Beginning with the legendary 1973 Carrera RS, Porsche Cars AG had a long and illustrious history of...depriving its adoring American enthusiasts of the coolest cars it makes. The 959, 964 RS, 993 RS, the 993 GT2, and the 996.1 GT3, and 996 GT3 RS were all disappointingly absent from the US market, and aside from what was in large part a badge job in the form of the 964 America RS, Porsche had never sold a GT or RS model in North America when the 996 GT3 was introduced here for the 2004 model year. Nowadays, the notion that GT models wouldn’t be offered here is unthinkable and so the absolutely explosive excitement that greeted this car’s arrival is difficult to imagine today.
But the excitement was completely justified. The GT3 was cause for tremendous enthusiasm: the now legendary 115 hp per liter Mezger engine descended from the Le Mans winning GT1 engine and track-honed chassis were the types of ingredients that not only allowed the homologated racing variant to be a weapons-grade contender in the GT3 class, but make driving enthusiasts giggle like children. In the original 997 GT3, the engine revved to a lofty 8,400 RPM, making wonderful noises in the process and offering the type of naturally aspirated throttle response to keep the car’s incisive chassis in the exact attitude requested by the driver.
Critically, unlike the 991, Porsche made the car better without losing rawness or excitement and to drive a 997 GT3 today is a revelation. Where every 991 or 992 GT car can easily be driven by any person with a driver’s license, 997 GT cars aren’t like that. This car demands not just physical strength but also significant finesse of its driver, as well as a considerably higher tolerance for harshness in the chassis. But the flip side is an incredibly raw, involving car that feels extraordinary no matter what it’s doing. It also feels worlds away from today’s cars, like a view into some world in the distant past despite being less than 20 years old.
This particular car has been in California its whole life, including with its most recent owner for 11 years. After his purchase in 2013, he performed numerous modifications, mostly supplied by Sharkwerks, including adding Porsche folding carbon bucket seats with alcantara inserts from a GT2, GiroDisc two-piece front brake rotors and Pagid Yellow pads all around, tow hooks, Numeric Racing precision shifter, EVO 997 pedal kit, carbon fiber center console and sill covers, and EVOMS Stage 1 ECU tuning. Other modifications include black-painted wheels, Schroth harnesses, a half cage, dive planes on the front bumper. An invoice from an inspection at a Porsche dealer also notes that an aftermarket exhaust is fitted although the exact type is not known. The intention was to use the car on track, but the owner’s advancing years and a healthy respect for the car meant that the car saw no track use and has mostly been static, covering around 7,000 miles in the last ten years. Included with the car is a substantial amount of invoices from the 2013-2014 period, as well as its original books.
