The Porsche 911 GT1 was a car that was designed to compete in the GT1 class of sportscar racing. This design also required a street-legal version for homologation,(a Government-issued certificate that allows a product to enter the market) purposes. This is very cool because you can own a sports car that was designed for racing but is completely street legal! The street-legal version was named the ‘ 911 GT1 Straßenversion’.
We are going to look at the power behind this car, some of the achievements people have made driving this car, and how awesome this sportscar looks on the inside.
A super car that has a street-legal certificate, roars like a Porsche should, and is as quick as you would imagine a Porsche racecar should be.
The engine and transmission that powers the Porsche 911 GT1
In order for the GT1 version to be made, regulations stipulated that a total of 25 cars must be built for the road. With that being said, Porsche developed two prototype cars that were both fully road-legal.
The first street-legal version was developed in 1996. The second prototype was bought by a private car collector by the name of Khalid Abdul Rahim. In 1997, 30 cars were built. 3 cars were finished in unique colors, Polar Silver, Indian Red as well as Pastel Yellow. One car was known as the ‘911 GT1-98 Straßenversion’ and it was built in 1998.
Now let’s talk about the good stuff… The engine! The engine had to be slightly de-tuned in order for it to meet the European emissions law. It is a 3.2L (3,164 cc), twin-turbocharged, flat-6 engine that can turn out 536 horsepower! The torque reading is around 443 lb-ft. This might not seem like a lot coming from a sportscar but keep in mind that this car was made in the late 1990s! This was a lot of power that came from a street-legal car.
Auto Motor und Sport tested the speeds and times that this powerhouse of a sportscar could achieve in 1997 and what they recorded is on par with modern supercars:
-31.1 mph in 2.1 seconds
-62.1 mph in3.9 seconds
-80.8 mph in 5.4 seconds
-99.4 mph in 7.1 seconds
-111.8 mph in 8.8 seconds
-124.3 mph in 10.5 seconds
-155.3 mph in 17.4 seconds
The GT1 made its debut in the BPR Global GT Series
The GT1 made a huge impression at the BPR Global GT Series. Behind the wheel were the legendary Hans-Joachim Stuck and Thierry Boutsen. They breezed through the competition and won. They were unfortunately invited, which made them an invited entry and they were not eligible for points in that race.
With that being said, The GT1 won yet again at Spa and Ralf Kelleners and Emmanuel Collard went for the victory, for the factory team at Zhuhai.
To take it one step further, the 1996 GT1 hit a top speed of exactly 205 mph on the iconic Mulsanne Straight in the practice sessions of the 1996 Le Mans 24 Hours Race.
The interior of the car
The outside of this car is gorgeous! The shape is sleek and smooth. You can see that the car was designed with aerodynamics in mind. It still has the iconic look and feel of a classic Porsche which is why people loved this car so much.
Now if you take a look at the inside of the car. The gauges have a sportscar feel to them. The leather bucket seats make you feel like you are driving in luxury but at the same time, you feel safe and like you are driving in a real racing car.
The clutch has been reported to be heavy and so are the breaks but with that being said, the steering wheel is light and accurate. You know that you are driving a race car because the gearbox requires you to make slow and smooth gear changes.
How did the sports car do in Le Mans in 1998?
The 1998 Le Mans race was absolutely breathtaking! The BMW V12 LM retired early due to wheel bearing issues and they were a fan favorite. The Mercedes CLK-LM cars were the next to have issues and they had oil pump troubles in the new V8 engines that replaced the former V12 engine.
Despite the GT1-98 being slower than the Toyota and Mercedes, Porsche took both first and second place due to the fact that the car was one of the most reliable cars on the track. This result have Porsche its record-breaking 16th overall win at Le Mans race. This record is higher than any other car manufacturer in history.