Porsche presents the 911 GT3 RSR, the new 911 sports car for those customers who will compete in Gran Turismo racing next season. The car is based on the 997 version of the GT3 RS and it is likely to represent the end of the line for the racing evolution of this model.

The main distinctive feature in comparison to the 2011 model is the fact that the new car is 48mm wider, but the real novelty is in the revised aerodynamics, now featuring a different air intake on the hood and new openings in the rear side section replacing the air scoop on the engine hood. The engine will remain the classic 4.0 liter 6-cylinder boxer unit, but the power has been increased by 5 hp, bringing it up to 460 hp. The 6 speed manual transmission is operated by paddle shifters.

Porsche 911 GT3 RSR has been built according to the rules and limitations of the Automobile Club de l’Ouest, meaning that the car is suitable for racing at the 24hrs of Le Mans, in the FIA World Endurance Championship, in the Le Mans Series and in the International GT Open. The first models will be ready in January and the price will be around the half million Euros.

View Porsche 911 GT3 RSR photo gallery

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Jason Plato from Fifth Gear took the Porsche 911 GT2 RS out for a track test and the ‘daddy’ of the 911 range didn’t really perform to standards. Or did it? Being a significant step up from Porsche’s more Sunday driver friendly models (the more aggressive, capable, Sunday drivers) it’s difficult to say how user friendly this 911 should be.

The GT2 RS has a more powerful engine than the previous model, and the chassis is a stiffened version of the GT3 RS model. It’s a very lightweight model with a titanium exhaust and carbon fibre parts, which also makes this new version very fast. While this is still strictly speaking, a road-going Porsche, it’s very much in the supercar category and that changes how it should be evaluated. For example, it’s lacking the dual-clutch gearbox and paddle shift of other super cars.

The impressive thing about the Porsche GT2 RS is that it has been engineered like a classic sports car, with smooth and quiet driving if you happen to be just middling around town. But tellingly, this particular test drive takes place on a track where the ‘naughty side’ really comes out. And that is really the spiritual home of the GT2 RS. The video turns into a comparison test with the Ferrari 458 Italia which confuses things a little, and despite the Porsche coming across as the supreme driver’s car out of the two, even with its manual gearbox, it loses on the basis of ‘goosebumps’ and ’specialness’.

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