our VW and Porsche Heretics events on the third Thursday of the month (April-September)... Check out the video from April's meet here. 

Andy