driveopolis

What. A. Beast.

Finally have a reason to come post on this corner of Rennlist. I had a chance to spend some quality time with a GT3RS. I own a GT4 and I've driven the regular 991 GT3 extensively. I'm also an ex-997.1 GT3 owner, so that's my context.

I put together this video review to share the experience and to spread the word about my good friend and fellow Rennlister mjraval's charity. Manoj is raising money for colorectal cancer care at St. Paul's hospital using his GT3RS at the 2016 Diamond Rally. That's the reason for his car's sick livery.

You can find out more about the Faith Hope Love charity at the link below and consider making a donation. I'm behind it because it's a good cause and all of the proceeds go directly into the hospital with no overhead.

http://diamondcarrally.kintera.org/f...80132F577AC97D

Now, about that GT3RS...

The GT3RS has a truly sensational drivetrain experience. The way its engine revs and sounds as it hurls you towards the horizon is both thrilling and life affirming. Based on what I experienced so far, everything I love about the regular 991 GT3 is taken up a notch in the RS. However, I would not say that the driving experience is massively different on the street. I expect that when speeds increase and you have more room to explore on a circuit, the additional power, aerodynamics and grip will become apparent. But on the street, less so. I fully appreciate the exclusivity and the looks though. It's more mean and purposeful with the wider tires, taller sidewalls and staggered rear wheels fully stuffed into the wheel arches. It has so much presence and that big wing actually impvoves visiblity out the rear glass.

Comparisons with the GT4:

1. Engine
The 3.8 in the GT4 sounds great on its own and actually sounds louder than both the 3 and 3RS at lowish revs. I heard this inside the cabin and my camera crew also pointed this out as I drove by them repeatedly from the outside in each car. However, when the 3RS is unleashed, the decibel level spears through the roof and it sounds like nothing else I've ever experienced. It's a screaming, shrieking buzzsaw of a motor and my vocabulary is inept at describing the way it sounds at full song. Please watch my video for the full effect. The closest I can compare this to is an inline four sportbike and I made this same description when I first set foot in the regular 991 GT3. However, the RS serves this particular dish even more savagely.

If not overshadowed by the high rev screamers in the GT3 and 3RS, the GT4 engine is actually superb. It makes solid torque, revs with authority and is shouty and boisterous. But put even the best of engines against an RS and it can't help but fall a bit short in drama and savagery. The GT3/3RS sisters win in the engine department, hands down.

2. Steering and Chassis
What I love most about the Porsche GT cars is that they have always allowed the inherent nature of their chassis' to show through. This means that GT3 and 3RS feel ***-engined without any apparent attempt to smother or sanitize the experience, unlike the regular Carreras. Their rear-wheel-steering makes turn-in sweeter without taking the experience away and I really appreciate that. The 3RS feels a lot like the regular GT3 in the bends. This means the front end is very light and pointy, you need to work the wheel a tad to get the front end settled as you load up the tires and when all that's sorted out, you roll hard on the throttle and eject yourself on to the straight using all of that juicy rear traction. Then you're delighted by the sound and savagery of that gorgeous powertrain. Once you figure out how this works, you can't help but do it over and over. It is thoroughly addictive and hugely satisfying.

The GT4 on the other hand is more point and shoot. It's more intuitive to drive, requires a less specialized technique and lets you take corners in a range of styles. It's more progressive and forgiving and feels like an extension of your body, so good is its human and machine interface. You 'think' it around corners. The car's mass rotates perfectly around the driver and its CG feels a tad lower than the RS. It rails around corners with the grip running right along the outside edges of the car and it does this immediately from turn in. No muss, no fuss. It is brilliantly precise and feels laser guided in all of its responses.

I couldn't think of any better way to make a car handle. What a peach. What a total sweetheart. I love driving the GT3 for the engine, but I love driving the GT4 for the chassis.

Because of its perfection, some will say they prefer the mid-engined character as it is indeed less messy and technically superior. Me, I think it's two different flavours to achieve the same purpose of going around corners quickly and confidently. In either car, you're fully involved and submersed in the mechanical experience. The 911 needs more work but that is part of the appeal. I give them a near tie in what I like better overall, but I think I will need to become a better driver to fully exploit the GT3/3RS. The GT4 is much easier to enjoy right away.

Also worthy of note is that despite having the same front suspension and steering calibration, the two cars have different steering feel. The GT4's is a touch heavier and more muscular -- some of you will love this -- but the GT3/3RS have a shade more feedback and delicacy. The GT4 you steer more with your arms; the GT3/3RS you steer more with your fingertips. The difference is subtle, but once you spend a bit of time going back and forth between the two, it's very tangible. This makes sense as the 911 just has less weight on its front axle, which contributes to this light pointy feel. I think I give the nod to the GT3/3RS on this one.

3. Transmission and Gearing
I'm a hardcore manual guy. I will take the 3 pedal just about every time and the GT4 has one of the best gearboxes in existence. The gearstick is an easy reach away from the steering wheel, the throws are rifle bolt short and crisply mechanical. All of the control weights and placements are precisely calibrated and a model of engineering perfection. It is splendidly fun to row through the gears. It also comes with optional rev-match downshifts which bridge the gap to the PDK.

Where the PDK really blows me away is in the upshifts. In both the GT3 and the RS they are so blazing fast and so lacking in interruption that you only hear the shifts rather than feel them. The sound is an angry mechanical burp as you burn through the rev range. I'm still a manual guy, but if there's ever a car to woo me with its PDK, the 3 and 3RS are it. Between the manic engine and the shorter gears, the RS makes the full 9krpm experience so accessible.

In my time driving these cars, I did not detect any difference in shift speed or feel between the 3 and the 3RS. If there is a difference, I did not feel it.

Overall, I still have more fun and feel more involved in the GT4's manual box. And while we've heard just about every reviewer complain about its tall gearing, I think these comments are well overblown. My previous car, the 997.1 GT3, had gears that were equally as tall and I don't recall anyone making a fuss about it back then. Also, many other cars of this type like the NSX had tall gearing and we enjoyed them happily. I think short gearing has become a 'thing' recently thanks to PDK and its additional forward gears, making it easy to lower gearing without sacrifice. Either that, or people have so little to complain about on the GT4 that the gearing is the only thing they could muster up. I'm not sure, but I don't really care.

I think both the PDK-S on the GT3/3RS and the manual gearbox on the GT4 have their pros and cons and will have their proponents, but I'm going with the manual on this one. Bring on the next generation 991.2 GT3 with an optional manual... I know which one I'd choose.

So there you go, here are my quick impressions on the GT3RS and how I think it compares to the GT4. Who are the lucky guys on here who own both, or maybe even all three? What do you guys think of the differences between them, or the additional cost to go from the 3 to the 3RS given similar driving experience?

If you missed it, my GT4 review video is below.

ipse dixit

Very nice review and commentary.

Thanks for posting.

DES GTS

Very enjoyable and informative. Thanks for sharing. Now all we need is a comparison review of the GT3/RS v. GT4 Clubsport!

consolidated

Great video, watched it end to end. The look on your face after the first set of throttled up corners is cool, you had RS face, lol.

rollsroy

Love your videos. Thanks for the great review!

Macca

Great review. From what I know and hear everything you say is pretty much spot on!

CRex

Great write up. Agree in particular with the point that the 4 is immediately challenging. It's got a much lower envelope in the end but the path to its limit is so enjoyable.

ablee2323

Enjoy your work. Confirms for me, motorsport Porsche cars are at the top of my list.

Waxer

Excellent review. Really conveys in words what to expect and what the cars are like.

alaint101

Brief feedback from first track day post swap from 3 to RS.... So how do they compare?

The same yet completely different. And worth every penny, in case you're wondering.

Let me explain.

The RS 'feels' just like the 3 on track - lots of feedback, quick steering, and plenty of grunt - but the aeros allow you to carry a lot more speed into turns so that after a day and a half, no one has managed to pass the RS and we've managed to lap the field every time.

That thing feels glued. It's not different, just better. I am so totally sold. Guys w/ GT3s are getting left in the dust even on the front strait because I can crest much faster, brake much later, and turn-in more aggressively in fast turns, again due to aeros. You have to try this thing. It is awesome.

Jimmy-D

In the dust???

driveopolis

Wow! That's a serious endorsement. You must be a solid driver too, to extract all that extra time from the RS!

Great to hear some real on track experience between the two. What a delight. Those aeros are serious business!

Thanks for watching the video and for all the supportive comments, you guys. Makes it worthwhile.

Sam

driveopolis

Thanks man! Been following your new RS delivery and prep all through instagram. I'm so happy for you, you're living the dream.

So, what do you think of the car?

driveopolis

Thanks! Great screename as well. What color is yours? Looks a bit like Fashion Grey, one of my favorite PTS.

Titan475

Another solid review driveopolis!