Say hello to the purists’ Porsche, the 2022 911 GT3 Touring.
It’ll be here late in 2021, but order books are open now.
Introduced with the previous, 991.2-generation GT3, the Touring Package was a partly a response to people playing crazy games with the price of the ultra-limited 911 R.
Like the 911 R, the first GT3 Touring was manual-only, and like the 911 R it eschewed the big wings of the regular GT3 in favour of a cleaner, more classic profile.
Much of that ethos has carried over to the 992-generation GT3 Touring you see here, with one key difference: this time you can get it with a PDK transmission. Don’t worry though, the manual hasn’t gone anywhere.
The biggest change in the transition from GT3 to GT3 Touring is down back, where the swan-neck spoiler of the former has been replaced with an electric pop-up unit that extends automatically at speed.
Also new for the Touring? The air intakes up front are finished in the body colour, there are extra silver highlights around the exterior (a black pack is optional), and the cabin is less motorsports den, more leather-lined smoker’s lounge.
Leather trim adorns the steering wheel, gear lever, centre console, armrests, and door handles, while the standard headrests have the Porsche crest embossed. All the black leather is offset with bright aluminium trim pieces.
Of course, all the options from the regular GT3 carry over, so owners can add racy bucket seats, an upgraded sound system, the Chrono package, and any number of coloured cabin highlights.
Under the skin, the Touring is pure 911 GT3.
That means power comes from a naturally-aspirated 4.0-litre flat-six engine with 375kW of power and a 9000rpm redline, good for a 3.4-second sprint to 100km/h with the seven-speed PDK transmission fitted.
The engine is derived from the unit in the 911 R endurance racer, and is actually used in the 911 Cup car with minimal changes.
“It’s definitely the same engine that we use in the Cup car,” said Andreas Preuninger, Porsche GT boss.
“There are slight differences. We have a different engine management system, a race car’s engine management system, and we have a different exhaust on the car because you don’t need particulate filters or catalysts, or noise-restricting dampers in the race car.
“Other than that, this is exactly the same engine. Same part number, same everything.”
The latest GT3 is the first road-going Porsche 911 to feature a double-wishbone front suspension.
The double-wishbone suspension has allowed Porsche to stiffen the front suspension without undermining the car’s ability to soak up bumps.
“The precision and the camber stiffness has a lot of advantages for the driving… but you can take away all the forces of braking and accelerating from the damper, because the damper sits in between the two wishbones,” Mr Preuninger explained.
“On a MacPherson [front suspension] all the forces from braking just go through the damper, so you need a very stiff damper and that kind of influences how precisely a damper can work,” he said.
“You can be a lot more sensible [with a double wishbone suspension].”
The Touring tips the scales at 1418kg with the six-speed manual, or 1435kg with the seven-speed dual-clutch ‘box.
Standard equipment
- LED headlights with Porsche Dynamic Lighting
- Auto-dimming rear-view mirrors
- Automatic windscreen wipers
- Metallic paint
- Front axle lift
- Rear parking sensors and reversing camera
- Tyre sealant kit with air compressor
- Digital radio
Pricing
- 2022 Porsche 911 GT3 Touring: $369,600
- 2022 Porsche 911 GT3 70 Years Porsche Australia Edition: $494,300
All prices exclude on-road costs.
