Designers used the 997's wider stance to restore some visual muscle to Porsche 911 styling. Many critics approved, as the new look borrowed cues from the last of the fondly remembered air-cooled models, the 993-series. The nose, for example, was more raked and rounded than the 996's, while the front fenders were higher and more prominent in classic Porsche 911 style.

Glass-covered oval nacelles cradled simple round headlamps -- no more "runny egg" clusters -- while directionals and foglights moved to slim horizontal housings in the bumper below. The bumper itself contained a wide central air slot and two outboard intakes with central divider bar. Add in a reshaped front trunklid, newly rendered in aluminum, and you could almost see a 993 if you squinted.