2019 Porsche 911 GT3 RS debuts with more power, less weight

Sounding the last hurrah for the 996 generation of the Porsche 911, the 2018 Porsche 911 GT3 RS comes to light as the fastest road-going naturally aspirated Porsche 911 ever. Debuted at the 2018 Geneva Motor Show, the 2018 GT3 RS is more powerful and lighter than ever before.

The 2018 GT3 RS has been on a very strict diet which has helped it shed some weight. The GT3 RS thanks the magnesium roof, lightweight glass, forged alloy wheels, and the carbon fibre front trunk lid and fenders for this reduction. Inside, thinner door panels, carbon fibre on the back of the front seats, less sound insulation, as well as the absence of rear seats helped it as well. The optional Weissach package will add carbon fiber anti-roll bars, roof panel, rear deck lid, steering wheel trim, and shift paddles.The car now weighs at 1430 kilos with the Weissach Package.

Powering this lighter body is a 4.0-litre six-cylinder engine with 520 hp on tap. This grunt powers the car from 0 to 100 kph in 3.2 seconds and flat out, it will hit 312 kph. There are no turbos strapped to this engine, making it one of the few last high performance naturally aspirated engines to appear in a modern-day sports car. The rear wheels are powered through Porsche’s 7-speed PDK dual clutch transmission.

Apart from the power upgrade, Porsche has also added some suspension tweaks to improve the dynamics of the GT3 RS. Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM), Porsche Torque Vectoring (PTV), electronic locking rear differential, modified springs, and ball-joint suspension links constitute the changes made to the suspension. Upgrades are made to the aero of the car as well. An enhanced chin spoiler, extended side sills, a tweaked diffuser and a massive rear wing being a few among them.