While the VW Group reinvents itself with battery-electric vehicles, we are happy to report important progress on the enthusiast front, specifically regarding naturally aspirated race cars. Porsche is launching the 911 GT3 Cup, the next 911-based race car to make the transition from the 997 to the 991 platform and a car that’s quite a bit cheaper to own and operate than its predecessor.
“After the GT3 R, it’s the second car with our new generation of engines,” Porsche’s motorsports chief, Frank-Steffen Walliser, told C/D. In this case, “new generation” does not mean force fed by a turbocharger. The 911 GT3 Cup is propelled by a free-breathing, direct-injected 4.0-liter flat-six-cylinder engine that makes 485 horsepower, up from the predecessor’s 460. Even more important, it offers far more torque at low revs, and this makes it a lot faster than before: “We’ve never taken such a big leap,” said Walliser.
He also managed to cut running costs significantly. While the predecessor needed an engine tuneup every 40 hours and a transmission service every 30 hours, now the engine can go 80 to 100 hours, and the transmission only needs attention every 60 hours. The gearbox is a sequential racing transmission. Standing on 18-inch wheels, the entire car weighs a mere 2646 pounds. It works without artificial driving aids, but it is “ABS ready,” said Walliser, which means that an anti-lock-braking system, wher...