The new Porsche 911 GT3 sets a new record in the Nordschleife

Porsche has secured a new fastest time record in the Nordschleife for a production car with manual transmission. 

Porsche has broken a new lap record in the Nordschleife with the new 911 GT3, beating the previous record held by another competitor with a more powerful engine by more than 9.5 seconds.

The Porsche 911 GT3 (992.2), equipped with 6-speed manual transmission and Weissach package rated at 510 horsepower, was piloted by Porsche development driver Jörg Bergmeister, who was able to complete a timed lap of the Nordschleife in 6 minutes and 56.294 seconds (6:56:294) - 9.5 seconds faster than the previous record holder.

Jörg Bergmeister (in white overalls) and his crew after breaking the record on April 8. 

The Porsche 911 GT3 (992.2) also beat its predecessor, the Porsche 911 GT3 (992.1) with a PDK dual-clutch automatic transmission, by around 3.6 seconds. 

The previous record was set in 2017 by Lance Arnold in a Dodge Viper ACR (model pictured below) rated at 645 horsepower - doing a time of 7 minutes and 1.3 seconds (7:01:300) on a shortened 20.6-kilometre version of the track. Adjusting to the full 20.832-kilometre variant of the track, the time set by the Dodge would be around 7 minutes and 5.8 seconds (7:05.800).

Dodge Viper ACR.

"More and more 911 GT3 customers are opting for the six-speed manual transmission. And more and more often we are asked by these customers how fast a 911 GT3 with manual transmission would be on the Nordschleife," said Andreas Preuninger, the automaker's Director GT Model Line. "We have now answered this question."

Porsche's goal with the record attempt was to set the fastest lap time in a production car with manual transmission. "When we decided to set the official lap time of the new 911 GT3 with manual transmission, we naturally looked at who was at the top of the leaderboard," said Preuninger.

The 911 GT3, because of extensive additional development of all performance-relevant components, was able to produce a faster lap time than the predecessor model (992.1). 

"The new 911 GT3 inspires even more confidence at the limit than the previous model. I was faster in almost every corner," said Bergmeister, describing the handling of the sports car. 

He added that Porsche had learned a lot from the 911 GT3 RS, especially regarding the chassis. He noted that the car is more stable on bumps and over the track's kurbs, and the 8 percent shorter gear ratio gave more noticeable accelerative potential despite the same engine power as the predecessor model.

Commenting on the use of a manual transmission instead of the PDK automatic transmission, Bergmeister concluded: "Even if it would have been a few seconds faster with the seven-speed PDK, with the six-speed manual gearbox I definitely had more to do on the fast lap, and it was therefore even more fun."

Read More: Porsche's new 1,092hp Taycan Turbo GT is breaking track records and piggy banks everywhere

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