JOHANNESBURG - The GT3 has always been the go-to Porsche for those that want their sports car to be raw, unfiltered and heavily influenced by the company’s motorsport division. And purists will be glad to know that the all-new 992-generation 911 GT3 follows the same formula as its forebears.
While many had feared that it might go the downsized, turbocharged route like the rest of the modern 911 family, the new GT3 is still powered by a 4-litre normally aspirated flat-six engine that revs, or should we say screams, all the way to 9000rpm. The revised engine produces 375kW and 469Nm, which is 7kW and 9Nm more than the previous model mustered and not too far off the 383kW produced by the outgoing GT3 RS model.
At sea level, the GT3 should haul you from 0-100km/h in 3.4 seconds, according to factory claims, and on to a top speed of 318km/h. In keeping with its purist ideals, the GT3 is available with a good ol’ fashioned manual gearbox, although customers can also opt for Porsche’s brilliant seven-speed PDK dual clutch transmission.
The GT3 is not pretending to be the fastest nor the most powerful 911 on the block, but it is arguably the most intense and entertaining to drive and that’s not just down to the high-revving engine. Featuring lightweight components, and a motorsport-derived chassis and aerodynamic package, the GT3 simply lives for track days.
On that note, Porsche says the newcomer has lapped the Nuerburgring-Nordschleife a full 17 seconds quicker than its predecessor, posting a time of 6m55.2s. A cool new feature for track driving is the ‘track screen’, which can reduce the digital displays to the left and right of the rev counter to essential information needed for track driving.
The new GT3 is highly customisable too, with customers able to treat themselves to optional components like a lightweight roof made of exposed carbon fibre, carbon exterior mirror tops, darkened LED matrix headlights and matching taillamps.
When can you buy one? Porsche South Africa is expecting the first units to arrive in the fourth quarter of this year, with pricing to be announced next month.