993 C4S v 996 C4S
CARRERA 4S 993 vs 996
These two wide-bodied modern classics are keenly sought after by enthusiasts, but which model offers the better drive?
Written and photographed by Steve Hall
Awide-bodied Porsche isn’t anything new. All 992-generation 911s are ‘wide-bodied’ these days, and you can go right back to the 1980s to discover the first use of Zuffenhausen’s M491 option code, which back then meant ‘Turbo look’.
This option code for the 3.2 Carrera gave you a 911 Turbo appearance, though not the turbocharger. A wide-bodied 964 followed, albeit as standard spec rather than being an option with the 964 Anniversary and Works Turbo-look Cabriolet. By the turn of the 993 a Turbo-spec wide body was assigned to the special 992 Carrera S and 4S models. A wide-bodied 911 Carrera had arrived, starting a trend that remained for the 996 (in 4S form only), as well as the 997, 991 and 992 generations that followed. We’ve gathered the first two generations of Carrera 4S today, and we can’t wait to climb behind the wheel of them both.
At first glance the 996 C4S, just like the 993 predecessor which debuted that C4S moniker, is ‘simply’ a Turbo-bodied, normally aspirated model devoid of the side intakes. But then you stroll round the 996 and view it from the rear three-quarter, where the detail that makes the 996 C4S so desirable reveals itself. If the idea behind that lovely strip of red between the rear lights was to hark back to the similarly styled 993, then it’s a stroke of genius.
The 993, of course, has no issue in this respect. Every 993 that rolled out of Weissach subscribed to the ‘small but perfectly formed’ mantra. Everyone will have their personal favourite, from the lean and lithe Carrera to the aggressive arse of the, er, RS. But there’s no denying the innate rightness of the 993 shape was divisive to absolutely nobody at its 1994 debut, and it remains something of an icon today. Under Harm Lagaay’s direction, Tony Hatter did a sensational job of bringing the Gen4 911 up to date, usurping the unloved (can you believe that now?) 964 just five years after it was launched.