New car news

27 August 2009 - 10:00

Cup final

See more 911 GT3 Cup pics

Such is the evolution of Porsche. First the 911 GT3, then the lightweight GT3 RS… and now the race-prepped GT3 Cup.

Yes, Porsche has shown off the new track-only iteration of its ever-present supercar, and it looks mean.

Based around the GT3 RS, the Cup has been uprated in just about every department for hardcore circuit work, and stripped out to return a kerbweight around 1,200kg.

The arches have been flared yet further, the suspension has been stiffened and dropped, and there’s a huge downforce-inducing bodykit including that ankle-mangling front lip. If you opt for the ‘Supercup version’, you get the same ceramic brakes found on Porsche’s Carrera Cup racers.

The Cup gets the 3.8-litre flat-six from the GT3 RS, though a new racing exhaust means it produces slightly more power than the ample 335kW road car. It also produces a full 22kW more than the outgoing GT3 racer. We’d expect it to hit 100km/h in comfortably under four seconds.

On the inside, yep, it’s a proper race car. No stereo, satnav or even passenger seat here: just a proper sequential box, a fire extinguisher and a straight-to-the-point info screen on the steering wheel.

Porsche says the GT3 Cup will available in a single colour, Carrera White. This is confusing, because this car is clearly not white.

Nonetheless, it’ll be sure to set you – or your generous racing benefactor - back around plenty of dollars when pricing hits our shores. Less is most definitely more…