by • A juggernaut of Porsche turbo power, the GT2 is actually a more hardcore version of the 911 Turbo.
• Only 300 GT2s were delivered to the US in the 996 era and with a very low mileage this example represents excellent potential.
• This Bring a Trailer auction ends on 29 January.
The GT2 is a car with a certain reputation: rare, raw, with a bloodline that goes back to the original “Widowmaker” 930 Turbo. Now, with this auction on Bring a Trailer, is your chance to get a taste of one of the toughest 911s Porsche has ever built.
For the uninitiated, this is just another silver 911, and judging by the elongated headlights, not even one of the really coveted ones. Digging a little deeper reveals yellow calipers indicating carbon ceramic brakes, a unique rear wing and the subtle GT2 script on the rear. This is not just any pedestrian Neunelfer; a monster lurks here.
While the GT3 was more of a track star destined for mid-corner combat with the likes of the Corvette Z06, the GT2 was essentially an untamed 911 Turbo: lighter, more powerful and stripped of driver aids like electronic stability control. If the GT3 was a scalpel then the GT2 was a claymore, and if you’re not careful you might send a few limbs to Tucumcari. Like the 930 of yesteryear, the GT2 doesn’t like to be fooled.
In the rear, the GT2 got the same race-derived 3.6-liter flat-six as the Turbo of its era, but with bigger turbos, more cooling and reprogrammed software. Power increased nearly 15 percent to 474 horsepower, and removing the all-wheel drive helped shed about 220 pounds. Solid carbon-ceramic brakes were standard, certainly useful as the GT2’s quoted top speed of 316 km/h was approached.
Driving the car in Germany in 2001, we commented that the GT2 “requires unrelenting concentration as the speedometer needle spins to the top of its scale…a dazzling ride, but seriously addictive none the less. Go on, let’s go, let’s go’, there’s an implicit disclaimer line, a message intended only for serious drivers that says something like, ‘Look, motherfucker, I’m not your mother. You’re on your own in this.'”
This example up for auction is a 2003 car for the US market and is almost immaculate, with all relevant documentation present. With three days to go, the bid sits at $155,000, though that figure is likely to rise as the end approaches.
This one has only 4000 miles on it and is finished in silver with a black interior. 996-era interiors generally don’t hold up well over the years, but this car has all sorts of well-maintained leather trim inside and it presents itself as efficient and business-like – exactly what you’re looking for in a Porsche.
While this GT2 may be a premium investment vehicle, please drive it when you take this GT2 home. It won’t matter much if it has 4000 miles or 6000 miles on it, and the current owner has recently replaced most of the engine’s consumables, including a new set of spark plugs. The lucky buyer owes it to themselves to get at least one sweaty blast of turbocharged Porsche adrenaline behind the wheel of this car.
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