2022 Porsche 911 GT3: Formula for Success
Andreas Preuninger explains how the 2022 911 GT3 was developed and how he knew when that development was complete.
The Porsche 911 GT3 represents a special place in the Porsche lineup. The GT cars represent the peak of driver focused sports cars. A Turbo 911 or even a Taycan may accelerate as quickly as a GT3, or faster. But the GT3 is not really about those numbers. The GT3 is designed to make you feel good. It is for the buyer who wants to feel alive and wants their car to feel alive as well. Case in point. The PDK is faster, but most GT3 owners want the manual. It needs to have the speed and the passion to be considered a successful GT3.
Andreas Preuninger, Director of the GT Model Line knows this better than anyone. Porsche recently shared a video on their YouTube channel of Preuninger discussing exactly what goes into the making of a GT3. The 992 GT3 has been unveiled and should be delivered to the lucky buyers later this year. We know the car looks great and handles amazingly well. It is quicker than the GT3 before it. Preuninger explains how he developed it and when he knew it was ready for prime time.
“I like to be in control of a car. I like to be communicating with the car, feel the car’s reaction. Be completely immersed in the driving.” Says Preuninger at the outset of the video. In the next scene he is shown driving a 991.2 GT3 with a manual transmission. That right there is why he is the perfect person for this job. He calls the 911 GT3 the Rockstar of the 911 world, and it would be tough to argue with that. As we watch a stunning shark blue 992 GT3 attack a racetrack Preuninger tells us what he specifically looked for when developing the latest GT3.
“It has to evoke positive emotions, has to make me smile, it has to tell me OK drive a little bit more. Don’t take the direct route.” Explains Preuninger. If you have ever driven a 911 GT3, you know those cars all elicit this response. The 992 had to continue this tradition. In a world of engine downsizing, and turbo charging and electric powertrains, that is not easy. Preuninger explains that when moving to a new platform, you almost start from scratch. Before he would consider it complete, it needs to hit the right mix of performance, emotion, and communication.
He knows it has achieved this mix by using a very unscientific method. It is not about lap times or 0 to 60 figures. When he is driving the car on his favorite roads and gets so immersed in the driving experience. When he is just enjoying the drive and forgetting to focus on anything. It is at that moment that he knows the car is ready for the customer. “It’s a 911 that’s there for the enthusiast. For the one that likes to drive just for the sake of driving.” Says Preuninger. Amen to that. It seems almost impossible to believe but the 992 GT3 could very well be the greatest GT3 ever. Then again, what would the worst GT3 ever be? Even if we could determine such a thing, it would likely still be better than 99.9 percent of all cars made in the last 20 years.
Hopefully, someday we will be able to tell you firsthand exactly how good the 992 GT3 is. Until that time we can be satisfied with the words from the GT man himself. Oh, and we can of course watch more videos like this of the GT3 blitzing a racetrack just as Preuninger intended.
Join the Rennlist forums!
