The first-ever Porsche 911 GT3 S/C is here, and it’s roofless
If you ask me, nothing on sale right now really gets under your skin quite like the Porsche 911 GT3. It has no turbos or hybrid tech, and one can argue it’s a car exactly as it should be.
And Porsche thinks you would even have absolute joy with the roof down. Pinch me for a moment, but it’s true, this is the first-ever 911 GT3 S/C, designed with driving pleasure in mind. Think of it like this: hearing the 4.0-litre naturally aspirated boxer engine that can scream all the way to 9,000r/min with the roof down should truly be a noise to behold.
Tipping the weight scales at 1,497kg (35kg more than the hardtop GT3), the S/C exists to bridge the gap between the track-focused GT3 models and the likes of the rare 911 Speedster. It blends performance and open-air driving without being a rare collector-only car.
Unlike the Speedster, which uses a ‘simple’ manual roof, the GT3 S/C employs a lightweight fabric soft top like other 911 Cabriolets, but engineered to be much lighter because, for a car of this calibre, weight-saving is crucial. Porsche says the roof can be opened and closed in approximately 12 seconds at speeds up to 50km/h. It also comes with button-activated wind deflectors that can be activated within 2 seconds and closed at speeds up to 120km/h.
Another aspect worth mentioning, especially at a time when most manufacturers are ditching the stick shift, is the availability of a 6-speed manual transmission sending power to the rear wheels. As for the performance, the 4.0-litre engine with 375kW and 450Nm hurtles the S/C from 0-100km/h in 3.9 seconds en route to a top speed of 313km/h.
Visually, the 911 GT3 S/C retains its sporty aesthetics, though with bits and bobs to match the black roof. For instance, the windscreen frame is finished in black film while the stone-chip protection film on the side panel features a matt-black finish. As seen on the S/T and GT3 with Touring Package, the retractable rear spoiler now features a Gurney flap for the first time on a 911 convertible. As for the front spoiler lip, the rear diffuser, and the standard 20-inch front and 21-inch rear tyres, they are carried over from the current 911 GT3.
Inside, the GT3 S/C gets lightweight carpets and carbon-fibre door pulls, lifted straight from the 911 S/T. Sports Seats Plus are standard; optional carbon-shelled buckets with folding backrests are available if you want to commit fully to its track credentials. These feature an integrated thorax airbag, electric height adjustment, and optional 3-stage heating. There’s also black perforated leather throughout, GT3 S/C embroidery on the rear bulkhead, and a rotary ignition switch to the left of the steering column instead of a push button.
For those who want the GT3 S/C to announce itself before the engine does, there’s the Porsche Exclusive Manufaktur, which offers a Street Style Package. Pyro Red decorative graphics on the front wings and additional ‘P-O-R-S-C-H-E’ lettering. Inside, the seat centres get four-tone braided leather in Slate Grey, Guards Red, Magnesium Grey, and Kalahari, and the gear shifter is an open-pore, darkened, laminated wood, with a shift pattern picked out in matching Pyro Red. It’s a lot, deliberately so, and there are even more options to choose from.
For a car that does what no GT3 has done before, and given that 9,000r/min howl is now available with the wind in your hair, it shouldn’t be too difficult to justify forking out R6,138,000.
