So where do we start? A Porsche 911 is special. A Porsche 911 GT3 is very special: the roadgoing model that’s most closely related to motorsport and always ready for a track-attack. A Porsche 911 GT3 with the optional Weissach Package is something new for this model and very… you get it.
Oh, and a Porsche 911 GT3 Weissach Package with a conventional manual transmission is all of the above, with an extra pedal and enthusiast appeal to spare.
In long-time Porsche tradition, the updated 911 GT3 doesn’t look much different from the previous one. There’s been some minor tweaking of spoilers and aerodynamics front and rear, including a few suspension components from the GT3 RS to enhance the dynamic demeanor and reduce pitching under brakes at high speed.
All just finessing to ensure further improvements to the GT3’s status as a 911 that’s still a usable road car, but boasting proper track credentials. That’s the “GT” bit in the name.
The Weissach Package is a familiar thing for Very Serious Porsches but, incredibly, has never been offered on the GT3. Until now.
A Porsche 911 GT3 is very special: the roadgoing model that’s most closely related to motorsport and always ready for a track-attack.
Our car is thus equipped, which adds a whopping $44,450 to the already whopping $435,900 base price. It brings a lot of carbon fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP), including the bonnet and roof; so yes, that carbon stripe is the naked panel underneath the paint, rather than a mere decal.
The interior features a rear roll cage (carbon fibre), lightweight door panels and many Weissach Package logos. Our particular car is also fitted with lightweight bucket seats (another $12,310) that feature removable head-restraint padding, providing a more hollowed-out place for your helmet.
With any specialist 911 you can easily become totally immersed in that detail (and the closely related topic of option prices).
The chassis also gains carbon fibre for the rear-axle anti-roll bar and coupling rods.
All-up, the Weissach Package reduces weight by 12kg compared to a 911 GT3 with the Club Sport Package (which this car also has, hence the huge rear wing), or more like 20kg against a “normal” GT3. Which is a lot of money for relatively few kgs. But this is a 911 GT3; it’s all about the detail.
The GT3 adopts the digital instruments of other new-gen 911s, but you can still have a large central revcounter displayed and unlike the lesser models, it retains the faux-key twist starter.
Yep, with any specialist 911 you can easily become totally immersed in that detail (and the closely related topic of option prices).
So let’s drive. Not on the track, sadly, which is at least half of the GT3’s intended purpose in life. But we don’t always have access to a private circuit and we’re not always allowed to take other people’s half-million-dollar super sports cars directly into high-speed danger anyway. Funny that.
The GT3 is also still very much a road car, and still quite an experience even at more sensible speeds. There’s a great sense of occasion just starting up; while the GT3 adopts the (controversial) all-digital instrument panel of other new-gen 911s, you can still have a large central revcounter displayed and unlike the lesser models, it retains the faux-key twist starter. A small thing, but it counts.
And then the engine woofles into life. None of this turbocharged nonsense for the GT3. It still has a motorsport-inspired (is “derived” too strong a word?) naturally aspirated 4.0-litre, which awakes with a grumble but can spin freely to 9000rpm. At the right temperature, in the right driving environment. Of course. If purity of powertrain is important to you, this is still the 911 to have.
Speaking of purity, ours is a manual. Porsche’s dual-clutch gearbox is sensational and the two-pedal version is still half a second quicker to 100km/h, so why bother with a manual? What a silly question.
Mind you, the enthusiast appeal comes with a teeny training requirement for the left foot; it takes a bit of practice to get the GT3 away from a standstill smoothly, and you might even stall occasionally. Not us, obviously, we’re experts. But… other people.
But on the road the short-throw 6-speed shifter is as sweet as they come: quick, precise and simply exhilarating. It can also make you look and sound like a proper driver, because there’s a rev-matching function on the downshift. The gear ratios have been shortened by 8% compared to the previous model - partly to help address emissions, although it also benefits spirited driving on the slower kinds of backroads we have in NZ.
You cannot hope to approach the GT3’s handling capabilities on a public road; to be honest, it’s hard enough approaching that 9000rpm redline, although it’s worth the risk for the hard-edged soundtrack. The engine benefits from some RS bits too, including the camshafts; although power remains unchanged from the previous GT3.
But the beauty is that this 911, any 911, still feels dynamically delightful and so full of character at any speed. The car talks to you and on an engaging backroad, there’s enough of that classic Porsche squat-and-thrust feeling from the chassis to make you feel you’re on the limit. You’re not. Not the car’s, anyway.
For all of its motorsport genes, the GT3 is still pretty luxurious and semi-practical. The low-speed ride still gets your attention, but you can’t complain too much about that for a motorsport-themed machine; Porsche is clear the suspension changes are aimed at better control on-track.
The optional bucket seats are really low (you drop down into them quite aggressively), but remarkably comfortable for day-to-day use. And they feature a folding backrest, so you can indeed throw shopping in the back… especially if you don’t have the roll cage.
In fact, it’s worth pointing out at this stage that you can also have the GT3 in a Touring Package specification, including rear seats (a first for the model). It’s less aggressive looking, you can still have the manual and you can even add a Lightweight Package (albeit at an enormous extra cost of $66,510) that’s less motorsporty but still brings lots of CFRP. That’s a tempting bucket-list car.
