Porsche 911 GT2 2008 Review

.....you would need a really big bottle. You would also have something approximating the GT2.

Generally speaking, Porsche builds outstanding driver's cars. Occasionally, it produces a spectacular gem. The new 997 GT2isone of those gems.

Porsche itself describes the GT2 asa product of the company's “spare parts bin”.

“The best bits of everything come together to produce this special car,” Porsche Cars Australia technical guru Warrick McKenzie explains.

Australian motorsport legend, Porsche-phile and Targa Tasmania addict Jim Richards concurs.

Richards, who owns one of only two 2008 GT2s in Australia, is preparing to fling his $425,700 rarity at the Tasmanian scenery next week.

“It's pretty much the basic street car with a roll cage,” Richards said atEastern Creek last week during the official launch of the car.

“The only thing we've done to it so far is to put in heavier springs front and rear.

“That's just to keep the car frombottoming out on some oftheTarga roads.

“I'll also put in some different brake pads, but that'll be it. There isn't time to do anything else.

“Maybe I should run it in the showroom class: it's that standard.”

Richards is confident that, given time, he could squeeze an extra 60kW out of the GT2's 3.6-litre, bi-turbo boxer engine, but he's happy enough to settle for an out-of-the-box 390kW and 680Nm.

That's enough to sprint to 100km/h in 3.7 seconds on the way to a top speed of 329km/h.

“It's the torque that's unbelievable,” Richards says. “The thing pulls like a tractor in third gear.”

Despite the GT2's considerable price tag — almost $95,000 more than the brutal Turbo Coupe — Porsche Australia is holding confirmed orders for 31 cars.

Just two examples of the first-generation GT2, released in 1995, were sold in Australia. The second series found more buyers; 26 were sold here between 2001 and 2004.

“We expect the total number of sales of this series to be between 35 and 40,” Porsche Cars Australia sales director Kevin Nicholls says.

“That will pretty much be determined by production restraints, which will ultimately limit supply — thesame as with the GT3 RS.”

There's little in the way of technological perfection trickery that Porsche hasn't thrown at the GT2.

For the first time, it will have as standard the clever Porsche Active Stability Management system, with “regular” and “track” modes.

The active dampers controlled bythePASM software react within milliseconds to changes in road surface and driving conditions, providing optimum body control andsteering and throttle sharpness.

“The engineers could have set the system so there's absolutely no body roll — in fact, there could actually be negative input, effectively rolling the body away from the cornering forces,” McKenzie says.

“But that would have been just tooweird, so they've allowed something in the order of two degreesof body movement.”

The 997 GT2 is also the first of its ilk to get variable steering assistance, ceramic composite brakes as standard, titanium mufflers and pipes to reduce rear-end weight and a three-stage stability management program.

In the basic “minder” setting, the full stability and traction control functions are operative, along with theanti-lock braking system.

Switch off the first stage, and the lateral force control functions are de-activated, allowing the car to move around its axis.

Second-stage de-activation removes the longitudinal, or traction-control, monitors, allowing for wheelspin. TheABS remains active at all times.

The thing to remember in the GT2 is that off means off. There's no pre-set panic point at which the electronic minders jump in and try to undo the harm when ambition overtakes ability.

What's not new in the GT2 is its six-speed manual gearbox. And that's a good thing.

The shifter's basic design goes backto the late 1980s, with small modifications from generation to generation producing a thing of beauty.

Shifts are short and precise, if a shade notchy, but it's the little things most owners will never see that set the Porsche philosophy apart.

Gears are inserted, not pressed, into the gearbox shafts, allowing for easy replacement and allowing the owner to adjust the gearbox to suit any track.

Synchro rings are also made of steel, rather than the more usual brass — not as durable, but slicker.

Yet, while it may be the technology of the GT2 that earns your respect, it's the manners and the character of the car that will evoke a boundless love.

The GT2 is pure class. Its cabin is comfortable, sensible and functional.

The carbon-fibre racing buckets are supportive, beautifully styled and practical — to the extent they even have fold-down backs, making access to the rear storage shelf a no-fuss affair.

Fire the GT2 up, and the sound is akin to the 911 Turbo: purposeful without being overtly threatening. Off the mark, the GT2 is as happy todawdle away as it is to throw itself atthe horizon — with or without the launch control activated.

As expected, the GT2's steering is razor-sharp. It's not for the faint-hearted, butconcentrate and the frontend will answer your every wish— immediately.

Pour in the right foot, and the twin turbochargers with variable turbine geometry turn up the boost, forcing thefuel/air mix through an innovative expansion intake manifold.

That all makes for a power delivery so smooth, it's like driving a hot knife through soft butter. A torque curve thatpeaks just over 2000rpm and staysthat way right through to 4500rpm certainly helps.

Pushing the GT2 around Eastern Creek — aided in no small part by Porsche Experience instructor Steve Pizzati calling encouragement and advice — is far less intimidating than the raw performance figures suggest.

Such is the balance of the car — both mechanical and through the computer-controlled PASM logarithms — that only an over-estimation of ability isgoing to upset the applecart.

The car itself knows exactly what isrequired and how to handle it.

SNAPSHOT

PORSCHE 911 GT2

Price: $425,700

Engine: 3.6L/6-cylinder bi-turbo boxer; 390kW/680Nm

Transmission: 6-speed manual

Performance: 0-100km/h 3.7 secs, 0-160km 7.4 secs, 0-300km/h 33 secs; top speed 329km/h

Economy: 12.5L/100km