Moving inside the car and the red accents continue with red Alcantara seat centers, a red-topped Alcantara shift knob, and red headliner that do a nice job of punching up the looks of the otherwise staid interior. Fixed carbon bucket seats offer great lateral support and give you the choice of 3-point seat belts for driving around town or racing harnesses- attached to the rear half cage, if you find yourself at the race track. Although the GT3 RS is designed to be used predominantly on the track, it makes a great touring car, too and in the center stack sits a navigation screen and HVAC to make sure that you are comfortable behind the wheel. To this day, Porsche has not offered an engine larger than 4.0-liters in any road-going 911, and this particular 4.0-liter variant is particularly special. Based on the famed Mezger design, this GT3 RS received a crankshaft from the RSR race car for an increased stroke, which bumps power from 444 horsepower in the 3.8-liter car to 493 while still revving happily to more than 8,000 rpm. Where the 4.0 really shines is that torque is up throughout the rev range and in-gear acceleration is exceptionally strong even from low RPM. The only gearbox available is a wonderfully visceral feeling 6-speed manual that truly makes you feel like you are in absolute control. When new, the GT3 RS 4.0 clocked 0-97 km/h in just 3.5 seconds and a top speed of 311 km/h. With only 600 GT3 RS 4.0s produced worldwide, most examples have been purchased by die-hard collectors and won’t be up for sale any time soon. Because of this, any opportunity to add one to your garage is not one to be missed and this car is a nearly flawless specimen that will be an absolute joy to drive, while steadily appreciating in value.
For those enthusiasts who are lucky enough to sample the different generations of GT3 RS, the variety between the 996 and 992 is enormous, and each one has its pros and cons. For some, the new, more refined, and computer-controlled 992 is the ultimate in GT3 RS, while for others, the unfiltered, 996 variant is the king. But the one iteration that almost everyone can agree sits at the top of the GT3 RS mountain is the 997 GT3 RS 4.0. Built as a limited edition run-out model for the 997, only 600 RS 4.0s were built for the world, and they were powered by the largest flat-6 ever put in a 911 by the Porsche factory. With the 911 dramatically increasing in size with the 991 generation, these GT3s have skyrocketed in value and are seen by many as the pinnacle of 911 development before it began transitioning into more of a grand touring car.
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