997gt3north

if you worked at Porsche and you were on the 991gt3 development team you would have done everything they did - they delivered a faster car - it had to be done - they either added 150 more HP like the corvette and Viper or they did the best they could to keep the essence of the car the same but make it faster - this required everything that they did to be done and in my opinion measured against this metric they did very well

it is a 911 / GTR hybrid

the test mule they used around the ring for the last 4 years was the GTR - the only way to keep up with it was to do what they did (9000rpms, rear wheel steering, wider front track, longer wheel base, more front aero and PDK)

the car is now set for the next 10+ years
- faster ring times = more HP (GT2) more aero (GT3/RS) both (GT2/RS)
- mk2 refresh will have the computers doing more for you, etc


Welcome to the future

hf1

You forgot:
Push the engine three feet forward where that useless empty space behind the driver now is.
Oh wait, or maybe just give the 3.8L motor to the Cayman and be done with it.

M3EvoBR

Chris,

I think you deserve to have a air cooled piece sitting in your german garage.

M3EvoBR

Watched the video earlier and there is hope that this car will be a great one.
Still need to drive and time will tell, but we should keep an example of one of the antiques

007DT

Definitely a cool car.... Just not for me. If I went Flappy it would be for a Fiat. At this point I wouldn't trade my 7.1 RS Straight up for one..

Better car yes, but the 996 was better than the 993.

ShootingStar

I wish some other people shared this very sentiment and I couldn't have said it better myself.

kaamacat

IMHO... they did an excellent job on the car, and no-doubt the RS will be even better BUT, this change has also started to take "analog" out of the car. The raw sounds of the engine, the connection of the physical steering... the car starts to become less driver involved. (And not meaning the PDK. Honestly if my RS had PDK I'd be in heaven.... that's just me). Like the 458 is to Scuderia. The 458 is a marvel yet, the Scuderia is an animal and gives back what you give it..... same with the current GT3 and GT3RS. You watch the Harris review of the Gen2RS and this new GT3..... the passion he put into the words.... the RS was unreal.... this one more scripted and factual. Never the less come this July is 3yrs with the RS, which says a lot.

At the end of the day Porsche is in the business to stay in business and evolve. The new breed will happen and be great. In a year from now it will be interesting to see how many eat their words (like me)....or not. Porsche Rock On!

Serge944

At the end of the day, a journalist's opinion is just that - a journalists opinion.

The less you let reviews like this influence you, the happier you'll be in the long run. In the words of Preuninger, "just drive the damn thing, " and then decide.

The car looks great in the video!

Carrera GT

Indeed, and the merit of Harris is that his opinion tends to predict my own, plus he prides himself on journalistic integrity. That's not to say I buy a car on his say-so, but it's all part of the process of settling in to the decision to replace one 911 with another.

Carrera GT

Each to his own. These observations suggest an interest in cars that are "seen" to be "driver's" cars rather than whether or not the car is actually satisfying. The GTR has little or nothing to do with the 991 let alone the 991 GT3. Porsche was surely testing against the GTR, but they were not building a GTR or even a GTR competitor. Who would?

As for the future and longevity, the 996 was meant to carry the 911 for ten years. It barely made it half way. Cycle times are far shorter now (the 997 brought most of the 991 technology, only the chassis changed) and new models are rolling out with almost every publication of a magazine, so there's not ten years in this model, and the .2 refresh will be distinctive visual cues, as was the 997.2 over the 997.1 with significant, valuable, but as ever, incremental engineering advances. Who knows what comes after the 991.2? A shorter wheelbase GT3? Longer control arms? Inboard dampers? 8 Cylinders? Composite body?

I'm all for the visceral and the analog. My "other" Porsche is a 993 GT2 clone. But there's also the here and now. The great thing about my RS 3.8 that makes it so much more fun than the 991 GT3 is that it's here and now. I can track it today. Well, not today, I've got the suspension about to come out, but maybe next week ... and the interesting thing about the 991 GT3 and what it portends for the 991 RS is that the likes of Harris Monkey is an unreserved satisfaction in driving the car. I think the 991 is bland compared to the 997, but that's a matter of appearances and what is seen rather than what is done. If the 991 GT3 is as exciting as Harris says, then I can look past the less-than-heroic spec sheet and the bland appearance.

NBTBRV8

That does look good and I bet the drive is absolutely superb. I take note his point about the turn in, when I got my 997.2 GT3 it took me two + weeks to get over the turn in, it is just so sharp on standard street tyres that I can't fathom how they could make it any better.

What I do find disingenuous about CH is that his story changes whenever they release a new model. In his review of the 997.2 he talks about how the 997.1 used to understeer and how they fixed it "it just doesn't" (anymore) was his quote at 2:40 and 3:54 when talking about the chassis. Yet in the new video he goes on to say how the 997 understeered.

[YOUTUBE]45DWdH20Hmg[/YOUTUBE]

He did the same when the GT2 came out, whilst it is the current car it is sublime, yet when it gets replaced he starts talking about all the faults. Well if this is the case why didn't he raise them as points at the time?

I also love the launch control at the end, that sounds nuts!

Carrera GT

I think you have indeed caught Harris in a moment of failure. I have to admit my memory of his 997.2 and 997.1 reviews didn't pick up on this "best car ever" example ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45DWdH20Hmg#t=153s

Carrera GT

Here's the PH write-up for that video.
http://www.pistonheads.com/news/defa...aign=2013-6-13

ShakeNBake

Would be interesting to see the 991GT3 added to his 4.0 and 458 comparo he did a while back.

WSH

As usual, Chris hit it right..

Will it be a better car in all ways ? Sure....longer wheelbase, wider track and add'l 2 years of development. That is what Porsche does best.

But as he noted, there is the other battle..loss of manual, etc. My biggest fear is that it will be an AWESOME machine that one will grow tired of easily. Like my old 996 Turbo...supremely fast and comfortable, did everything well. But once I got a (real) GT3, I never drove it anymore. I have a feeling this one will be the same way. We'll see.

Bill