Porsche 911 GT3 RS v Manthey Racing RS on track – car pictures of the week
With all its extreme upgrades, exactly how much faster is a Manthey GT3 RS than the standard model? We find out around Anglesey circuit
It is the burning question: for all the aero addenda and extreme preparation the Manthey Racing Porsche 911 GT3 RS doubles down by comparison to the already racetrack refugee-spec ‘normal’ 911 GT3 RS, how much quicker can it possibly be? There’s only one way to find out: time them back to back, against the clock. So that’s exactly what we did, at Anglesey Circuit with tyre parity and editor-at-large Dickie Meaden at the wheel. Watch the film above and scroll through some of our favourite shots from the test below.
Before setting the times, Dickie and senior staff writer Yousuf Ashraf spent some time in the cars, to acclimatise, to refamiliarise and to try and see whether the differences could be felt.
The Manthey RS uses a much broader splitter, a deeper diffuser and a double layer movable wing, conspiring with myriad other detailed changes to increase downforce at 177mph to a near 1000kg, up from 860kg. Yet somehow, it produces no more drag than the standard car.The suspension’s been rejigged to cope with that too, with a new control unit that can constantly adjust damper tuning based on data from a battery of sensors.
If the Manthey car is a surgically precise blade, the standard RS is no broad sword. Its balance, tractability, capability and ability to inspire confidence still astound. Its characteristics are essentially yours to shape, thanks to the sheer scope of its configurability from damper compliance, to diff aggression, to the traction control setup.
You couldn’t reasonably ask for more from a road-going track car, than that which the standard 992.1 GT3 RS offers. But the £100k Manthey Racing kit offers it. Watch the video now and look out for the written feature, coming to a future issue of evo Magazine.
