Nice review! The front end of the 3.8 and 4.0 are identical, the suspension changes are only in the rear. What you are feeling in the 4.0 is the after market BBS wheels which are 25lb lighter overall, downforce from the canards and maybe better tires. 3.8 rides a bit softer but should be much better suited for the roads you were on. Great comparo
Love the review. I think this is the first I’ve seen comparing these 3 greatest hits. I would have loved a 997.1 RS in place of the GT3, but that’s splitting hair. A couple notes: 1) much fewer than 2,000 997.2 RS units made. Numbers ranging from 1,400 ish to 1,600 ish, worldwide. A bit over 500 units in North America. 2) front end handing on these 997s are very sensitive to alignment, ride heights, and tires. 3) all three are peak Porsche drivers’ cars. 4) amazing content…keep up the great work!
Awesome vid. Although the frantic steering isn't what a Porsche likes 😅 I've had 997.2 gt3 and now the 997.2 gt3 rs (3.8). I'd still get a 4.0 to complete the collection cus these things bring emotions like no other. The modern cars are faster but aren't as pretty and granular as these beasts. Preuninger's greatest hits. Keep up the good work!
Ohlins road & track just needs the correct settings dialed in. They are highly adjustable. I've run them for over a year on my 997.1 GT3 and used on a wide variety of tracks - Oulton Park and Silverstong GP in UK, Spa in Belgium and the Nurburgring Nordschleife - as well as on the road. You can get settings to suit Silverstone GP, which is very flat and high speed, but also get settings to work at places with more surface change and gradient, like Outlon or the Nordscheife. DFV vavle is genius. Here's a video of a mate and I in 997 GT's at the Nurburgring. We're just swapping lead and drving for fun, not racing. He's in a 997.2 GT3 RS 4.0 I am in my 997.1 GT3 3.6 and there's also a (very rapid) 997.2 GT3 RS 3.8 in the mix at one point. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-K87S8cdtVJY.html
Except the 991 generation had already finished development when VW and Porsche AG merged in 2011, and Porsche SE have owned a majority and controlling stake in the VW group since then. For all intents and purposes, Porsche own VW, not the other way around.
What a video! Best content, so informative yet also highly entertaining. Looking forward to seeing you testing your new Lotus in this same road. I haven’t been able to drive much my new to me 987.2 09 Cayman due to work schedules, but watching you drive these cars is a treat. Take care.. julio
997.1 GT3 were made 3'329 pieces, 997.2 GT3 RS 3.8 were 1'619 (of those 541 for the US Market), 997 GT3 RS 4.0 613 pieces. the best to buy is the 997.2 3.8
Where did you got those numbers ? I have some from Porsche but they are different... 997.1 GT3 3329 is true including 1106 RS. For the 997.2 3.8RS i have 1430ex not 1619 ( and not 2000 like it is written everywhere ) and the 4.0 I have 605ex ( 601 numbered 000 to 600) and 4 prototype/press.
@@hadrienlf23 these figs are the real numbers. 997.1 3.6 RS are 1'909 and from the 4.0 there where more prototypes most with 000 plate making 613 in total.
There is one missing element on the three cars ... the CGT bucket seats (available in ROW liveries on the 3 cars) : So a huge difference in maintain compared to P03. I have both there is no comparison possible in term of feeling and car feedback in the hips and shoulders support. (depending on your size and weight) A must have ! Secondly : I've tested a lot of GT3's before buying mine ... so much difference in feeling between a car to another according to the setup, wheels, tires, exhaust, mileage, maintenance, ... Long story short : 4.0 is the unicorn, 3.8 is still fast on track after +/- 15 years (BTG - 7,10 m !) and the 3.6 gives you 90 - 95% of the driving pleasure and can be the perfect match on the road with the right setup and its tiny rear axle (a lot of 997.1 GT3 are still used for rally's). If I can I will go one day for 997.2 GT3 RS aqua blue !
For anyone hearing what he says about the step from the 3.6 to 3.8 is same as the 3.8 to 4.0. It just isn't. Former racing driver and drove most of those cars. The 4.0 just has the GT2RS rear end, that has some 1000$ toe link and just a different spring. The rest is all the same chassis wise, 4.0 will just be like 10kg lighter on the front with the carbon wings, put a lithium battery on a 3.8RS and you have the same result. The 3.8RS is the sweet spot where you can enjoy, drive and do a few mods to have the same car as the 4.0 for half the price. Headers, rear GT2RS component and you are good to go. And the 4.0 has engine plus gearbox problem, remember it is a 3.6 bloc from the 964 bored out to the max.
The cumulative effect of all the differences, including different tires, alignment settings, dynamic powertrain mounts, hardware differences even if minor, etc. does make the 4.0 feel substantially different than the 3.8. Hence the statement of the 3.6 to 3.8 step feeling similar in magnitude to the 3.8 to 4.0 step, at least from behind the driver's seat.
Well I raced 997 cups, own all three and i can tell you the difference from 3.6 to 3.8 is maybe like from 1 to 1.8. But the difference from the 3.8RS to the 4.0RS is like 1.8 to 2. 3.6 to 3.8 is different chassis with complete new front, different engine with double varioram, different gearbox, different ring and pinion, different aero. 3.8 to 4.0 is same everything exect 4.0 instead of 3.8, carbon front wings that saves 7kg and rose jointed rear toe links. I kept my 3.8RS and sold the rest, it has the rear of the 4.0RS, headers and tune. Blindfolded you wouldn’t tell appart if you were driving in the 4.0 or the 3.8.
@@hadrienlf23 Drove all 3 on road and track i can 100% agree with you. the 3.8 raced 24h and is very relyable if you treat him the way you should. if you drive the 4.0 on track regularly it will blow up in fire as the biggest problem is in the crankshaft. litte add: if someone puts 4S tires on an RS, it is a disqualification. as to drive it the way it should be driven, you put Cup2's or Trofeo R's
I thinks it’s down to how these particular cars are setup and tuned. Stock for stock the 3.8 RS and the RS 4.0 are pretty close except on the engine / midrange. It’s like everything dialed up 10% (that last 10% makes a huge difference tho, it’s like being a really sharp sports car vs barely legal race car that is almost unhinged on the road when you push it.) Would be interested to know if any of these have their LSD internal replaced. The guard LSD internal made a huge difference turn in and mid corner stability. The way these cars have such busy steering mid corner tells me their LSD is shot and needs an upgrade. If you can fine a 997.2 3.8 non RS and swap in the LWFW you’ll get 80-85% of the feel and enjoyment at 1/2 or 2/3 the cost. Problem is they’re almost harder to find than the 3.8 RS… only about 100 more units in the Us, and they’re such a bargain relative to the RS 3.8 nobody is selling.
I think the regular Gen 2 3.8 is probably the sweet spot. Marginal improvements from there - the RS and particularly the 4.0 is so much more money for relatively little in return. I found the Gen 1 vanilla GT3 I drove rather disappointing. Same goes for the 996. For me the Gen 2 996 GT3 is a really nice step over the Gen 1, which I also thought was disappointing.
Great concept for a video, cars are beautiful and gotta love the Porsche love....but what's with the see saw steering style? It serves no purpose, those cars need fluid inputs, your not on a rally stage 😅 good vid though it's all love ❤ 😂😂😂
Great comparison ! How's the 4.0 suspension stiffness compare to the Cayman GT4RS which was reported to be too stiffly sprung , to the point of losing tire contact on bumpy back roads ?
@@jubbalandcarsnice! What are your thoughts on it compared to the GT3’s? I know they are not even remotely comparable from a performance standpoint but how about from a Fun/engagement perspective? My dream garage would be a DC2R for just fun/short tracks, a manual E90 M3 as a daily and a GT3 as the canyon carver/ultimate track tool.
The owner of the GT3RS 4.0 also owns the DC2 Integra. They're very different driving experiences, however the DC2 is (so far) the only FF vehicle I have truly enjoyed without having to make excuses for. I still need to drive some of the other peak pre-2000's FF Hondas though.
Nice, but the 991.2 generation is without doubt the best generation - substantially improved chassis and rigidity and the 991.2 GT3/RS/992GT3/RS has much better engine. The 997 was a fairly imperfect beast and is found out quite quickly round a track.
Cup2 on the .1 & .2rs would have felt better on those roads...PS4S good for around town, but when pushing Cup2 is what the car wants. .2GT3 with engine mounts is probably the sweet-spot for $$$ right now.
