Peak 911

Porsche's most elemental 911 traces its ancestry back to the 1973 911 Carrera RS. But how does a modern manufacturer keep the racing essence and still satisfy the suits in Brussels? Cue the latest GT3: feral but with manners

- By Peter Frost

Price: R3 109 000 Engine: 4,0-litre, 6-cylinder, petrol Transmission: 6-speed, manual Power: 375 kW @ 8 400 rpm Torque: 470 N.m @ 6 100 rpm 0-100 km/h: 3,9 seconds Top speed: 320 km/h Fuel consumption: 13,3 /100km* CO2: 304 g/km Rivals: McLaren 720S, Audi R8 Coupé V10, Lamborghini Huracán EVO

+ A raw driver's car, naturally aspirated engine - Certainly not a car for daily use?

Franschhoek Pass. Beyond that, a still-verdant valley, filled with the bounty that is (a happily still full) Theewaterskloof Dam. Under my right foot, 380 kW of temptation threatened a Tourette's impulse that would likely lead to a Porsche mountain mess. The inevitable glacial Polo kyk daars littered the pass, attention everywhere but on the road ahead or behind. No worries - the GT3 snaked past, a blue eddy of disdain before they even had a chance to check their bifocals. Then, of all things, a BMW M2 - slower than the apple trucks out of Elgin - obviously bought for the fetching Long Beach Blue rather than its cornering abilities. Finally, towards the bottom of the pass, a switchback of clear S-bends, grist for the GT3 mill. I dropped two gears in Porsche's sublime manual six-shifter (there's also a PDK automatic option), stiffened as Verdi's 'Dies Irae' raised Cain out of the rear pipes and fed the front end into the first left-hander. Goodness me, what alchemy was this? The front showed copious grip, dug in and charged. No understeer, just a deliciously tactile conversation between steering wheel and driver.