Porsche 911 GT3 Touring review

And so it proves. In every mechanical way, including the choice of two or three pedals, this is the same car as the ‘standard’ GT3. It costs the same too if, of course, you can actually buy one, not always the matter of a moment where such machines are concerned. Were this almost any other car with some aero removed and other changes merely cosmetic, we’d not bother reviewing it. But if there is an icon of the current generation of 911, this surely is it. How could we ignore it?

Besides, having slithered up the Goodwood hill and hammered along some Sussex roads I can now answer a question I asked when I first drove the normal GT3 in April. And that answer is no: Porsche has not softened the suspension to account for the reduced aerodynamic load so, yes, its ride on British A-roads remains challengingly firm at times. My view that slightly gentler rates would make this GT3 better at the road-going job for which it was designed has not changed.

But while this is an important point to make, it should not be inflated into something so large it obscures the bigger picture. Which is that there’s still nothing this money buys I would think of having instead. The engine, manual transmission, steering precision, handling balance and sense of total construction integrity is unequalled. So while this is a flawed Touring, more so than the last indeed, the reign of the GT3, with or without the Touring package, continues.

Porsche 911 GT3 with Touring package

Engine: 3996cc, 6-cyls, naturally aspirated
Transmission: 6-speed manual, RWD
Power: 503bhp @ 8400rpm
Torque: 347lb ft @ 6100rpm
Weight: 1418kg (DIN)

Power-to-weight ratio: 355bhp/tonne
0-62mph: 3.9 seconds
Top speed: 199mph
Price: £127,820

Ti rating: 9/10