Having A Porsche 911 GT3RS Is Nice. Having Three Of Them Is Even Better: Members’ Rides

For decades now, the Porsche 911 has been lusted after by enthusiasts around the world. The model has expanded greatly from the early days, and there are now a staggering 22 different variations on the market. These range from the base 911 Carrera to the 640 hp Turbo S that starts at $230k before options.

911 models and trim levels vary with each generation, but the essentials remain the same: rear-mounted engine, incredible handling, and a flat-6 engine that sounds like nothing else. If you are looking for a track-ready 911, Porsche is happy to oblige with the GT3 model. For those who want something even more extreme – such as today’s featured Member –  there’s the GT3RS.

Welcome to Members’ Rides, where we share the cars and stories of Autopian Members. The potential to be featured here is a perk for Autopian Members of every level, from the ultra-affordable “Cloth” tier all the way up to “Rich Corinthian Leather.” Click that link and join today!

Today’s featured Autopian, RMcG, is retired and currently living in Toronto. Over the years, he has become very familiar with all of the iterations of the GT3RS, and currently owns three of them! Along with several other cars that we will spend less time with.

How did you get into cars?

As a kid I was into toy cars and had model cars that were completely unavailable in Ireland and also economically. However, cars were relatively expensive and we only had one intermittently. My first occasion behind a wheel was when I was about 12 in a very old column shift Humber Sceptre. We never had a car less than 10 year old.

One day a magnificent car came by and pulled into a house down the street. A young guy stepped out and saw me staring at the car and asked if I wanted to sit in it.  My first exotic experience…a Facel Vega. I had never seen anything like it, and the sound of the Chrysler-sourced V8 was amazing.

My first new car was a 1979 Toyota Celica which was a rock-solid reliable car, but the massive amounts of salt in Quebec reduced it to a sieve of bodywork in four years. I followed with a new Honda Prelude which was also reliable and had a lovely five-speed gearbox. Eventually, I got into BMW, culminating with a V10 BMW M6. More on that later.

What’s in the garage currently?

• 2002 Mercedes-Benz SL500
• 3x GT3RS
• 2022 Porsche Cayenne GTS
• Panamera Sport Turismo
• Jeep Wrangler
• Smart ForTwo

How does the SL500 fit in?

My wife was a long-term Mercedes driver and in 2002 I decided to get her the then-new R230SL as a birthday gift. I do not think of it as a sports car but as a two-seat cruiser, immensely comfortable and well-finished. I deleted the wood trim and specced proper interior, panorama glass and general comfort items. It has held up very well.

How is the Panamera ST Turbo?

I never liked the appearance of the Panamera until the Sport Turismo appeared which created a much more balanced design. At 550bhp the Turbo was not the most powerful compared to the hybrid but the performance was similar due to the lighter weight.

I was clearly in the minority in liking it as it did not make a reappearance with the current models. I spec’d the car for long-distance travel with a focus on comfort and it has been driven through Germany to Denmark, across the US, and even on track.

The car is not huge inside, strictly a four-seater but is very sure-footed at speed and 300 km/h runs on an empty autobahn leave it utterly unruffled. While the hatchback does provide more space it is not a true station wagon and is too low for a large dog.

I have driven it across desert trails in Arizona. The adjustable air suspension has a high more but only maintains height at very low speeds which can be disconcerting. As usual with Porsche, the interior is beautifully finished.

Driving a Panamera at Spa is surreal. It holds the track much better than a large sedan should. The limiter is weight and the brakes do tend to overheat, resulting in a number of cooldown periods. The less demanding speeds on the Nürburgring are much less stressful on the car and it is well capable of repeated laps.

Overall there have been few maintenance issues over 70,000km, almost all under warranty. The 21” wheels are very easy to kerb and I have had some scrapes but there have been no issues that took it off the road.

What led to the Cayenne GTS?

Having a Great Dane, I need an SUV  for transport. Hence the Cayenne. When the V8 returned to the GTS in 2022, I was in the market to replace my Cayenne S which had 320,000km on it. I wanted the V8, and the GTS generally has a reasonable base spec. Adding torque vectoring, full leather, and a Burmeister sound system ups the ante but results in a great all-purpose comfortable hauler.

While the vehicle is more than capable of offroading in the desert, I learned from the previous Cayenne that while the trip may be successful the cost of repairing damaged rocker panels and massive paint scrapes mean that only reasonably clear trails are advisable. Which brings me to the Jeep.

The Jeep Wrangler JK

It seems to me that just about every Jeep commercial is in Arizona or Utah. With a winter home there, the Jeep just seems to fit into the landscape perfectly. It is objectively a terrible vehicle. Leisurely road performance, wind noise, worst headlights of any car in my life, subpar heating, and torturous back seats for passengers. Yet, for charging around the back trails it is just perfect. The narrow body is protected by the big plastic wings, parts are cheap, and who cares about the odd dent? I have been through five windshields, several bumpers, a fuel tank, and a bunch of tires.

Now for the GT3s. How did you end up with the first one?

I was a dyed-in-the-wool BMW fan until the M6. Man, was this thing quick. (See flat-out video here.) Quick on the autobahn, that is. I decided to track it at the Nürburgring. My instructor was impressed with the torque but thought it was underbaked and too heavy for the Nürburgring.

“You need a GT3”, he said. My interest in Porsches was zero at the time.  He wanted me to get some lap time and had a buddy with a track-prepared 996 GT3.  The Ring is intimidating enough but when you get into a taut track car with a professional driver it is a different experience. I immediately got the car, the responsiveness, the brilliant steering, and the feeling that it was exactly right for the track.

On the way back to Canada I picked up a copy of an English magazine called Total 911. There was a cover article on the brand-new 997 GT3RS, I had to have the car. The new M6 was a lovely GT but nothing like this. Knowing nothing about Porsches I strolled into the local dealership and said: “ I’d like to order a GT3RS please”.

The sales representative politely informed me they were all sold. So I asked her to order the next year’s model.  “They’re all sold too”. This was a sad day. I continued to drop into the dealer and see the very few RS that were going through, filled with RS lust. One day I got a call. “I just had a cancellation but it will be gone in 15 minutes. If you want it you need to make the call now.” Sold.

My first RS was Viper Green, the least popular color but the one I would have ordered. This was in the days when Porsche did not load the car with stability control or electric steering. The Mezger engine is unburstable. It rattles like a bucket of bolts at idle, but screams at high revs! It has a very heavy clutch and perfect steering. To me, it really defines the term “driver’s car.”

My only regret was that I had not been able to do factory delivery. Six months after picking it up in Toronto I shipped it back to Germany and decided to campaign it at the Nürburgring and also a nearby Spa, a vastly quicker track.

In dry conditions, the 997.1 RS is a wonder – perfectly responsive, completely analog, but the lack of driver aids means that if it comes unstuck, it happens very quickly. I had a harmless spin at Spa when I overcooked it on my second lap. A week and a set of Michelin Cups later we were still in one piece and the car returned to Canada.

You had a 997.2 as well?

When the rumours of the car surfaced I decided to get one, and this time called my dealer and got on her list immediately!

I specced the car with lightweight buckets, 90 90-litre tank, and a very rare option of a thicker steering wheel. Factory delivery. Unlike the current buckets these folded which meant some reasonable luggage space.

Factory pickup was efficient and friendly; a visit to the museum, a tour of the factory, lunch and off for a little touring down to Prague to put some miles on the car. At normal road speeds it is very similar to the 997.1 but at very high speeds the downforce is immediately evident.

On track it is definitely more dialed in, faster, and of course with stability control there is more confidence. When I got to the Ring I asked Sabine Schmitz, whom I knew, to drive the car.

Driving with a great professional driver is always an experience. Sabine did not correct, hit the right spot every time and just positioned the car with exquisite precision.

The dry days that week were perfect and the track was fairly rubbered-in as the Nürburgring 24-hour race had been the previous weekend. And then it rained. It was dark early evening and I came around a blind turn to come face to face with a Subaru that had spun. Missed him by paint thickness but I would have been less lucky in the older car.

I was coming back more carefully in the mounting darkness when a black Carrera GT came hauling passed in the rain. I was impressed with his car control (the CGT is not easy to drive in my experience), but later when I was in the parking lot I saw the car on a truckbed, one rear wheel folded under it. That’s life at the Ring.

I had a space problem at the time as I really wanted the 991RS and sadly let the 7.2 go, something I still regret.

What came next?

When the next generation 991 was unveiled, I had to have it. The 991 was a huge change for Porsche, bigger car, completely new body, engine, transmission, steering. I ordered it, with factory delivery with the Weissach package. 500bhp and a significant revision to the body, plus a lot more aero.

I took it to the Ring, and the Nordschleife was closed for fog. My instructor knew that the F1 track was open so I had an opportunity to try things there that I would not dare to do on the big track. The Nordschleife has almost no runoff areas while the F1 track is much more forgiving.

This gave me the opportunity to do things that would normally put the car into the wall, deliberately turning in too early, for instance, lifting off and so on. The car was just rock solid and when the stability control kicked in it was progressive and quick.

There have been endless arguments about PDK vs Manual transmissions. I am comfortable with both, and I cannot shift a manual faster than PDK. The 991RS is also a very practical road car and is my default choice if I just want a responsive and reasonably comfortable road car.

And how’s the newest one?

The new car is currently somewhere on the Atlantic on its way back to Germany as I couldn’t get Euro delivery. It is yet to have its maiden trip to the Nürburgring which will occur early September. I will be attending International Porsche Days again and then taking it to the track.

First impressions:

Totally impractical as a road car. No luggage space, unadjustable buckets, no front trunk, not even a glove compartment.

The wheels sit proudly outside of the bodywork, especially in front, and spit stones up on the car. I had triple PPF put on the more affected areas.

As a track car, it has more adjustability than any road-legal car I have ever seen, with active aero, and adjustable suspension from the steering wheel. The underneath of the car is a mass of blades and grooves, there is a high single front radiator that directs air through the hood and over the roof to the massive rear wing. It is hugely stable in normal road conditions but will take some learning due to the aero vs mechanical grip.

Thanks RMcG!

Members, keep your eyes open in the coming weeks for a link to a new member survey (we’re still working our way through the backlog). And if you’re not a Member – what are you waiting for? Join today!