The 2023 Porsche 911 GT3 RS is probably as close as we’ll get to being able to buy a road-going Porsche race car. It has the power and aerodynamic trickery to carve out blisteringly quick lap times anywhere it goes, and the Nurburgring is no exception.
Sport Auto test driver Christian Gebhardt piloted the new GT3 RS around the famous race track. He completed the lap in an impressive 6 minutes and 54.99 seconds. That’s better than the 911 GT3 the publication tested earlier this year, which returned a 6:59.42 lap time, and that car featured a Manthey performance kit.
Gallery: 2023 Porsche 911 GT3 RS
Porsche powers the GT3 RS with its naturally aspirated 4.0-liter flat-six engine. It makes 518 horsepower, 16 more than the GT3, and 343 pound-feet of torque, with the automaker routing the power through its seven-speed PDK gearbox to the rear wheels. Porsche engineers squeezed the extra power from the engine with a motorsport-derived single-throttle intake system and new camshafts with modified cam profiles.
The powertrain is just one part of the car’s performance equation. The RS features active aerodynamics and a drag reduction system, the first time Porsche has offered the technology on a production model.
The new aero allows the car to create 901 pounds of downforce at 124 miles per hour, which more than doubles to 1,895 lbs at 177 mph. That’s also twice as much as its 991.2-generation predecessor. Even the double-wishbone front axle increase downforce, their teardrop-shaped profiles adding 88 lbs of downforce at top speed.
Porsche says the car can reach 60 mph in 3.0 seconds and hit a top speed of 186 mph. The automaker corrals all that power with six-position front and four-piston rear brakes. The car weighs just 3,286 lbs, with Porsche using Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic for the doors, front wings, bucket seats, and other bits.
Owning the 911 GT3 RS isn’t cheap. It debuted with a $225,250 price tag (including the $1,450 destination charge). However, Porsche’s consumer site shows that the cost has ticked up, with the car now starting at $244,650, which includes the $1,650 destination charge and the $1,700 gas guzzler tax. And that’s not even the most expensive one you can buy.
