Smooth Porkers

Porsche 911 Carrera T vs. 911 GT3 Touring.

- Jack Rix

There’s a bit of an analoge revolution going on at Porsche right now. No, not a return to hand-rolled panels and cross-ply tires, but a recognition that pleasure isn’t necessarily linked to lap times. The Cayman GT4 was the first to place sensory experience ahead of raw speed, then the 911R, then the GT3 with an optional manual gearbox, and now there’s two more old-school-flavor 911s to add to that list.

We begin with the 911 GT3 Touring Pack, essentially a GT3 with its wing deleted… but there’s a little more to it than that. For instance, did you know the Touring name was first used on the 2.7-liter Carrera RS from 1973? That’s heritage, right there. The missing wing is replaced with a classic pop-up rear deck embellished with a GT3 Touring badge and a unique lip spoiler on the trailing edge.

You can have any gearbox you like, so long as it’s a six-speed manual, and it’s all-leather and cloth on the inside, no racy Alcantara or roll cages here. Other than that, it’s as per the GT3, with the same options (ceramic brakes, nose lift, LED headlights, Chrono Pack, audio upgrades).

There are no rear seats, but 20-inch center-locking wheels, a 44mm wider and 25mm lower stance than the base Carrera and four-wheel steering are all standard. Oh, and a 4.0-liter flat-six touched by the hand of God, with 9,000rpm to play with.