Porsche 911 GT3 RS 4.0: The Innocence For The Country

2023 Author: Eric Donovan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-08-25 09:36

The best often comes at the end. With the discontinued Porsche 911 of the 997 series, the Zuffenhausen-based company is putting the four-liter racing engine on the road.

From Stefan Grundhoff

The last year of production of the discontinued Porsche 911 of the 997 series will go down in the company's history as the most model-rich one. Now that the ownership structure at Volkswagen and Porsche has been finally clarified, one can concentrate on the essentials again in the west of Stuttgart: on cars. The new 911 with the internal designation 991 will celebrate its world premiere at the Frankfurt IAA in mid-September. In the final year of the foothills, the Zuffenhausen-based company will do everything possible - countless 997 versions are currently doing their laps of honor. The best of them is called the 911 GT3 RS 4.0. Anyone looking for a real racing car for the road should get hold of it quickly. "You can count yourself lucky when you get hold of one of them," says product developer Andreas Preuninger with a smile. "there will really only be 600 units. "A GT3 is the crowning glory of the 911 series - provided you don't want to hear a turbocharger hum in the rear.

In 3.9 seconds to 100 km / h

Over the years, the GT3 versions that were introduced with the former 996 have grown significantly. 360 hp became 381, then 415, 435, 450 and now 500 hp. The driver notices after a few quick turns how big the difference is between the four-liter engine and its predecessor. The six-cylinder boxer turns up like a cop and vehemently pushes the maximum of two occupants into the tight and comfortable bucket seats.

With the handy Alcantara wheel in both hands, the pilot fingers the rear-wheel drive car, which weighs less than 1.4 tons, through every tricky combination of curves. The high-performance engine roars not only after pressing the sports button and shows that it doesn't always have to be a turbo that robs you of your senses. The sporty sorcerer's apprentice manages zero to 100 km / h in 3.9 seconds.

Speed orgies up to over 8000 revolutions

Warm temperatures, a dry road and the grandiose curve chains of the Swabian Alb make you forget all the circuits in the world. Place signs with almost unpronounceable names just fly past you - the pilot is mad. The steering precision of the 911 GT3 RS 4.0 is, despite all the engine art, what burns in your brain until the evening.

The Stuttgart innocence for the country can be moved to road embankments and delineator posts to within a few centimeters. It would only go more and faster on the racetrack - but it's a real magic that this time it's a country road. Here the latest men's toys belong to the best that can be got worldwide. Again and again these speed orgies up to the 8000 mark, which pushes you brutefully forward.

1360 kilograms light

The top speed is little more than a pleasant side effect. "The car runs into the limiter at 310 km / h," explains Preuninger, "with the car it wasn't about top speed, but about accelerating as quickly as possible up to this top speed." Compared to its predecessor, the 368 kW / 500 PS are now 50 PS and 30 Nm more torque. A performance increase that is particularly noticeable when driving in the medium speed range. Here the GT3 4.0 is consistently one gear higher than before.

The ready-to-drive weight is a light 1360 kilograms. Carbon fiber hoods and fenders save unnecessary weight. The rear windows are made of polycarbonate and those who want can order a lithium-ion battery, which saves a further eleven kilograms. The consumption of 13.8 liters of fuel is no more than a side note.

7.27 minutes for the Nordschleife

In the first test drives on the Nordschleife of the Nürburgring, the Porsche 911 GT3 RS 4.0 took 7.27 minutes. A top value. No wonder that around 85 percent of all GT3 customers drive their cars on the racetrack alone. With its mighty sills and spoilers, it attracts a lot of attention even in the slow gallop.

"No marketing, no customer asked for this car", emphasizes project manager Andreas Preuninger, "we just wanted to see the four-liter engine of the racing versions in a road car." This is now possible at the end of the 997 series - for 178,596 euros. (mid)