by J-C Etter - Photography: J. Dayer, M. Petrello & JC Etter
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A dry and reasonably sunny californian winter means that the track season is almost January 1st till December 31st. Engine broken in, I was itching to sample the GT3 in its natural habitat: the track. First stop: Infineon Raceway north of San Francisco, renowned for its Cabernet Sauvignon and its fabled track, still called Sears Point by wise guys. A technical road course, alternating tight uphill corners with downhill sweepers, with a conspicuous absence of run offs and an impressive lining of white walls. Unfortunately, a flock of NASA instructors were keen on demonstrating that skills and slicks make a Miata or Cooper S fast enough to keep up with the yellow Porsche, spoiling my third session and leaving me with that “shouldn’t have done it” feeling you don’t want to have coming back in the paddock. Lesson learned, the car has undeniable potential, but it’s left to be explored.
Stuck in a flock of "inxtructors" from NASA at Infineon Raceway.
In Thunderhill (video), some of the idiosyncrasies of the backpack hanging behind the rear wheels finally started to make sense, most notably traction out of turn 2. Getting confident to track out of the corner flat out almost threw out in turn 3, my braking point suddenly became a tad too late. Rear end grip is stupendous, the fat 305/30/19 biting in a way that would be inconceivable with a Ferrari F430 for instance. Neither would its steel brakes withstand the punishment that the GT3’s can take. Unlike my former Turbo and Carrera, they are absolutely fade free, and the stock brake fluid does not seem to absorb moisture too fast although the middle pedal travel does increase a bit with heat build-up. Still in the brake department, Porsche got rid of the noisy rear pads vibrations by mounting Turbo pads instead. Effective and covered by warranty.
Then came Laguna Seca’s turn (video). The contrast with my ballistic and lardy 996 Turbo X50 couldn’t have been starker. Took me only 3 laps in my first session to get black-flagged for noise, courtesy of the county officer in his cabin. Mandatory detour through the paddock, open the engine cover, wait a full two seconds, close it. A pointless ritual, as the only cure would be to short shift in 4th between turns 5 and 6, and stay clear of the redline elsewhere to avoid rubbing stewards eardrums the wrong way. A huge spoiler, but the car impressed me nonetheless.
Few cars jump from street to track with such ease and no modifications whatsoever. Engine, brakes, tires, suspension, seats, everything works towards a near flawless experience. Trailing an exhaust-challenged Gallardo, I got a glimpse of what this car can be if driven properly. Unvoluntary late breaking to the apex and suddenly the front end bites harder, the gets a hint lighter and steers in delicately. Tricky as it leaves little margin of error, and unorthodox for the Ferrari driving school which insists on inline breaking. Trailbreaking seems to be part of the solution to resolve the complex equation that governs a 911’s handling. Hard wired steering is a precious ally in the corkscrew, but I am a bit underwhelmed by the relative absence of detailed feedback from the front end. Rear grip is such that traction control rarely intervenes, even in Laguna’s downhill sweepers that would torment my 996 Turbo’s PSM.
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