With a top speed of only 184 mph, the new 992 GT3 RS is easily the slowest ever 911 GT3 RS. None of its predecessors dropped below 190 mph in the 20-years history of the line, and most of them topped either 193 or 194 mph. In metric terms, this is also the first of its breed to drop below the 300 km/h mark, a pyschological threshold between supercars and non-supercars. The cause? Look at that huge rear wing and you will understand !

However, that huge rear wing does triple the downforce, lifting from 145kg of the last generation to an astonishing 409kg when the car is running at 124 mph. At 177 mph, that increases further to 860 kg. To describe the latest generation GT3 RS as a "road-legal race car" is by no means overstated.

In fact, its top speed could have been slower if not the massively wide, extremely tall, swan-neck-mounted double-plane rear wing features an F1-style Drag Reduction System (DRS), whose lower plane could be adjusted to horizontal position at the touch of a button. It is also part of the variable aerodyamic management system, which varies the angle of both the rear wing and the flaps hidden under the nose of the car.



Speaking of the nose, you will find out the new RS features a pair of outlets on its bonnet and a large intake at the center of front bumper. By sacrificing the front luggage compartment, this is the first GT3 RS to feature a large radiator sitting at the nose at an angle. In this way, it frees up the sides for the aforementioned variable flaps. Yes, a road-legal race car needs no luggage space.

Unfortunately, the rest of the car gets less attention than the aero aspect. In particular, the 4-liter flat-six is virtually identical to the one fitted to the standard GT3 - and not that much different from the 2018 model. Only slightly more aggressive cam timing results in a slight boost of power, from 510 hp at 8400 rpm to 525 hp at 8500 rpm, while peak torque takes a setback, from 347 lbft at 6100 rpm to 343 lbft at 6300 rpm. It proves that either the high-revving flat-six is finally running out of development potential, or Porsche has simply stopped developing it in the view of ICE ban by 2030.

Meanwhile, more wings and the slightly larger / stiffer body shell of the 992 series resulted in a gain of 20 kilograms, lifting the kerb weight to 1450 kg. As a result, unsurprisingly, the new car is no quicker than the last one in acceleration, taking the same 0-62 and 0-100 mph time of 3.2 and 6.9 seconds, respectively.



As its focus is track performance instead, the 992 RS gets 10mm wider tires front and rear than before (and 20mm wider than GT3). For a sports car powered by only a naturally aspirated 6-cylinder engine, the employment of 275/30ZR20 and 335/30ZR21 tires seem a bit over the top, but considering how much downforce and cornering speed it is designed to work on, that is probably necessary.

Less altered are the brakes, which keep 408mm front and 380mm rear discs, although they are slightly thicker and clamped with calipers with bigger pistons. The standard brakes are still metal, while PCCB is optional.

Coupling to an unchanged 7-speed PDK box, PASM adaptive damping and active rear wheel steering, the chassis is all too familiar. The double-wishbone front suspension is new, of course, but not exactly news after the GT3. Considering the new GT3 is already borderline on ride comfort, you can expect the RS model to be even less bearable on normal roads, as the huge downforce mandates stiffer suspension setting and the wider tires will generate more harshness as well. This is the most extreme GT3 RS, and probably the last one.

The final thing to note is price, increased from the last car's £141,000 to £178,500, or £50,500 more than the GT3. Unless you do a lot of track days, the GT3, nearly as quick and capable on any roads, should be the smarter choice.