tcsracing1

The GT3 is what the 911 is all about. Do yourself a favor and get a GT3. It is already a legend.

the revs, the sound, the feel. No other 911 has this magic engine.

The GT2 is sleek and fast, but just a RWD turbo at the end of the day. This is why they drop in value so fast.

If you never had the opportunity to uncork a GT3 at speed, then i suggest you go try one.
A GT2 will only be like your 993 TT experience but more refined.

Dont get me wrong, GT2 is awesome. But for your money the GT3 offers more amusement.

You want amusement.

Come see what all the fuss is about in what is the best 911 to date in the 997 range.

Just pick up a copy of Excellence with the camparo of GT2RS vs GT3RS.

aussie jimmy

i think pete means that the gt2 with the new sway bars and damper settings was more 'locked in' to the road, with a fast, yet compliant ride even on the bumpiest roads, whereas the 7.1 was yet to be sorted and bounced around on the loop with the pasm dampers too slow to react.

brim

I think you'll be happiest with the GT2. I driven both extensively on street and track and you can't make a bad choice. But if you want a more of the car on the street then the GT2 hands down wins. It's an absolute monster on the track too, just doesn't have the NA sensation. Make sure to get your wife a spa day for being so cool!

savyboy

As one high-altitude car owning guy to another:

Enter Current Air Temperature (OAT) 70 Degrees F
Enter Ambient Barometric Pressure 29.9 Inches Hg
Enter Ambient Relative Humidity 50%
Enter Physical Or Pressure Altitude 6500 Feet

Calculated Relative Horsepower To Rated 76.9 %

http://www.csgnetwork.com/relhumhpcalc.html

My 450 hp GT3RS generates 346hp where I live
My 620 hp GT2RS generates 620 hp where I live

A rational case could be made for any of the (fine) choices. A GT2 is a very special car.

tripleblack

Lighter weight: not much & mostly turbo-related (plus a few small bits). Much closer in weight to GT3 than Turbo.
Wider front track: due to wheel width & offset. Not a suspension difference AFAIK.
Greater downforce: visibly obvious, & remedied for $ (trade-off "street vs track" look). Alternatively, $2K gets you 2RS aero. See HH/Nordschleife times.
7.2 Turbo doesn't have the GT1: but OP didn't ask about a Turbo.

I was hoping you might offer something more substantial. The fact that it's a GT2, rather than a GT4/5/6, is not a model designation error. That makes it Porsche's series production halo car. If anything, one would think the GT3/RS has parts derived from it.

My understanding, subject to correction, is that the meaningful motorsports-related parts of a GT car vs. other production Porsches are pretty much everything under the skin, most of which, not all, are shared across the GT line. Per the posts above the suspension on the GT2 is "better sorted" than the .1 3RS & equivalent to .2 3RS (spring change required for track use) but "more refined & deals with the back roads better". Not surprising as the improved .2 3RS suspension is derived from the GT2, rather than the other way around. They have done the same thing with the 4.0 suspension drawn from the 2RS. Note the pattern. Another example: the strut assembly material is a boron alloy, unique to the 2, 3RS & race cars.

Porsche castrates the GT2 for the general market. However, spend $20-$40K on it (or buy a 2RS) and you have a car that makes >200 ft/lbs of torque more than the 3RS through the tach range, with handling to match. It'll put 1-3 seconds a lap to the 3RS on most tracks...all day. In the dry. Provided one can (and wants to) drive it of course.

I'm not for a second suggesting one car is better than another. The .2 3RS is epic, and many prefer the NA plant. However, my sense is that most people don't fully understand the GT2. On the one hand it is eminently streetable. On the other (GT-series commonality & durability aside) it's unique DNA makes it faster...for those that know how.

It really is a special car.

@ the OP, I hope this is not a re-post. 4:45, 6:15

Targa Tim

Just googled the Nurburgring time of both cars.

2008 GT2 was 7:32.02 by Walter Rohrl, while 2010 GT3RS was 7:33 by Horst von Saurma.

I frequently track my .2RS along with a local GT2 and our times are quite similar.

As far as I'm concerned, they have almost identical lap times. So your quoted 1 to 3 seconds per lap is very questionable. This difference can only be achieved by a GT2RS, but there is significant differences between a stock GT2 and a GT2RS.

As I mentioned earlier, I agreed with picking GT2 as a mainly road use car. But for the track, well, I voted with my wallet already.

vf430

I came from a 700 hp+ 996tt and have driven the 2008 GT2 extensively and own the 2011 Gt3. Get the new GT3RS , its more fun (visceral exp) and sounds better. End of the day , just like someone else said...GT2 is a glorified Turbo..to me turbo cars are soul -less. This is just my opinion. Test drive both and buy the one you like...I am pretty sure you will get blown away buy the turbo power...to me it got old soon. Yeah even 800 hp gets old..

iLLM3

GT2 ran a 7:28 confirmed....5 second difference, and that wasn't an RS!

Maybe i'm just jaded because RUF's builds such SOUL-FULL masterpieces, that transformed my GT2 into an NA feeling and sounding animal....But it can be just as, the experience of an RS and even 100x greater with great work done/proper setup and good tires/and of course driving...

You guy's are selling these car's way short !

911dev

Hey I never track my .2 GT3 but can say that it is by far the most fun I have ever had in a car... well while it's moving that is! Anyway, I never drove a GT2 but did own a 997 turbo and a bunch of other Porsches. The .2 3 provides such feedback and soundtrack that I can not imagine buying another car.

I think of my self as a HP kind of junkie but I never feel as though I need any more power in my .2 GT3. This car ticks all my boxes and I have no care if another car my be faster. I would be very afraid that the GT2 may leave something out of the fun factor part of the equation.

I know why you might love the idea of a GT2, I know I did. And, I very well may never know what that feeling is but I have a good idea. Aside from the mid-range torque (my 997 turbo) I feel as though my .2 3 is just as fast above 5500 rpms and in another galaxy as far as enjoyment.

Targa Tim

Hey, I didn't see that on my search, thanks.

Spidey 993

Thank you all for your comments, I've read each one, sometimes more than once. Ultimately, I probably can't go wrong either way. The looks, and performance of either car amazes me and I may find myself trying each out before I buy to help determine my winner.

However, the response by Savyboy is something that hits a nerve in my current 993TT and living outside Boulder. The altitude does a nice job sucking a fair amount of valuable HP, leaving me wanting more.I even have a thread over on the 993TT board looking for ways to get it back. I lean towards the GT2 for the primary street driving, with plenty of capability on the track, and overall HP even after factoring in the HP loss.

stujelly

I have both so here are my comments:

Seems like everyone here has nailed it.

If primarily on the street, GT2

If more for track use gt3-rs.

On the track the rs is faster because of handling and corner sppeds.

THe gt2 is all straight away speed.

Fun on the street though.

Bman

I hope a few RL'ers I run with read this



I've had a 997 GT2 for 7 months. I rarely drive it on the street, not because it's not comfortable, because you really can't appreciate it until you track it, IMO. Short boosts on the street gets boring quickly. Rolling into the bus stop at the Glen in 6th gear, under full boost, is freaking exciting!!! I admit the "oneness" you have with a NA GT3 motor is something special. There are many corner exits where I wish I had a NA motor but the excitement driving the GT2 is also special. I bought the car to challenge myself and improve as I driver. I've still got a lot to learn but couldn't be more pleased it.

You really can't go wrong with either choice.

brim

I think you're making a good call with tge GT2. It's a monster and a ton of fun on or off the track.

stout

My comments with re: to the 997-1 GT2 suspension and chassis appeared in the September 2008 issue, here: http://www.excellence-mag.com/back-issues?year=2008 I don't expect you to buy it, but I don't have the time to repeat all my work here. Short version: 997-1 GT2 had significant improvements in roll-coupling (the way the front and back of the car "work" together) as well as vastly better PASM damping (my opinion). I do prefer the GT3's NA engine—but, overall, I prefer the chassis of the 997-1 GT2 to any other 997 GTx model to date, and I love the "challenge" of the speed brought on by the turbocharged engine.

Anyone who equates a GT2 to a glorified Turbo hasn't pushed a GT2 hard, and certainly not back to back with its contemporary GT3. In the 996 days, I was amazed at how similar the GT2 was to the GT3 in terms of handling, as was Johannes van Overbeek and two other drivers I respect. With similar alignments, the cars were very close in many ways; you just had to deal with the extra weight out back in the GT2. In 997 days, I am amazed at how different the 997-1 GT2 and GT3s are. The GT2 is notably faster and more comfortable. However, it is nothing like a 997 Turbo. It may be refined enough around town to wear a chrome badge on its rump, but it is soooooo much more involving than a 997 Turbo on a back road, and sooooooooooooooooooooooo much more at home on a race track. Now, spend $15k on a Turbo for suspension and another $8-12 for wheels and tires and you can close that gap right up. If you do it just right...

That's why I would probably prefer a 997-1 GT2 over the rest of the 997 GTx models (RS 4.0 noted, and needing to be driven), this despite the fact that I like the GT3 engine better and the GT3's looks better, too. The 997-1 GT2 is seriously good, and very few people will find out how good—because the cars are rare and few who have them will really use them. Pretty cool that you've got a couple right here to talk to. Their experiences and conclusions seem to match up with mine.