911 GT3 opens new chapter in high performance sports cars

By Theodore Opara

The year 2013 marks the anniversary of Porsche’s most iconic car: the 911. For the last 50 years this rear-engined model has been equally at home on the racetrack as on the road. Its genetic DNA can be found in every other Porsche model. With over 820,000 units built, the 911 is the world’s most successful sports car ever.

In the 50th anniversary year, the company will celebrate the world premiere of the new 911 GT3 at the Geneva International Motor Show.

With the reveal of the fifth generation of the 911 GT3, Porsche is set to open a new chapter in high performance sports cars. The model will take the pole position among the manufacturer’s thoroughbred sports cars featuring naturally aspirated engines.

Boxer engine and transmission as well as body and chassis are completely new and constitute a further development of the 911 GT3 concept with an impressive performance leap. Power: 475 hp. Power to weight ratio: 3.0 kg/hp. Acceleration from zero to 100 km/h: in 3.5 seconds. Top speed: 315 km/h. Lap time Nürburgring Nordschleife: under 7:30 minutes.

As a technical highlight, it features the first active rear wheel steering and optional full LED headlights in a production Porsche. The new 911 GT3 keeps all the successful properties of a sports car suitable for racing, with even more driving dynamics, more sophisticated practicality, and a highly emotional fun factor.

The powertrain of the new 911 GT3 is composed of the 3.8-liter boxer engine yielding 475 hp at 8,250 rpm, the Porsche dual-clutch transmission (Porsche Doppelkupplung, short: PDK) and a high-traction rear-wheel drive. The six-cylinder engine is based on the same engine as the 911 Carrera S, although they share only few common parts.

All other components, particularly the crankshaft and valve gear, were specially adapted or designed for the GT3. For instance, Porsche designed titanium connecting rods and forged pistons. The basic modifications set the stage for an extremely high-speed engine that reaches up to 9,000 rpm. The PDK was also specially developed; the characteristics are directly based on a sequential gearbox from motor racing, thereby providing further performance and dynamics advantages to the driver.