New Porsche GT2 RS prototype ride review ~ station of gear

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3 Jun, 2017 11:00pm Kyle Fortune

We take a ride in the ‘brutal’ Porsche 911 GT2 RS ahead of the sports car’s full arrival later this year

It’s hardly the best-kept secret, but Porsche can no longer deny the existence of its forthcoming 911 GT2 RS. We’ve sat alongside GT man Andreas Preuninger in a prototype car, ahead of its launch later this year. It promises to be the most extreme 911 ever, both in looks and performance.

To achieve that, Porsche’s wildest 911 again crosses boundaries. It mixes elements of the purist’s GT3 with the pugilistic Turbo. The result is, in Preuninger’s words “brutal power, that’s a joy to drive on track because it’s so precise and so agile”.

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A conservative 641bhp and 750Nm are the numbers Porsche is willing to reveal prior to the car’s actual homologation later this year, but in the tradition of the GT2 RS, the final numbers are certain to be a good deal more.

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Porsche engineers have taken the engine from a Turbo S and slotted it, as usual, in the back. Only now there’s a new water-cooled intercooler, which, allied to new turbos, greater boost and revised internals, allows the GT2 RS its massive output. Power is channeled to the rear wheels via a seven-speed PDK gearbox and electronically controlled locking differential.

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Despite traction being slightly limited, it’s likely to match the 2.9 seconds of the Turbo S from 0-62mph. It feels every bit as fast as that from the passenger seat, too. It’ll reach 124mph in less than nine seconds, while the top speed is expected to hit 211mph. The way it reached 180mph on the German autobahn was little short of extraordinary, with the engine’s huge mid-range performance and the speed of the PDK’s shift evident from the passenger seat.

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It’s the GT department’s aim – and a necessity for the car’s flagship status – for the GT2 to beat all its internal competition. External rivals should also keep an eye on their mirrors, as the RS is gunning for them, too. Its rose-jointed, upside-down mounted race dampers and springs are essentially from the 911 Cup Car, but it rides really well on (admittedly smooth) German tarmac.

There’s much the same downforce as on the GT3 RS, only it’ll be generated by a different aero package. A huge rear wing dominates the back, with the front getting a pouting splitter and massive intakes. The front wing vents will remain, only they’ll feature GT2-specific vanes. The brake-cooling ducts on the bonnet will make it to production, too. Reduced mass plays its part, with the GT2 RS certain to weigh less than 1,500kg.

Choose the optional Weissach package and that drops by another 30kg, while the huge magnesium wheels account for 12kg. Carbon fibre anti-roll bars and other suspension elements shave more than 5kg from the weight, and a titanium roll cage drops another 7kg. The standard, lightweight, magnesium roof borrowed from the GT3 RS is replaced by a carbon fibre one with the Weissach pack.

The GT2 RS is set to continue where its predecessor left off. A mad-looking, bonkers performance car, the production version should be very special indeed.

Promising mad looks and even crazier performance, the GT2 RS satisfies a unique clientele for whom enough is never enough. The final showroom car will be even more intense than the prototype we rode in. And it’s a fitting, riotous, flagship to Porsche’s 911 line-up.

Model: Porsche 911 GT2 RS
Price: £200,000 (est)
Engine: 3.8-litre 6cyl turbo petrol
Power/torque: 641bhp/750Nm
Transmission: Seven-speed PDK auto, rear-wheel drive

0-62mph: 2.9 seconds (est)
Top speed: 211mph-plus
Economy/CO2: TBC/TBC
On sale: Late 2017

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