Oh good, it's been at least a couple of months since we've debated
manual Porsche 911s
. Should there always be a manual option? Could some cars be manual-only? Or PDK-only? Then we're onto flippers, and OPCs, and the bubble bursting - you know the procedure.
Shout when you spot it...
Here's a car that complicates the situation even further. A US-based
991 GT3 RS
owner has converted his car from the seven-speed PDK to a six-speed manual. Now it could be argued that the manual versus automatic debate has been less severe where the RS is concerned, its track-focused remit lending the car more naturally to a super sharp dual-clutch gearbox. Still, the car has been made, and it's really rather interesting.
The gearbox is from the 911 R, though where there's a spare one of those lying around we're not too sure. Also carried over for this RS are the R's optional single-mass flywheel, plus its pedals, clutch, pressure plate and, as you can see in the video, parts of the interior. Interestingly this car also has a mechanical limited-slip diff in the back rather than the standard electronically controlled one, presumably as the original was designed to work solely with the PDK.
So like we said, an interesting car. And the noise? Yeah, the noise is alright... We'll say these are the driver's downshifts too, as there's no mention of the rev-matching software being carried over from the R and changes aren't quite as perfect as when the car does them. Still, it's a fine effort.
The work has been undertaken by
BGB Motorsports
in Florida, Porsche specialists, racers and tuners - look at the
3.8-litre Cayman
they've got for sale too! In the video the car is being driven by BGB's owner, John Tecce. The work is said to have cost around $45,000, with this particular RS also benefitting from a Sharkwerks/Cargraphics exhaust arrangement.
Would you sink the extra cash into the ultimate track 911 for a manual gearbox? Or should the RS be left with a PDK? Six or seven gears? We welcome your thoughts, though this could go for a while...
here