Porsche is updating its 911 GT3 Cup race car, based on the road-going GT3, for the 2008 motorsport season. Power from the 3.6-litre six-cylinder boxer engine will increase by 20bhp to 420bhp, and there will be significant changes to the rear end along the lines of the production model’s design, with air-venting slits to dissipate heat more effectively.

The sequential six-speed transmission with interruption of engine power enables the driver to shift up under full throttle without disengaging the clutch, and the transmission itself has now been optimised, and the gear ratios adjusted, to suit the characteristics of the engine.

Weighing 1,150kg in race trim, the new 911 GT3 Cup has a power-to-weight ratio of 2.7kg per horsepower. In its new guise, the car will be raced in the Porsche Mobil1 Supercup, the world's fastest international marque trophy, and worldwide in national Porsche Carrera Cups and GT3 Cup Challenges. Altogether, 265 units of this production-based racing car will be built on Porsche's production line in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen.



The 26 units built for the Porsche Mobil1 Supercup feature a special exhaust system with an even more striking sound, “reminiscent of the Formula 1 racing scene”. They also have PCCB Porsche Ceramic Composite Brakes. The race cars entered worldwide in the Carrera Cup, meanwhile, will feature a modified exhaust system and steel brake discs.

Porsche's Racing Department in Weissach is responsible for the fine-tuning and running in the 911 GT3 Cup cars, and deliveries will be directly from Weissach. While the cars for the Carrera Cup New Zealand have already been shipped, delivery of the racing cars for the Porsche Mobil1 Supercup and the Carrera Cup Germany is scheduled for early March 2008.

Text: Charis Whitcombe
Photos: Porsche