More than ever the 'numbers' of these sorts
of cars feel almost meaningless. We can run through them in a moment, but let
me assure you that these cars are faster than you'll ever need, they have more
grip than you'll use in 99 per cent of (on-road) situations and they're all way
faster than you or I around the Nurburgring. Apologies, Mr Lieb, should you be
reading this. So no justification for including the 991 GT3 in this test is
required, I hope. Even so, when I see it running on the road with Speciale and
650S for the first time, it's a relief that it doesn't just evaporate. In fact
it looks sensational – more purposeful than the McLaren and less contrived than
the head-banging Speciale. If you had to define that old 'racer for the road'
adage, a picture of the GT3 spearing across a wide, fast mountain road might
just be perfect.
The
design of the Bi-Xenon headlights fitted as standard is reminiscent of Porsche
motorsport classics
For the record, though, the GT3 is very
much the 'baby' of the group. It costs a not insubstantial $172,445, but that's
less than half the price of the Speciale or 650S. Its 3.5-litre flat-six
produces 465bhp at 5,250rpm and 324lb ft at 6,250rpm and it utilises a
seven-speed PDK gearbox, adjustable dampers, an electronically controlled
limited-slip diff and four-wheel steering to devastating, scintillating effect.
But it will need all its magical talent-enhancing powers to run for long with
these two. The Speciale is actually 35kg lighter than the GT3 at 1,395kg, but
its 4.5-litre V8 is in a whole different league, spitting out 597bhp at
9,000rpm and 398lb ft at 6,000rpm. The McLaren is positively in the
stratosphere: 641bhp at 7,500rpm and 500lb ft at 6,000rpm from a 3.8-litre
twin-turbocharged V8. Apparently the 650S can achieve 0-100mph in 5.7sec.
That's 0.6sec faster than an F1. The baby supercars are all grown up.
The
vertical guide vanes either side of the silver prancing horse are pushed open
at 170kph to reduce the volume of air entering the radiators and cut drag
But for now, we'll start with GT3. Like all
911s it feels like an old friend. I love the stance as you approach it, the
metalwork filling the rear and the fact that you drop so low into the seats.
And although the new 'screamer' flat-six hasn't got the chunter and fizz of the
brilliantly rattly Mezger, the lightweight flywheel still gives it an authentic
ugliness at idle that is deeply appealing. Within one revolution of its Cup 2
tyres the GT3 feels sensational, too. The engine note suggests an edge that the
PDK transmission backs up beautifully. It's not silky smooth to manoeuvre like
a Carrera but jolts forward, clutch biting and then releasing witl1 the
sharpness you might expect of a racer exiting the pitlane. Of course it's
mainly well mannered, but there's just enough awkwardness to signal that this
'box is honed for performance rather than just as a solution to the old car's
very heavy clutch and short, physical H-pattern shift.
The
650S’s front end appears infinitely meaner than the benign 12C’s, with a sculpted
front bumper and serpentine grille that features a thin band of LED-based
combination headlamps
That energy is matched by a kind of
rock-solid control that you wouldn't believe could be imparted at a crawl but
is palpable in the GT3's every movement. The combination of firm damping,
weighty and beautifully located steering, the correspondingly hefty but
super-short paddle motion and the first engineered thud as the 'box hits second
is enough to know that we weren't wrong about the GT3.
