2016 Porsche 911 GT3 RS review – Roadshow

The Good Tons of downforce, grippy tires and a 0-60 mph time of 3.1 seconds. Just get in and hold on!

The Bad Not much in terms of media and connectivity. If you want even a simple USB port, you have to upgrade to the Porsche Communication Management System.

The Bottom Line The GT3 RS is super spendy but if you have the coin, it’s tough to find a better performance car.

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Drag

When the
2016 Porsche 911
GT3 RS arrived at Gingerman Raceway, a small argument broke out. Actually, a melee of Roadshow editors elbowed each other out of the way to hop behind the wheel and take the 500-horsepower street-legal racecar out on the track.

I emerged bruised and battered from the brawl, but nevertheless got to thrash the GT3 RS around the 2.14-mile track, where it earned a top space in my heart.

Get in, sit down, hold on, and shut up. The Porsche GT3 RS is one helluva ride.

Nick Miotke/Roadshow

The GT3 RS starts where the standard GT3 ends. It’s got 50 more horsepower and a bit more torque. Vents cover the body while a big fancy-pants wing sits on the back, and its hips would make Shakira hang her head in shame. Those fenders are stuffed with staggered wheels wrapped in Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires, sized 265/35-20 in the front and a whopping 325/30-21 in the rear.

Porsche employs a lot of what I like to call “small small catch monkey” tactics to add lightness. The small weight savings from a carbon-fiber trunk lid, hood, wing and spoiler, as well as an ultrathin magnesium roof, results in losing 22 pounds of weight when compared to the standard GT3. Fabric door pulls and no backseat help keep weight low, but don’t worry, air conditioning, navigation and a radio are still available.

Many race car tricks keep the GT3 RS barreling down the track and not, say, crashing into the wall at the first turn. The rear wing generates 485 pounds of downforce in addition to the 243 pounds of downforce delivered by the front splitter and vented front fenders, enhancing grip. Although it takes a speed of 186 mph to get full downforce, I was plenty happy with whatever fraction I had as I crested 140 mph on the rear straight.

On the wing of love with the Porsche…
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Keeping the GT3 RS flat and neutral through the turns is one word: adjustable. As in, adjustable front suspension and adjustable front and rear anti-roll bars. Also on hand is an electronically controlled limited-slip differential, and a nifty rear-steering system. At speeds under 50 mph, the rear steers opposite to the front, resulting in a tidier line. Put a little pressure on the right pedal and the rear wheels turn in the same direction, sort of crabbing the GT3 RS along the turn.

No manual is available in the GT3 RS.

Nick Miotke/Roadshow

Normally I’m not one for all these fancy electronic interlopers in my track day fun, but Porsche does it right. From the first scream up to 8,250 rpm, the shifts of the seven-speed Porsche Doppelkupplung (PDK) gearbox were heart-stopping.