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SHOULD YOU OPTION YOUR PORSCHE 911 GT3 WITH A PDK OR MANUAL TRANSMISSION? HERE'S A DIRECT COMPARISON.

Published: 2023-01-04 13:33:15 Last Updated: 2023-01-04 14:31:53

The current generation Porsche 911 GT3 is quite the monster of a car, it’s the range-topper of the 911 when it comes to streetable versions, and on paper, it features all the right numbers in all the right places. The power on tap is ridiculous, especially when you consider that the setup is normally-aspirated and not turbocharged like most supercars these days. The 911 GT3 is rated to produce a stonking 375 kW with torque up at a very healthy 470 Nm, and all that power is sent to the rear wheels only, which means the car feels very alive and takes a pretty decent helping of concentration when playing with it at the upper rev range in the higher gears. On that note, this powerful flat-four is available with two transmission options; an automatic 7-speed PDK (Porsche Doppel Kupplungs - or dual-clutch transmission in the Queen’s English) or with a more fun 6-speed manual transmission. In this day and age, the manual transmission is a dying component of fast cars because people are lazy, and automatic transmissions can shift through the gears faster. In the world of performance motoring any way to shave a few tenths of performance figures is what counts. But does it really?

The manual version of the Porsche 911 GT3 is proper quick, the German automaker claims that it can launch from 0-100 km/h in just 3.9-seconds and has a top speed of 320 km/h. This was clearly achieved with a competent driver who knows how to swap cogs like a human computer. The automatic PDK version sees the 0-100 km/h shunt happen in a slightly quicker 3.4-seconds, although oddly the top speed drops by 2 km/h to 318. So all of this is on paper, so to speak. But we all know that printed data obtained from testing in perfect conditions can be quite hard to replicate in the real world, and that’s where Carwow’s Mat Watson and Yiannimized’s Yianni Charalambous come into play. Under the Carwow banner, the pair line up and compare a Porsche 911 GT3 manual to a Porsche 911 GT3 PDK to see if the results match what the data infers will happen. Of course, they chat about the driving dynamics and power delivery and the like. Irrespective of the results, we think the manual is the one to have if you want street cred from the ‘Save the manuals’ crew, but if we had to put one in our own driveway it would be the PDK because a bunch of Porsche engineers who make lots of money made sure the tech sees lightning-fast shifts happen, and too lazy to try match it.

Take a look at the YouTube video where Mat Watson and fellow UK YouTiube personality Yianni Charalambous from Yiannimize setup up a drag race to directly compare the performance of the same model new-generation Porsche 911 GT3 but with different transmission options: Porsche 911 GT3 Manual v PDK: DRAG RACE | carwow

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