The latest Porsche 911 GT3 blew away worries about its weight, electric power steering and PDK paddleshift gearbox in 2013 – and now Porsche is ready to rewrite the rulebook all over again. This is the ultimate Porsche 911: the new GT3 RS.
Set to be lighter, more powerful and generate more downforce than the already stellar GT3, this could be a new high watermark for Porsche – and a serious worry for Ferrari’s rather exceptional 458 Speciale.
That’s just a Porsche racing car – look at that wing!
The outrageous rear wing, adjustable for angle, looks to have been lifted directly from one of Porsche’s 911 Cup racers, but the rest of this test mule is very much a road car. ‘RS’ 911s always get a more outlandish aerodynamics package than your humble GT3, and with RS 4.0-style front canard ‘flics’, monstrous rear spoiler and jutting chin spoiler, it’s clear the 991-gen RS is set to be the most extreme Porsche road car yet.
What’s with the air intakes – is the GT3 RS going to be turbocharged?
No – but the RS does use the 911 Turbo’s wider body. The regular GT3 wears the wider-hipped Carrera 4 body, designed for all-wheel drive 911s. The latest Turbo is 20mm wider still, and it’s this shell, complete with gaping intakes in the cars ‘hips’, that the RS is thought to employ. The 911 RSR racecar goes for the same wide stance. To match the wide rear track, the front track has been widened too – note the GT2 RS-style front wheelarch blistering.
Instead of a turbo’d motor, the RS is expected to use a retuned version of the GT3’s 3.8-litre flat six. Power could rise as high as 500bhp – up there with the 997-gen RS 4.0 – sent to the rear wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox. No three-pedal manual will be offered, as per the new GT3, which also donates its rear-wheel steering system to give the car greater low-speed agility and high-speed stability.
What other goodies does the new GT3 RS get?
A ride height drop, a roll cage in place of the rear seats, and the possibility of standard-fit carbon-ceramic brakes, picked out with Porsche’s typical yellow calipers. The lightweight centrelock wheels of this test mule are identical to the design worn by the current GT3.
The new RS has a fight on its hands to undercut the GT3’s 1430kg weight. With its wider body and extra aero addenda the new RS certainly has a lot of extra ‘baggage’ to carry. One confirmed weight-saving measure, according to Porsche GT cars boss Andreas Preuninger is a switch from the GT3’s steel exhaust to a bespoke titanium system. A lightweight lithium-ion battery – not used in the GT3 due to the rear-steer system’s high power drain – is also under development to shed more kilos.
>> Click here to read CAR’s complete interview with Porsche GT cars boss Andreas Preuninger