An espresso machine is steaming furiously and fresh croissants are arranged on a shelf that doubles as a swan-neck rear spoiler. Morning has broken over the Ricardo Tormo circuit near Valencia and business is brisk at The 9,000rpm Cafe. The 2025 Porsche 911 GT3 launch is underway.
The name of Porsche’s pit-garage breakfast bar is significant. A naturally aspirated flat-six that screams all the way to 9,000rpm is the GT3’s calling card: its USP when every other 911 in the range is now turbocharged. Peak power for this second-generation ‘992.2’ GT3 is 510hp – the same as its predecessor. Yet it turns out even standing still has been a serious challenge.
You wouldn’t expect a press conference about a new 911 to dive headlong into EU exhaust emissions legislation. However, as the engineers from Weissach point out, continuing to sell a free-breathing, high-revving engine that delivers ‘GT3 emotionality’ is no mean feat in 2025. The 992.2 required two particle filters and two additional catalytic converters to meet the stricter standards, but Porsche has compensated with spikier camshafts from the GT3 RS, flow-optimed throttle valves and improved cooling.
Porsche 911 GT3 2025: Lap-time leader
Porsche 911 GT3 2025
An eight percent shorter final drive ratio also sharpens response as the 4.0-litre engine spins towards its lofty limiter. Choose the six-speed manual gearbox – now with a stubbier shift lever from the limited edition 911 S/T – and 0-62mph takes 3.9 seconds. Alternatively, the dual-clutch PDK auto transmission gets you there in 3.4 seconds.
When the newly hybridised, mid-range 911 Carrera GTS can summon 541 horses and hit 62mph in 3.0 seconds, those numbers look unremarkable. Underwhelming, even. But the GT3 has always been about lap times rather than straight-line speed, and Porsche has honed the 992.2 into an even more effective track tool. Chassis upgrades include recalibrated power steering, more spring travel, shorter bump stops and a new anti-dive system.
As before, you can choose between a regular GT3 with the fixed rear wing (and handy croissant carrier) or the Touring Package, which has a pop-up spoiler for a more subtle look. The big news, though, is the availability of rear seats in the Touring – a first for the GT3. These are joined by new folding front buckets with removable headrest pads to make wearing a crash helmet more comfortable.
Caged animal
Porsche 911 GT3 2025
Another first for this 992.2 update is the Weissach Package – previously reserved solely for RS models. For £15,597, it adds various carbon fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP) parts and grippy Race-Tex interior trim, plus a roll cage and magnesium wheels as further options. The equivalent Leichtbau Package for the Touring costs £29,225, but it includes the spidery magnesium rims, reducing unsprung weight by 2.3kg per corner.
Best known as a venue for MotoGP racing, Ricardo Tormo is a tight and technical circuit that would leave some supercars feeling flustered. Not the GT3. The way it slices into corners is calm and consistent, the steering deliciously precise, the fidelity of its front axle such that I quickly begin to build confidence, apply more power and bring the rear end into play. Switch to Track mode and shifts via the PDK ’box are brutally sharp, while the PCCB carbon-ceramic brakes will tirelessly tolerate being stomped on for lap after lap. The GT3 feels built to do this all day.
I then swap seats with Porsche pro driver – and former American Le Mans Series winner – Jörg Bergmeister to see how it’s really done. Bergmeister is affable in person, but incredibly aggressive behind the wheel, braking hard and late, then getting back on the power almost instantly, sawing at the steering to stabilise the car. He uses every millimetre of the track, sliding the GT3 around and bouncing it over the sausage-shaped kerbs. “The damping is really exceptional, the car feels settled and so stable at the limit,” he shouts over an explosive volley of downshifts. I nod in meek, overawed agreement.
Taking the Touring in the Porsche 911 GT3 2025
Porsche 911 GT3 2025
After another pastry at The 9,000rpm Cafe, it’s time to leave the circuit and head for the hills – this time in a Touring. Sadly, Porsche didn’t have a manual car available, but I previously sampled the short-throw six-speeder in the 911 S/T and it’s a joy: quick, slick and enticingly tactile. The GT3 does without the S/T’s fickle and somewhat fragile lightweight clutch, too. Suffice to say, I’d choose a winged car with paddles if you enjoy track days, or a Touring with a stick if you prefer driving on the road.
Many of the roads near Valencia still bear scars from the recent floods, their surfaces smeared with clay and gravel, their shoulders simply washed away. It’s another stern test for a sports car, but the Porsche seems ready to raise its game. When I drove the outgoing 992.1 Touring on typically bumpy British B-roads in 2021, my review criticised its ride as ‘rather too stiff, sniffing out cambers and occasionally being deflected by mid-corner bumps’. Now the GT3 seems to breathe better with the road. Its ball-jointed double wishbone front suspension also provides a sense of precision that no 911 Carrera or Turbo can match.
Then there’s the 9,000rpm factor. Some of this car’s wedgier, ostensibly more exotic rivals are so rapid that you might as well collect a ‘Go to Jail’ card whenever you pass ‘Go’. But with a less-than-ludicrous 510hp, you can wring out the revs more often, revelling in the progressive power delivery and guttural six-cylinder howl. The trolls of social media will point out that their Teslas go quicker, but I promise you: drive a 911 GT3 and you will never once want for more. Or want to stop.
Verdict: Porsche 911 GT3
Porsche 911 GT3 2025
All good things come to an end, though, including both my test drive and the GT3 as we know it. The naturally aspirated engine may live on, but its successor will almost certainly feature some hybrid tech – diluting its purity, if not its performance.
Until then, if you have £157,300 and a place on the waiting list, count yourself very lucky. The new 911 GT3 is a full-bodied hit of automotive adrenalin. No espresso required.
Tim Pitt writes for Motoring Research
PRICE: £157,300
POWER: 510hp
0-62MPH: 3.4sec
TOP SPEED: 193mph
FUEL ECONOMY: 20.5mpg
CO2 EMISSIONS: 312g/km