992-Gen Porsche 911 GT3 Will be Naturally Aspirated, Get an Optional Manual Gearbox: Report

Flying in the face of multiple previous reports that Porsche's next 911 GT3 would go turbo, 911 boss August Achleitner says the 992-based track variant will stick with the beloved recipe of rear-wheel drive and a naturally aspirated flat-six that revs to at least 9,000 rpm. Thank God.

Speaking to Australia's Wheels at the recent Carrera S launch, Achleitner says the 992 GT3 will use essentially the same 4.0-liter engine found in the current car albeit revised to make 523 horsepower, just 3 more than the current GT3 RS's 520. The slight power boost may come in the form of an equally slight growth in displacement. "It could get a small increase," said Achleitner.

While the current GT3's 3,996-cc engine rounds up to 4.0 liters on the brochure, don't expect any displacement increases to budge that headline capacity figure. The report points to the GT3 R race car's 4,000-cc, 549-horsepower motor as a likely candidate with Achleitner then confirming that the engine in the upcoming GT3 RS would be "closely linked" to the racing mill. This would make it, by a slight margin, the biggest production 911 engine to date.

The report goes on to say that the next GT3 and GT3 RS will use an evolution of the 991.2's seven-speed PDK rather than a version of the new Carrera's heavy eight-speed auto. For those who prefer to shift manually, a stick and clutch pedal will continue to be offered on the GT3. 

The track-ready 992 will feature less weight and racier aerodynamics including carbon bits and a magnesium roof but that stuff was always kind of a given, no?

What is new are the two 7.0-inch screens flanking the 992's center tachometer. The GT3 versions will apparently use 'em to display track-related info inspired by superbike technology. 

"Now we have the possibility with the software…especially in the dashboard," said Achleitner. "One can imagine we could start something special for race tracks…like you already can see on motorbikes."