It may be a pricey Porsche, but at least one company recognizes the value of a manual.
Photography courtesy of Porsche
While many manufacturers are increasingly dropping manuals, Porsche seems to be taking great pride in having a car still with a stick. Case in point, its new record at the Nürburgring, the fastest production car with a manual, courtesy of a Porsche 911 GT3 with the Weissach Package.
The Porsche turned a 6:56.294 time. How much faster was it? It crushed the record by 9.5 seconds, which was set by a Dodge Viper ACR in 2017. Furthermore, the manual 911 GT3 was faster than its predecessor model with a PDK transmission (Porsche’s DCT) by 3.6 seconds.
“More and more customers of the 911 GT3 are opting for the six-speed manual transmission,” Andreas Preuninger, Director GT Cars said. “And more and more often we are asked by these customers how fast a 911 GT3 with manual transmission would be on the Nordschleife. We have now answered this question and–although we know that the variant with PDK is significantly faster–drove our lap time with a manual six-speed gearbox. Even without the automated, super-fast and precise gearshifts of the PDK and with a mechanical instead of electronically controlled limited-slip differential, the new 911 GT3 takes around 3.6 seconds off its predecessor with PDK.”
Jörg Bergmeister, a two-time class winner at Le Mans, steered the Porsche to the record.
“The new 911 GT3 inspires even more confidence at the limit than the previous model. I was faster in almost every corner,” Bergmeister said. “We learned a lot from the 911 GT3 RS, especially with the chassis. The car is even more stable on bumps and over the curbs. And thanks to the 8% shorter gear ratio, there is noticeably more power on the rear axle when accelerating with the same engine power. 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 thus also a bit more fun.”
It may be a pricey Porsche, but at least one company recognizes the value of a manual.
In reply to J.A. Ackley :
I'm torn. Yay manual, boo "fastest left-handed lavender-scented RWD car with a paint reflectivity index above 37."
We've really gotta figure out how to get the hootus-comparison brigade to recognize meaningful differences besides numbers in the era of 1,000hp Civics in the burger chain employee parking. Or just do a better job of ignoring them and rewarding marketing to more nuanced appreciation.
In reply to Jesse Ransom :
Not a baseball fan, I take it? I mean, who doesn't want to know how Juan Soto performs during full moons on Tuesdays when temps are between 62-65?
Sorry, I digress.
I do feel that a production car with a manual is a good metric, although some of those Nurburgring records are a bit, let's say, specific.
I feel like “fasting manual-transmission car at the Nürburgring” is kinda like saying “fastest car using outdated technology,” although I should note that we’re 4/4 for cars with manual boxes in our family.
In reply to J.A. Ackley :
Yeah, sportsball passes me by, and to be honest, I don't have the command of history of even the stuff I do follow that I'd like to... But I agree about the specificity and my aggravation is much more about a bunch of carving out titles for the brochure rather than an objection to recording tidbits.
"This is absolutely the very fastest car which is this particular car!"
In reply to Jesse Ransom : Seems to tread perilously close to the "one of one" logic of Corvette guys. :-)
Yup, I remember an exchange between car fanbois:
Honda guy: My swapped Honda is faster than your truck.
Truck guy: Let's see your "Honda" carry a load of dirt, or go off-roading.
The goal seems to be to set enough specifics that only your car of choice is best.
David S. Wallens said:I feel like “fasting manual-transmission car at the Nürburgring” is kinda like saying “fastest car using outdated technology,” although I should note that we’re 4/4 for cars with manual boxes in our family.
Editorial Director, Grassroots Motorsports & Classic Motorsports
I mean, it also has a rear mounted engine, which literally everyone else had given up on.
kb58 said:Yup, I remember an exchange between car fanbois:
Honda guy: My swapped Honda is faster than your truck.
Truck guy: Let's see your "Honda" carry a load of dirt, or go off-roading.
The goal seems to be to set enough specifics that only your car of choice is best.
While true, it also points to one's own concerns. I got ragged on by someone who said my car wasn't a good tow vehicle because it couldn't tow a 30' camper like his Silverado. He didn't seem to grasp that literally the only things I care about towing are things much smaller than a 30' camper.
Truck guy doesn't care about fast, Honda guy doesn't care about payload. Fortunately there are all sorts of vehicles to choose from. (Unless you want a hatchback with a sub-100" wheelbase, then you're kinda screwed)
Seems like we're in a crab bucket 🦀🪣
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