It's actually a ton better for power and drive-ability, but the sound of the motor changed quite a lot, losing its harsh mechanical edge. The change had to be made, though, for more power, reliability, mileage, really everything; air-cooled motors are dinosaurs.

It doesn't take all that much, only thing I'd do is the IMS retrofit which is pretty cheap. After that it's all stock aside from safety equipment/suspension, which won't cost any more or less than 944 spec.

Agreed. They're an unbelievable bargain nowadays (so long as you fix what ails it), and when you're driving a 911 at the limit you kind of forget what the headlights look like. I used to have a 996 and honestly the headlights grew on me; I also don't get the complaints about the interior, sure it's a little doughy but…

The 996 does have an emergency manual release for the hood. It's in a stupid place, but can be relocated somewhere handy, like right behind the cover for the tow hook.