Guys, I've asked my motoring journo mate, here’s what he said about performance testing;

Mate,
Don’t read too much into slow times. Acceleration testing depends on so many factors – track surface, track temp, ambient temp, dew point, humidity, fuel load, car, tyres, driver etc. Also, some magazines test with two in the car and some with just the driver.
I’ve tested cars in certain conditions and they’ve recorded brilliant times and then tested the exact same car a month later on a different surface and in different conditions and recorded a time one second slower.

BTW When I tested the RS 4.0 in Germany here’s what I got.
0-100km/h in 3.76 seconds
0-160km/h in 7.81
0-200km/h in 11.81
Top speed 313km/h recorded on Vbox, 324km/h indicated

In my testing, those acceleration times are about 0.25 quicker than the RS 3.8. I’ve always found that if the conditions are ok you can beat Porsche’s claims. In the 911 Turbo (not Turbo S), I got a 0-100km/h time of 3.03 and I know an American magazine got 2.99 to 60mph. And I’ve had a Turbo S do a 2.99 to 100km/h which I think was about a 2.94 to 60mph (I’d have to dig out the file) and a 10.86 quarter mile.

Hope this helps.

 

^ very useful. Thanks and welcome to the team

 

A 0-60 time is only usefull for people that never exceed 60 and want to get there quickly.

Life in a 4.0RS does not start till someplace far past that. The enjoyment of the RS is the overall driving experience and the sensation and or feedback it gives the driver. I don't drag race or race my car stop light to stop light. The RS is a track car and should be enjoyed to the fullest in that way.

JMO.

-Troy

-Troy

 

Yep, my mate agrees that it's pointless. He hates doing accerelation testing on any car and tries to get a junior in his office to do it. He believes it's equally pointless on a fast car or a slow car. In-gear rolling acceleration is much more relevant. And yes, something like an RS 4.0 is about much more than 0-60.

 

Respect! +1 for being a genuine Mate! Rep for you, Sir.

 

Well said. You don't buy an RS 4.0 because you want to go to 60 fast. There's another 911 for that. You buy the RS 4.0 if you enjoy driving, and want to do it very, very quickly.

 

I'm sure this has been discussed already but a brief search does not yield any quick results: Is this car (4.0) really $100k better than the 997.2 GT3? I don't own either but consider myself a potential customer. You can get a pretty good spec 997.2 GT3 for $110k and I realize there is almost 85hp difference, and I am not siding on either side of that argument, it is just an honest question. Strictly performance and driving experience wise...

 

Again, I asked my journo mate this question.

Yep, RS 4.0 is worth every cent. Taking nothing away from the GT3 or GT3 RS (both of which I would love to own), the RS 4.0 is a huge step above. It is the best car I’ve driven ahead of things like Veyron, 599 GTO, 458 etc. It’s an awesome track-day car and liveable enough to use on the street. It’s actually not much more compromised than the GT3 yet offers so much more driver appeal and involvement.
The engine is much stronger down low than even the RS 3.8. The front end is sharper, it’s more stable at high speed.
Anyone who owns an RS 4.0 is very lucky. I believe it will be an all-time great car. If I had the money I would buy one ahead of every other car on sale.

 

What's better than 1 GT3 RS 4.0?

2!

Mine arrived today.

 

Ahah! Waiting for the pics on her wheels!!