CAR WARS! Sibling Rivalry! WHICH Porsche 911 GT3 RS Would YOU Favor? The 997 Or The 991?

Before there was four-wheel steering, double-clutch transmissions, electric power assisted steering and more slits and cuts than a Jennifer Lopez dress, the 911 GT3 RS stood for something. That, my friends, was purity.

While there's no question that the all-new 911 (991) GT3 RS is the closest the iconic German brand has got to actually putting a track car on the road, a lot has changed. There's a lot of all-new technology in the GT3 RS, which is a reflection of how much technology is in the brand's proper race cars. Oh, and it's really fast. Thing is though that all the reviewers that have piloted said that it's hard to tell the difference from the standard GT3 unless you get it on the track and push it to 10/10ths.

The older 997-generation GT3 RS is a different story. Still a simpleton, it took what the GT3 did and just went a bit more bonkers with it. Unlike the all-new RS model, it is a purist's dream — it lacks all the previously aforementioned technology. Think of it as an ode to analogue.

And we know these cars will command a premium going down the road.

Having said all of that, WHICH Porsche 911 GT3 RS would YOU put in your garage? The 997 or the 991?

**AutoSpies.com is NOT affiliated with the seller of the 911 (997) GT3 RS in ANY way. Caveat emptor, Spies!

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jameswisrik - 10/23/2015 8:03:22 AM

0 Boost

work of ART...don't need the wing.

MDarringer - 10/23/2015 8:42:32 AM

0 Boost

I'd actually go with a Cayman

ATrain - 10/23/2015 11:21:03 PM

+2 Boost

I can't answer your first question between the 7 and the 1. I only have the 1. However, having a 1.3 and a 1.RS, I can honestly say that the problem with the reviews is that people don't live with the car... They jump in and 5 min later, move to something else. It makes for a bit of a blunt instrument.

So here are my observations after driving a 991 GT3 for 13 months and 5 seconds in the 991 GT3 RS. (I've now had it for a few weeks and I stand by these observations.)

What a different car! That's all I can say...

The first thing that jumped at me was the wider stance. You can feel it instantly. It makes for a much smoother ride and leaves you with the impression that you're navigating a platform. It's freakish. I can see this car slide very nicely at the limit. The 3 did it beautifully in turns on track but this is going to be beyond belief, I'm sure of that.

Back to the smoothness for a moment, I felt like the RS in sport mode, suspension-wise, rode like the 3 in comfort mode. My wife, who is definitely more 'sensitive' to these things, agreed. It is firm, don't get me wrong. In fact, it felt firmer than the 3, though I suspect it will change as I progress through the break-in. However, it wasn't as harsh as the 3. (Not that the 3 is harsh but in a relative sense, it was.) I can only attribute this to the fact that you are sitting a little more in the center of the car as you push the contact patches out.

The steering is better in every way. It feels lighter, quicker and more precise. A lot has to do with the radius of the steering wheel so that can be had on the 3. However, the front contact patches are also wider, giving you a sense of placement of the car that is clearly more intuitive. I love the steering, plain and simple.

Perhaps the other thing that helps the steering is the weight of the car. It feels lighter and more agile. A word of caution here. Both my cars had the ceramics but the 3's seats were much heavier and the RS also has the lightweight battery so I may have a few extra pounds of difference between the two cars. Nevertheless, I suspect most should notice how 'light' the car feels relative to the 3. It probably also has to do with the incremental power, which is hard to detect if you think of it in sheer numbers but it makes the car easier to motivate. These are subtle differences that add-up I suspect.

Talking about motivation, I was able to give it a little push here and there while keeping it below 4k to 5k. The first impression, as suggested above, isn't that this car is faster, though it probably is, but rather that it has a better balance between weight and power. It breaks inertia with less effort. It gets up and goes almost by will. That's what I think leaves me with the impression of the car being lighter; the power isn't in your face but the car responds more promptly, more effortlessly.

Last but not least, visibility... 3/4 rear is poor. The LWB are wider and cut into the field of vision

ATrain - 10/23/2015 11:25:44 PM

+2 Boost

...so you need to be attentive if you don't want to scrape a few bumpers... Or worse. I would advise against just jumping lanes on the highway. On the track, I don't see this being as big an issue unless you have clearly mismatched cars and drivers in the field but otherwise, position awareness should suffice. Anyway, just a word of caution if you are moving from a 3 with 'normal' seats.