911 GT3

Make
Porsche
Segment
Coupe

This is the natural pace of the car world. First, an automaker rolls out a new model, next comes a few additional variants to add choice, then the special editions come, with the outro usually being an ultra-significant final hurrah before the entire process starts all over again for the next generation. The Porsche 911, as special as it is, is no exception. The last 991 911 to hit the reveal stage was the GT2 RS, which somehow found a way to improve upon the GT3 RS but was also intended to usher in the era of the 992 911.

Well, that new 992-generation 911 is finally out, but it's so far only available in Carrera format. A 911 Turbo model has yet to debut, and so too does the GT3 model. But thanks to the work of our spy photographers, we now have a preview of the latter car before we're supposed to see it.

Naturally, the new 992 911 GT3 was caught testing on the race track, which will become its second home after the garage when the 2020 model makes its expected debut at the Frankfurt Auto Show in September of 2019. The dead giveaway is the large wing straddling the rear of the car, with a secondary body-mounted lip spoiler at the rear where the 992 Carrera houses its retractable active wing.

The body-mounted unit also features slits cut out of it, perhaps to cool the engine since the openings that usually reside on the 992 Carrera's rear are missing on this test mule. Like the 991 GT3, this mule also swaps the Carrera's parted exhaust outlets in favor of a dual exhaust joined in the middle of the rear bumper.

The rest of the car has subtle camouflaged panels covering areas where we expect other stylistic changes, including on the hood, which should get an air gap that separates it from the front fender, the front fascia, and the rear bumper.

Despite rumors of a turbocharged engine making it onto the GT3, the fact Porsche recently unveiled a naturally-aspirated 4.0-liter flat-six for the 718 Cayman GT4 makes us think Stuttgart will stick the current GT3's 4.0-liter engine under the 992 GT3 and crank up the horsepower. That's what it did with the 911 Speedster, which gets 510 horsepower, and we expect the 992 GT3 to push that figure closer to 550 horsepower. As always, we'll have to wait to learn more.