For twenty years Porsche’s 911 GT3 RS models have been held as a benchmark when it comes to street-legal versions of racing cars. Each generation somehow finds a way to go faster around a race track. Aero, power, tires, suspension, and tech adjustments keep bringing the most hardcore version of the 911 closer to track superiority. Every new version finds serious track-proven lap time improvements, but is it always a better car?
YouTube’s Vin Anatra recently took a trip to the Porsche Experience Center smack in the middle of Los Angeles to test the theory. He brought his lightly modified 997-generation GT3 RS, the car he calls his favorite of all time, to compare it to the newest and wildest car in the Porsche stable, the 992-generation GT3 RS. These are wildly different cars that approach speed in very different ways. Before you watch the video, think about which one you’d rather have.
Okay, now that you’ve seen it, did your opinion change? I know mine didn’t. I’ve spent a lot of time in a lot of 911s, and the 997 remains my personal sweet spot. The later 991 and 992 feel significantly bigger and more video-gamey. Vin even comments while on track that the 992 — with its PDK gearbox, launch control, track modes, downforce-inducing control arms and electronically-controlled everything — “feels like it just does everything for you, not for you, but it’s so assertive.”
Porsche definitely knows what it’s doing in building these cars, as they seem to get more popular and more expensive every year. That said, I will always gravitate toward a car that requires more from the driver. I want the three-pedal, sawing-at-the-wheel, get-all-your-braking-done-in-a-straight-line driving experience that 911s have always been known for. I want something that puts the sport in sports car. I don’t particularly care about lap times, I just want to listen to that clutch chatter.
What do you think? Which 911 GT3 RS are you taking home?