Talking about the carbon hood supposedly slated to be on the US GT3RS, the following is an email I received from someone at PCNA...

"Here is what you get over and above in a RS.

-Rear fenders similar to the Carrera 4, 44mm wider than the GT3 -Adjustable carbon fiber rear wing -Carbon fiber front lid -Race-regulated rear wheel carriers and split rear wishbones -Single-mass flywheel to allow revs to build faster -Solid roof (no sunroof) -Weight reduction of 44 pounds over the GT3..."

Do you have any better information about whether the US GT3RS hood really will be coming with a carbon front hood, or are some of these dealer reps being passed on mis-information since the older 996GT3RS came with a carbon hood and most people on this forum and others assumed the 997 would come with a carbon hood as well.

R

 

Carbon fiber front lid - sounds like the front hood to me.

 

That is the accurate communication in the letter to the Dealers. Now, if it wrong there is no way to know it unless someone at the "source" verifies that a msitake was made, or until a car shows up!

 

From what I recall on the EVO review of the GT3 RS, the hood is not carbon.

 

As Colm stated that is what was communicated to the dealers:

This exciting new model is similar to the GT3 but with these unique features:

• Rear fenders similar to the Carrera4, 44mm wider than the GT3
• Adjustable carbon fiber rear wing
• Carbon fiber front lid
• Race-regulated rear wheel carriers and split rear wishbones
• Single-mass flywheel to allow revs to build faster
• Solid roof (no sunroof)
• Weight reduction of 44 pounds over the GT3

 

I am pretty sure that there is no carbon fibre front lid.Unless US spec is different to ROW.
Shane

 

So the lexan definitely isn't happening?

 

The Europeans have special regulations related to an auto versus pedestrian impact.

I understand the hood specifically has to have special crush requirements to cushion the impact.

Could it be that the Euro cars do not get the Carbon hood because of these requirements, but that the USA cars can have the hood?????

The RS is a homologation car for the RSR and maybe the USA market is necessary to homologate the hood.

This would be a first for the USA to be a required market to homologate a part as it is the ROW market that usually has the favorable rules.

 

Well so far US is different from ROW, US cars do not get the roll bar or carbon seats. So it would make sense in a way because since they are not bringing the carbon seats to the US, a carbon hood on US models only would make the weight of both ROW and US models a little more similar.

 

The question then would be: Why no carbon hood on the ROW car?

 

"front lid" definitely sounds like the hood/bonnet. It just may be a way to reduce weight in the US model, if in fact it is lighter than the aluminium one...which it should be.

If it is carbon fiber and it is lighter (again it should be), retrofitting the other ROW light weight pieces would make the NA RS a lighter car than the ROW version...and much lighter than the NA "regular" GT3 which is already weight laidened with the sunroof...

We shall see if in fact it is carbon fiber.

 

Sort of makes sense, but typically US cars will differ from ROW in what we DON'T get, not in what we get exclusively(unless it's something we don't want like mandatory sunroof on the GT3). But maybe PAG/PCNA are being extra nice to us and trying to atone for the lack of ROW goodies...and sunroof on GT3. I'm not completely sure but that sounds like it would be a first

 

Oh it would be a first alright!

 

. . . and then we have the official GT3 RS order guide from PCNA, which is silent on the topic. The hard-bound brochure on the GT3 RS (European version) clearly states that the front hood is made out of aluminum.

 

u don't want that. the pain of taking care of it is not worth the weight saving.