Porsche unveils the most powerful 911 of all time.
The fastest and most powerful road-approved 911 is ready for launch. The new Porsche 911 GT2 RS made its world premiere at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in the UK, which ran from June 30 to July 2, 2017 — and it arrives as the most extreme road-going 911 Porsche has ever put into production. At the heart of the car sits a 515 kW (700 hp) biturbo flat engine, and wrapped around it is everything the company’s GT department knows about going quickly for a living.
Weighing 1,470 kg with a full fuel tank, the lightweight two-seater drives its power to the rear wheels and covers zero to 100 km/h in 2.8 seconds on the way to a 340 km/h top speed. The new car trumps its 3.6-litre predecessor by 59 kW (80 hp) and develops 750 Newton metres of torque, an increase of 50 Nm. That predecessor was the previous GT2 RS, the 3.6-litre machine that has held the badge until now; this is the same idea taken to a number the road-car division had never reached before.
The engine builds on the 3.8-litre unit in the 911 Turbo S, which makes 427 kW (580 hp). To push well past that, large turbochargers force a greater volume of process air into the combustion chambers, and a new additional cooling system keeps everything in check at peak load. At very high temperatures it sprays the charge-air cooler with water, which drops the gas temperature in the overpressure range and holds optimum power output even when the car is being worked hard. The result is a near-motorsport drivetrain that behaves with a road car’s manners.
The customised GT seven-speed double-clutch transmission (PDK) in the new 911 GT2 RS puts that power down with uninterrupted traction. What’s more, the specially developed exhaust system is made from extra-lightweight titanium, weighs around seven kilograms less than the system used on the 911 Turbo and delivers an emotional sound without precedent. For the first time ever, Porsche Design is celebrating the debut of the high-performance sports car by releasing a special-issue watch. It nods to the world of motorsport, is exclusively available to owners of the new vehicle, and can only be ordered in conjunction with the new GT model at a Porsche Centre.
Discipline in sport means mastering every detail. And in the world of super sports cars, cornering speeds are on another level. The 911 GT2 RS reaches those speeds thanks to its flawless racing chassis with rear-axle steering and Ultra High Performance (UHP) tyres. Like all GT sports cars, the new top model features a specially calibrated PSM with a Sport mode that is tailored to provide optimal driving dynamics. Powerful air intakes and outlets and the imposing rear wing emphasise that the vehicle’s aerodynamics have mastered both form and design. The large, wide wheels (265/35 ZR 20 at the front and 325/30 ZR 21 at the rear) ensure outstanding braking and cornering forces, and the 911 GT2 RS runs Porsche Ceramic Composite Brakes (PCCB) as standard. The front wings, wheel-housing vents, the outer shells of the Sport Design exterior mirrors, the air intakes on the rear side sections and parts of the rear end are made from carbon-fibre reinforced plastic (CFR), as are many of the interior components. The bonnet is carbon too, to keep weight down, while the standard roof is made from magnesium. Both body parts carry a wide lateral swage line.
It’s worth remembering what the GT2 name has always meant. Since the original 993-era car, it has marked the most uncompromising road-going 911 of its day — rear-wheel drive, turbocharged flat-six, and the sense that the racing department ran out of patience somewhere on the way to the showroom. There is no all-wheel drive here and no softness in the calibration. The 991-generation GT2 RS simply carries that brief to its logical end, and the numbers attached to it are the proof.
Performance can always be cranked up a notch — even on the 911 GT2 RS. That’s why Porsche engineers developed the optional Weissach package, which sheds around 30 kilograms. It adds more elements made from carbon-fibre reinforced plastic and titanium: the roof and the anti-roll bars are carbon, and so are the coupling rods on both axles. Magnesium wheels cut both gross weight and unsprung weight, which unlocks a deeper set of chassis properties again. The luggage compartment lid and the carbon-weave finish roof are finished with a central strip in the same colour as the car for a visually distinctive look.
The passenger compartment of the Porsche 911 GT2 RS is dominated by red Alcantara, black leather and interior parts with a carbon-weave finish as standard. The GT2 RS sports steering wheel with gearshift paddles enables quick, sporty gear changes, while drivers and passengers sit in full bucket seats with a carbon-weave finish — they experience the driving dynamics of the high-performance sports car in full. As in every 911, Porsche Communication Management (PCM) is the central control unit for audio, navigation and communication. The Connect Plus module and the Porsche Track Precision app are also included as standard, enabling detailed recording, display and analysis of driving data on a smartphone. The optional Chrono Package expands the PCM functions to include a performance display, which can be used to display, save and evaluate track times. It also adds a stopwatch on the switch panel with both analogue and digital display, and on the 911 GT2 RS the Chrono Package comes with a lap trigger. Using the Porsche Track Precision app in conjunction with external markers on a start/finish straight, that lap trigger lets drivers record lap times with a high level of precision.
Exclusive watch to accompany the car: Porsche Design has teamed up with Porsche Motorsport to develop the 911 GT2 RS Chronograph for customers of the new super sports car, reserved exclusively for 911 GT2 RS drivers. At its heart is the first clock movement developed by Porsche Design, the product of three years’ work. The calibre 01.200 includes a flyback function, a load-path-optimised movement bridge and an official COSC certificate of authenticity, and the timepiece housing is made of lightweight titanium.
The flyback function is inspired by motorsport and represents a special feature of the Porsche watch. On a traditional chronograph, the buttons must be pressed three times to measure consecutive time intervals: the first press stops the chronograph, the second resets it and the third restarts the measuring process. On a chronograph with a flyback function, those processes happen automatically and in rapid succession. The stop function and the ongoing time display are clearly separated using yellow markings. Many of the details on the timepiece are based on the high-performance sports car: the tungsten winding rotor is modelled on the rims of the 911 GT2 RS, the clock face is made of carbon, and the design of the time display matches the instrument cluster and the tachometer. The 911 GT2 RS and its watch counterpart are exclusively available at Porsche Centres worldwide, and the vehicle and watch are produced individually in line with customer wishes and delivered together.
Taken as a whole, the 911 GT2 RS is Porsche making a straightforward point: this is the fastest and most powerful road-approved 911 ever built, and it doesn’t pretend to be anything else. Details of final specification and the ordering process are handled through Porsche Centres, with the car and its matching chronograph produced together to each owner’s specification.
Vehicle data
| Make | Porsche |
| Model | 911 GT2 RS |
| Generation / chassis code | 991.2 (991 generation, second phase) |
| Model year(s) covered | 2017 (world premiere at Goodwood Festival of Speed) |
| Body style | Two-seater coupé, rcoupéheel drive |
| Powertrain / engine | 3.8-litre biturbo flat-six (based on the 911 Turbo S engine) |
| Power / torque | 515 kW (700 hp); 750 Nm |
| Transmission | GT seven-speed double-clutch (PDK) |
| Drivetrain | Rear-wheel drive |
| Key performance figures | 0–100 km/h in 2.8 s; top speed 340 km/h; 1,470 kg with full fuel tank; 59 kW (80 hp) more than 3.6-litre predecessor |
| Price (as stated) | Not stated in sources |
| On-sale / announcement period | World premiere June 30–July 2, 2017 at Goodwood Festival of Speed; watch orderable from June 30, 2017 |
| Market | Global, via Porsche Centres; UK premiere |