Porsche 911 GT2 RS 2018 Review

The Porsche 911 GT2 RS is a confidence car.

It will not stroke your ego like lesser versions of Porsche’s venerable coupe. No, it is much more reliant on the driver.

Developed with assistance from our own ex-Formula 1 ace Mark Webber, the Porsche 911 GT2 RS is essentially the crowning achievement of the outgoing 991.2-generation 911 line-up.

It shirks the widow-maker reputation of earlier Porsche 911 GT2 RS models, instead conspiring to be something much more meaningful: establishing the ultimate connection with the 90 or so Australian buyers deemed worthy of ownership, and the road.

Take its expensive Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 rubber as an example. Ordinarily, this level of rubber would stick like an Elon Musk paedophile quip, but in the case of the Porsche, it is extremely sensitive to tyre temperatures. Virtually like a race car.

On a recent out lap at the Wakefield Park circuit in Goulburn, there were several moments of trepidation as the 911 GT2 RS squirmed its way through the opening corners as tyre temperature built to ideal levels.

The $645,400 911 GT2 RS arrives with serious clout in the form of a record Nurburgring lap record to its name, along with the distinguished title as the fastest 911 ever produced.
It is an unforgettable machine.

Essentially a cross between the 911 Turbo S and the new 911 GT3 RS, the two-seat Porsche 911 GT2 RS combines the latter’s finely honed track-focussed chassis and rear-drive with the devastating performance of Porsche’s 3.8-litre twin-turbo engine.

Larger variable-geometry turbos, different pistons and cylinder-heads, high compression and a titanium exhaust system, ensure the 3.8-litre is good for a mind-boggling 515kW and 750Nm.

A rear-drive layout means that 50kg has been slashed from the Turbo S to begin with, working in concert with carbon-fibre reinforced plastic panels, a magnesium roof and thinner window glass to achieve a kerb weight of only 1470kg.

Combine this with all of Porsche’s latest tricks like rear-wheel steering, a torque vectoring diff lock and active hydraulic engine mounts, and the 911 GT2 RS is right at home on a circuit – as we can certainly attest after a fang around the Albert Park Grand Prix circuit.

But what’s the GT2 RS like to drive on the road?

It might be one of the most powerful production cars on public roads (alongside the Bentley Continental Supersports, Ferrari 812 Superfast and Lamborghini Aventador S – and Jeep Trackhawk!!!) but the Porsche 911 GT2 RS is a cinch to drive in regular conveyance.

Oddly enough, the engine and gearbox are pleasant at low speed, the PDK transmission will slot into seventh gear from only 70km/h and the engine offers quite tractable acceleration from down low in the rev range.

The odd bit of whirring and crunching from the driveline merely serves to reinforce the GT2’s purist mechanical premise. Otherwise, it saunters along happily at whatever pace you ask it to.

That, and the fact you’re positioned in a high-set racing seat and six-point harness.

The chassis and suspension are unapologetically stiff and unflinching on Australia’s backroads, but then, you’d come to expect that with a vehicle of this pedigree.

Up the pace and it quickly becomes evident that the GT2 RS is too much car for any space with speed limits and unwitting passers-by. It completely eats up corners when keeping within the bounds of the law. And all the while, its finely-tuned steering and incredibly balanced chassis telegraphs nuances in the road virtually unlike any other road car.

Indeed, the Porsche 911 GT2 RS is a car that breathes with more speed, settling into a rhythm that urges the driver to push harder. Even if you attempt to do so, you’ll need a racetrack to exploit the car’s race-tuned springs and dampers, carbon ceramic brakes and a fixed carbon wing that generates up to 340kg of downforce.

Then there’s the engine. With next to no turbo lag, it is insatiable in middling revs and truly breaks into a gallop at the top end of the dial, with peak power achieved from 7000rpm, just shy of the limiter.

With so much to give, the GT2 is an enjoyable car on public roads, but you ultimately feel as though you’re being short-changed.

A track is where Porsche’s fiercest 911 sports car yet belongs.

Having experienced the Porsche 911 GT2 RS’ sensitivity to tyre temperatures earlier in the opening lap, I approached this manic machine with a degree of caution around the tight confines of Wakefield Park Raceway near Goulburn (NSW).

I needn’t have.

While the GT2 RS is a physics-bending, mind-blowing, bonkers supercar, it is also a machine that communicates its movements in a way I’ve never felt in a road car.

You feel understeer at the first signal, you feel oversteer in a way that is easy to monitor and control; and the car is happy to be pushed what feels like its limits of adhesion, responding to every movement with complete nonchalance.

In reality, you soon realise the GT2 RS’ limits are well beyond that of a regular hack. It truly demands someone like Webber to exploit its performance and seemingly infinite levels of mechanical grip. And Webber himself admits the GT2 RS can creep up on you and bite.

Likewise, the engine never quite reaches the giddy theatrical heights of the GT3 RS – a screaming 9000rpm – but it builds pace far more swiftly, correlating with a 0-100km/h time of 2.8sec.

Despite an open track at Wakefield, I never really push big speeds in the 911 GT2 RS, such is its stature and collectability (Read: I’d be in deep shit if I went for an off-road excursion). The near-perfect PDK transmission is constantly asking more from me, but I cannot summon the nerve to provide it.

The 911 GT2 RS is violently quick in any gear, to the point where you tell yourself to slow down before the car needs too.

That truly is the beauty of Porsche’s latest 911 superstar sports car. It offers a breadth of capability that no GT2 RS before it can match. Its limitations really boil down to confidence.

How much is a 2018 Porsche 911 GT2 RS?
Price: $645,400 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 3.8-litre six-cylinder twin-turbo petrol
Output: 515kW/750Nm
Transmission: Seven-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel: 11.8L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 269g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: Not rated