‘MotorTrend’ Showcases World’s Greatest Porsches
Head 2 Head has featured several Porsches over the years. How do they win just about every comparison they are part of?
On the MotorTrend show Head 2 Head, the hosts typically have two cars square off and choose a winner at the end of the episode. Chances are if one of the cars featured is a Porsche, the winner is almost certain. This is not due to some elaborate conspiracy; it is a result of the cars simply being that good.
This episode on the MotorTrend YouTube channel features a compilation of some of the team’s favorite Porsche models tested. Included are the 991.2 GT3 and GT3 RS, a 718 Cayman GTS, and a couple of custom-built 911s. There is not a loser in the group. How does Porsche do it? They rarely have the most powerful or lightest car when being compared, yet their capabilities seem to defy logic. Let’s take a closer look at how it happens.
First up is a comparison between the Porsche 991.2 GT3 PDK and manual transmission versions against each other and a Mercedes AMG GT R thrown in for good measure. The test takes place at Willow Springs “Big Willow” course. This is a big track that should favor the much more powerful GT R. Nope. The PDK equipped GT3 beat it by 7 tenths of a second. Perhaps even more impressive is the “slower” manual transmission GT3 also beat the GT R by about half a second. The AMG GT R is a great car but in the words of host Jonny Lieberman: “The bad news for AMG is Porsche’s amazing GT3 is one of the best cars ever built.”
Next up are a couple of modified 911s. The SharkWerks 997 GT3 4.1 basically takes the already brilliant GT3 and gives it more power and more torque. The extra torque wakes up the chassis and makes the whole car come alive. The second modified car is the Workshop 5001 car. It is only the second full custom build they ever did, and they called it, rather mundanely, “Number 2.” It uses for its base a 1974 Carrera but with a 3.8L engine putting out 350 horsepower. The attention to detail is what sets this car apart. “It just feels like every little nut and bolt is so perfectly developed.” Says presenter Jethro Bovington. That should be the case since the car costs a cool $1 million.
Now for something a little more down to Earth. The next Porsche is much more affordable. It isn’t even a 911. Heck, it doesn’t even have a flat-6 engine. It is the Cayman 718 GTS. It is being compared to the Audi TT RS, and as usual, the Porsche is down on power compared to its rival. But power isn’t everything. Speaking on the Cayman Bovington says: “It’s so beautifully set up. It’s so elegant in the way it’s engineered, the way it goes down the road it’s incredibly impressive but also super involving.” Porsche does it again.
Finally, we move on to the 991.2 GT3 RS. This car faces some stiff competition in the form of the McLaren 600LT. Once again, the Porsche is the heavier car and down about 15% on power. Despite that, Porsche pulls it out again and gaps the McLaren by a full second around Big Willow. How does this keep happening? Bovington may sum it up best when he says: “Porsches generally have just got an attention to detail that no one else has.” On paper the stats never really wow you, but when these cars get out on the road or the track something almost magical happens. Everything seems to just work together in a way that other cars simply can’t match.
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