Porsche Reveals New 911 GT3 Touring Package

FRANKFURT, Germany – Porsche unveils an alternative to the rare and high-priced 911 R in the form of a new 911 GT3 model featuring a so-called Touring Package.

The new 911 GT3 Touring Package, which made its world debut at a media function here on the eve of the 2017 Frankfurt auto show, is the latest in a line of road-focused Porsche models aimed at purists intent on securing one of the last 911 models featuring a naturally aspirated engine.

But unlike the similarly conceived 911 R, which was limited in volume to 991 units and has commanded exorbitant prices on the used-car market since its introduction in March 2016, the 911 GT3 with the Touring Package will be produced as a regular model on an open-ended basis with no cap on volume.

The 911 GT3 Touring Package hearkens back to a variant of the 911 Carrera RS offered in 1973. Like the earlier 911 R, it combines traditional 911 GT3 styling with that of the standard 911.

Up front, it features the same bumper assembly and air ducts as Porsche’s standard race-bred model. The rear, however, receives a more understated look with an automatically deploying spoiler assembly from the standard 911 Carrera, complete with an additional Gurney flap and a unique grille insert bearing a GT3 Touring logo.

The 911 GT3 Touring Package also receives the same rear bumper as the standard 911 GT3 with large air ducts to extract hot air from the engine bay.

Other exterior touches include headlamp washer system covers, highlights around the side windows and sport exhaust tailpipes all in silver. Buyers can, however, specify a so-called “Black Exterior Touring Package” in which these elements are in black.

In a further departure from the standard 911 GT3, the internal headlamp graphics and taillamps lenses are darkened in color.

Mechanically, the rear-wheel drive 911 GT3 Touring Package is identical to the recently facelifted standard 911 GT3. Power comes from the most powerful and largest-capacity naturally aspirated version of Porsche’s classic flat 6-cyl. gasoline engine. With a displacement of 4.0L it delivers 493 hp at 8,250 rpm and 339 lb.-ft. (460 Nm) of torque at 6,000 rpm. The rear-mounted unit also has the distinction of being able to rev to 9,000 rpm.

Drive is channeled to the rear wheels via a standard 6-speed manual transmission and mechanical locking differential. Porsche claims the same 0-62 mph (100 km/h) time as the standard 911 GT3 at 3.9 seconds. However, the 911 GT3 Touring Package cannot quite claim quite the same top speed as the 911 R, with a claimed 196 mph (316 km/h) versus the 198 mph (319 km/h) of its more expensive sibling.

Inside, the new 911 GT3 model swaps the Alcantara accents of the standard model for genuine leather trim. It is used on the steering wheel, gear lever, door panel armrests, center console storage compartment lid and door handles. The seat centers are upholstered in black fabric, while the headrests feature an embossed Porsche logo. There also are black aluminum trim applications within the dashboard.

The 911 GT3 Touring Package rolls on 20-in. center-lock wheels, some 9.0 ins. in width up front and 12.0 ins. in width at the rear. They are shod with 245/35 and 305/30 profile tires, respectively. Clothed in the same aluminum body as the 911 Carrera 4, the new model is 1.7 ins. (43 mm) wider than the standard 911 Carrera. A lowered suspension also has it sit 1.0 in. (25 mm) closer to the ground.

Among the new model’s innovations is a standard rear-wheel-steer function. It steers the rear wheels in the opposite direction as the front wheels for added agility at lower speeds and in the same direction as the front wheels for greater longitudinal stability at higher speeds.

North American pricing for the 911 GT3 Touring Package is not immediately available. In Germany, it retails for €152,416 ($183,276). This compares to original €189,544 ($227,920) price tag for the 911 R announced early last year.