It was completely hidden within
Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec, only accessible via Game Shark cheat code.
Through various interviews, we learned the 996 was one of Kazunori Yamauchi’s personal favorite cars of the day. He even owned one, and his personal car appeared briefly in the
Attack Gran Turismo DVD which offered a behind-the-scenes look at the making of
Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec.
There has long been speculation about why the 996 was in the game at all: perhaps it was pulled at the last minute due to the start of the
Porsche/EA exclusivity license that expired in 2016? Perhaps Kazunori just wanted to be able to drive his favorite car in the game?