RE: Porsche 911 GT3 facelift spy shots

RE: Porsche 911 GT3 facelift spy shots

Tuesday 9th February 2016

Porsche 911 GT3 facelift spy shots

It's time for the 991.II GT3 then; surely it won't be turbocharged too?



This is the big one. While the idea of turbocharged 911 Carreras has been begrudgingly accepted by most, the GT3 is a very different matter. The benefits turbocharging brings in terms of easy torque and improved efficiency will appeal to the average sports car buyer looking at regular 911. The drawbacks it presents in terms of dulled response and a reduced willingness to rev are the worst things for a prospective GT3 buyer to hear.

A 500hp standard GT3 would be nice!
A 500hp standard GT3 would be nice!
As yet we don't know what the engine the GT3 facelift will have. If it follows both the 996 and 997, we can expect a little more power (typically around 20hp) plus the interior and exterior styling updates introduced on the Carreras. Without wishing to fan the flames of speculation too far, could the 3.8 make way for the 4.0-litre of the RS in light of its early issues? It would make that 20hp gain nice and easy...

Now identifying a 911 facelift isn't the easiest job at the best of times, but it's made harder here by the fact that this GT3 combines bits of 991.I and 991.II. At the front you'll see larger new intakes, and that camo hides LED indicators. The back remains the same, and the wheels are from a Turbo. So there's not a lot to discuss just yet, but first sighting of a new GT3 is newsworthy to us!

As for when the 991.II GT3 will actually be seen and released, it's again probably best to look back to the 997. The 997.II Carrera was announced in June 2008, with details of the GT3 following in May 2009. By that logic we can expect news on the GT3 in August this year, which would tie in quite nicely with a motor show debut at Paris in September. More info as we receive it!



Images: S. Baldauf/S.B. Medien

Author
Discussion

Dafuq

Original Poster:

371 posts

169 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
Ummmmm, I am not a Porsche hater, in fact I have always loved it's iconic shape and the marque, but this...... errrr, looks no different to the last one?

What's the point?


Just sayin..............

Quickmoose

4,482 posts

122 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
1) It's not the final design
2) It will be covered in barely visible alterations

Dafuq

Original Poster:

371 posts

169 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
Quickmoose said:
1) It's not the final design
2) It will be covered in barely visible alterations
Soooooo, kind of my point. If it isn't the finished design why bother with the article, especially if the alterations will be barely visible?

Bit of a non event, no?

matpilch

246 posts

139 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
GT3 is now the only Porsche with a naturally aspirated 6 cylinder boxer engine. That's massive.

Any news on the rumoured 911 R?

Carl_Manchester

12,103 posts

261 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
Dafuq said:
Quickmoose said:
1) It's not the final design
2) It will be covered in barely visible alterations
Soooooo, kind of my point. If it isn't the finished design why bother with the article, especially if the alterations will be barely visible?

Bit of a non event, no?
The reasons are as follows.

The 991 GT3 was a bit of a PR disaster for Porsche for the following reasons:

1. The drive-train was made of chocolate and the blew too easily, causing a major recall
2. There was a fiasco in terms of the limited number of cars allocated to the UK vs LHD and who managed to get one. Many were flipped as silly premiums on the used market with 50 miles on the clock. This was repeated with the RS launch.

People were saying on the GT3's launch that there would be no second run of the GT3 for the 991.

Hopefully Porsche will get it right 2nd time around.






Cupramax

10,469 posts

251 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
Dafuq said:
Ummmmm, I am not a Porsche hater, in fact I have always loved it's iconic shape and the marque, but this...... errrr, looks no different to the last one?

What's the point?


Just sayin..............
This was my first thought, spy pics of a new 911, which will look the same as the last one. Wow.

leon9191

752 posts

192 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
Cupramax said:
Dafuq said:
Ummmmm, I am not a Porsche hater, in fact I have always loved it's iconic shape and the marque, but this...... errrr, looks no different to the last one?

What's the point?


Just sayin..............
This was my first thought, spy pics of a new 911, which will look the same as the last one. Wow.
The fact it looks similar is immaterial, it’s the prospect and discussion on the potential changes to the engine that is the main point here.

Phil Dicky

7,162 posts

262 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
Cupramax said:
Dafuq said:
Ummmmm, I am not a Porsche hater, in fact I have always loved it's iconic shape and the marque, but this...... errrr, looks no different to the last one?

What's the point?


Just sayin..............
This was my first thought, spy pics of a new 911, which will look the same as the last one. Wow.
Surely it would not be purely for financial reasons ?

Driver Rider

604 posts

196 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
I just hope drivers and not speculators get their hand on this. How do people get their hands on gt Porsches through their OPC dealers? Why are numbers always limited? Could someone educate me?

[AJ]

3,079 posts

197 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
matpilch said:
GT3 is now the only Porsche with a naturally aspirated 6 cylinder boxer engine. That's massive.

Any news on the rumoured 911 R?
Word is that this is in fact the 991 R mule in GT3 disguise.

MrBarry123

6,025 posts

120 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
It looks great but then the current version looks great so no surprise there!

Surely this will knock the current GT3 premiums though?

LankyLegoHead

749 posts

131 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
MrBarry123 said:
Surely this will knock the current GT3 premiums though?
My heart bleeds purple piss for all those who bought the last 991 GT3 as an investment.


I'm more excited about the 911 R, for sure. As much as I've always loved Porsches GT range.

Quickmoose

4,482 posts

122 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
LankyLegoHead said:
I'm more excited about the 911 R, for sure. As much as I've always loved Porsches GT range.
me too.
What team do you drive for?

EricE

1,945 posts

128 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
LankyLegoHead said:
MrBarry123 said:
Surely this will knock the current GT3 premiums though?
My heart bleeds purple piss for all those who bought the last 991 GT3 as an investment.
Plus it is almost certain that the facelift will have a manual gearbox option. Add the impending economic downturn and it's an interesting scenario... for buyers. smile

j90gta

563 posts

133 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
The GT3 has been the best driver's car of whatever evolution of the 911 (apart from a 1974 3.0 RS). Now if the latest model is turbocharged and has a non-manual gearbox then why should the GT3 be made an different? Modern turbos bear no resemblance to those of the 1980s; turbo-lag is much less noticeable. Would everyone complain if it was a twin-turbo with 600 bhp, 600 ft/lb of torque, and gear changes that were quicker and smoother than a manual? Porsche will build whatever they want to and it will still be a great driver's car. If I could afford it I still wouldn't buy one though!!

MikeGalos

261 posts

283 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
j90gta said:
... Would everyone complain if it was a twin-turbo with 600 bhp, 600 ft/lb of torque, and gear changes that were quicker and smoother than a manual? ...
Yes, because then it wouldn't be a GT3. It would be a 911 Turbo with a different label and thus be even more pointless than most of the 911 variants.

British Beef

2,191 posts

164 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
EricE said:
Plus it is almost certain that the facelift will have a manual gearbox option. Add the impending economic downturn and it's an interesting scenario... for buyers. smile
Manual gearbox you say, is that really a possibility?

That would be pretty special if it does - NA, manual and RWD - my favorite attributes for a car.

mattyc69

330 posts

151 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
Another GT saga coming up, Porsche will build about 3 for the UK which will be sold to the OPC's favourites and then sold for 50k premium after two months.

somynameiswhat

277 posts

128 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
Is it going to be turbocharged? tongue out

patch5674

232 posts

111 months

Tuesday 9th February 2016
quotequote all
[AJ] said:
matpilch said:
GT3 is now the only Porsche with a naturally aspirated 6 cylinder boxer engine. That's massive.

Any news on the rumoured 911 R?
Word is that this is in fact the 991 R mule in GT3 disguise.
What 'word' is that? I thought the whole point of the 911R was it look incognito, hence the mule that got spotted last year that was GT3 front and rear bumper but with a big diffuser in the under tray to compensate for the lack of spoiler, with 2 centre exhausts but with a GTS rear deck lid