Those of you with a working knowledge of Porsche tuners - more PHers than not, we’d wager - might remember 9ff. Back in the '00s, it was legendary for truly crazy Porsche-shaped supercars like the 1,000hp, six-speed manual GT9, the 216mph CT78 that was once a Cayman and the 236mph TRC-85 - at the time the fastest convertible in the world. Power was 9ff’s stock in trade, until filing for bankruptcy in 2013. But a new company - 9ff Engineering - was formed later that same year and soon up to very similar antics. If a Porsche didn’t have a turbo, fit at least one; if it did have turbochargers, make them bigger.
This is its latest offering, the F92 GTurbo, resurrecting a 9ff tradition first seen back in 2010: strapping a pair of blowers onto a GT3, for those who must have 9,000rpm and the torque of a Turbo. Available for all GT3s including RS and ST and manual or PDK transmissions, 9ff is promising 760hp and 553lb ft. This is the first round of tuning, moreover; like the good old days, 1,000hp is said to be in the offing.
Generating that additional 50 per cent in output is a pair of ceramic ball bearing turbos, a 9ff manifold, its own exhaust and high flow cats, a chunky intercooler and all the associated plumbing, an uprated clutch, presumably quite involved ECU remapping, and a boost pressure control; that features two settings for those occasions when McLaren-rivalling power isn’t needed.
Some serious hardware for a serious uplift in power, then. Perhaps a little at odds with the GT3’s road racer, nat-asp screamer vibe, though it's certainly hard not to be just a little intrigued by the prospect of so much power with 9,000rpm still possible. And compatibility with the manual, which of course isn’t possible in a Turbo (Sport Classic aside).
9ff reckons the F92 GTurbo kit ‘takes the performance of these vehicles to a new level’, and 62-124mph in five seconds supports that claim. Interestingly, too, because all the parts are bolt-on, and the internals unchanged, 9ff says the conversion is ‘fully reversible and preserves the character of the vehicle.’ Presumably, anyone who fancies 1,000hp when it comes will have to be more committed to the cause in terms of modification permanency.
For now, it'll cost you €50k plus tax for 9ff to transform your GT3, which is currently £41,000. Clearly, a big investment - but when it’s done, what a 911 these 9ff customers stand to get in return. One way to keep a 992 GT3 feeling more than fresh with a new one imminent, that’s for certain. And secondhand cars start from a little under £150k…
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