Ride Onboard The 992 Porsche 911 GT3 For A Sub-7min 'Ring Lap

Love them or loathe them, braggy Nurburgring times are a great barometer of automotive progress, so long as you pay attention to details like track changes and tyre usage. Case in point? The new 992-generation Porsche 911 GT3, which Porsche development driver Lars Kern steered around the Nordschleife in six minutes and 55.2 seconds for the 20.6-kilometre version of the track (6:59.927 for the full 20.8km version).

There still aren’t many production cars to have dipped under the seven-minute mark, but what stands out more is just how much faster the 992 GT3 is compared to the 991.2 version. It pulled out an astonishing 17 seconds on its predecessor, despite only having an additional 10bhp to its name.

It didn’t have an artificial leg-up in terms of tyres, either - as with the old GT3, it used Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 Rs, which are on the options list. All of that extra pace came from the platform, the suspension and the aero.

On that front, the GT3 is wider than its predecessor thanks to the use of the new 992-gen shell, yet overall weight is roughly the same. At the front there’s a double wishbone suspension setup, dispensing with the tradition of road-going 911s always using MacPherson struts. Finally, the aero package includes a new ‘swan neck’ top mount wing. Commonly seen in motorsport, this design allows for cleaner flow underneath the wing, the side where air travels faster.

In the video at the top of the page, Lars Kern is - as you’d expect - absolutely on it. As well as monstering the 991.2 GT3’s ‘Ring time, he also managed to beat the 991.2 GT3 RS by a second. And yes, the 9000rpm-capable, naturally-aspirated flat-six (a very rare treat for a brand new car these days) sounds amazing throughout.