Bayer (right) with PCCA race drivers Chris Van de Drift (next to Bayer), Alif Hamdan and Craig Baird at the launch of the new 911 GT3 RS.
SEPANG: The new Porsche 911 GT3 RS is billed as breaking down the barrier between street-legal sports cars and race cars.
With a lap time of seven minutes and 20 seconds, the new 911 GT3 RS even beats the historic record of the Carrera GT super sports car of just under seven minutes and 29 seconds on the North Loop of the Nurburgring.
“The 911 GT3 RS models have always stood for top sportiness and emotional appeal," said Sime Darby Auto Performance (SDAP) chief executive officer Arnt Bayer at the recent launch of the car at Sepang International Circuit.
The 911 GT3 RS is powered by a 4.0-litre six-cylinder engine with 500hp and 460Nm of torque, combined with a specially developed PDK transmission.
The engine, which has the largest displacement and most power of any naturally aspirated engine with direct fuel injection in the 911 family, accelerates the high-performance sports car from zero to 100kph in 3.3 seconds and to 200kph in 10.9 seconds.
Functions such as declutching by "paddle neutral" – which is comparable to pressing the clutch with a conventional manual gearbox – and speed limiting by the Pit Speed button have been customised for motorsport use.
This gives drivers more freedom in terms of driving dynamics.
For the first time, the roof is made of magnesium; carbon fibre is used for the engine and luggage compartment lids, and other lightweight components are made of alternative materials.
This makes the RS model around 10kg lighter than the 911 GT3.
Meanwhile, rear-axle steering and Porsche Torque Vectoring Plus with fully variable rear axle differential lock increase agility and dynamics.
In addition, the 911 GT3 RS comes with the widest tyres of any 911 model as standard.
As for the interior, a new feature is the full bucket seats, which are based on the carbon bucket seats of the 918 Spyder.
Other standard features are the Club Sport Package with a bolted-on roll cage behind the front seats, preparation for a battery master switch, and separately provided six-point safety harness for the driver and fire extinguisher with mounting bracket.
The optional Sport Chrono Package, which features – in addition to its integrated timers – the Porsche Track Precision app for a smartphone.
The Track Precision app can be used to have lap times automatically measured via GPS, and to log data on a smartphone.
The base price for the new 911 GT3 RS starts from RM1.75 million including a 4-year factory warranty.
