Sports car. Felt in every fibre of your being.
Porsche 911 GT3RS
When we engage the roll cage, there is a dull, cold metallic sound, indicating its enormous strength and actual function. It’s the same thing with the rear wing, brake valves, intake and special mounts for the wheels. It isn’t just design or imaginary details that create the look and feel of a sports car. It’s functional details, real installations, because this is the real deal – a genuine racing car. Sitting behind the wheel and looking at the dashboard, the scale on the rpm gauge is especially striking, with its red indicator starting at 9,000.
Completely in accordance with the GT3 rules, the engine is naturally aspirated; there is no turbocharging, no supercharging, which allows for a significantly higher rpm. It’s now your body begins to tingle, when you begin to realise what’s so fascinating – that we are about to drive like real racing drivers and experience the real deal with our own bodies.
Wonderful sound and fury
The sound of its engine is another mark of this car’s complete uniqueness. It takes getting used to, but once you get used to it, you gain a direct, raw and utterly beautiful insight into the car’s heart – so much so, that you can hear the changing of the gears in the gearbox, so clearly that to begin with, we think there must be something wrong. But there’s nothing wrong. On the contrary. It’s all good. And powering along the German motorway towards Austria, homeland of Porsche, we can start to warm the brakes. Our test model is equipped with ventilated ceramic brake discs, which require a working temperature before operating optimally. The combination can be a bit tricky on the motorway when driving for longer periods of time without the need for braking, something that happens a lot when driving at night.
But we can forgive this, because when the brakes are warm, their efficiency and uniformity is indescribable. They function in direct proportion, complemented by GT3’s weight distribution with the rear engine and wing. Hard braking from 297 km/h to 0 is executed safely and stably, probably in under 10 seconds. This is totally outstanding.
Hard, unique contact with the road
The obligatory driving programs are subordinate because it is with the sports programming that the car realises its potential, its innermost DNA. We can feel the hard, precise steering, and how the suspension almost feels like it doesn’t exist. Driving on the small, narrow country roads of Austria, the sense of being in control, of being in the moment is palpable and a feeling of pure joy surges in the heart. The rear-wheel drive must be controlled, this requires concentration when the engine’s more than 500 HP seriously kicks in at high rpm. On the other hand, it’s this inferno, noise and acceleration that makes the car alive, so we live with it. It also ensures that we achieve 100 km/h in just over 3 seconds with a perfectly sensible top speed of up to 230 km/t. And when you remove your earplugs at the end of the day, as you take a little break next to Lake Neusiedl, your chest is marked from the safety belt, your muscles ache from the suspension and your mind is ready to rest after such intense driving. The experience of a racing car opens up a whole new world.
Outstanding opportunity
After four days behind the wheel, it’s clear this is the choice for the true enthusiast. Whereas the 911 series is mainly known as a sports car with practical use, there is something different about this version. GT3 RS does not really have any practical use, but on the other hand, it lets you live the dream of being a real racing driver, not just by sitting in the car but also by specifically allowing you to drive it on a racing track. Prices start at around EUR 195,000 without additional taxes, and extra equipment will add another EUR 50,000. The price just emphasises the naked truth, that the difference between boys and real men is the price of their toys. And when grown men sit behind the wheel of the GT3, they’re like boys again, crazy about their toy.
Specifications
- Engine: 6 cylinder, horizontally opposed engine, 3996 cm³ displacement
- Power: 520 HP / 470 Nm
- Performance: 0 to 100 km/h in 3.2 s, top speed of 312 km/h
- Price: EUR 250,000 including excellent extra equipment but without additional taxes.
