Alex Unleashed on Cars: Porsche Carrera GT (Porsche's Finest Hour?)

 

Recently, V10 powered cars have been having a renaissance of sorts, since both the Audi R8 V10 and Lamborghini Huracan went out of production, there are no V10 engined cars on sale, the Dodge Viper went years ago, BMW, Audi and VW's V10 saloons left at the turn of the 2010s, the now revered Lexus LF-A was only a limited run supercar and the V10 NSX and GR-1 concepts by Honda and Ford never came to be.

Everywhere you go in the motoring world, people are getting nostalgic and yearning for a V10 engine, they talk gaily about V10s in F1 and the various cars powered by the unique engine type, that only really gained traction as an engine type in the 2000s. But one car that stands arguably at the pinnacle of this is the Porsche Carrera GT, Porsche's 3rd flagship hypercar after the 959 and 911 GT1. 

The Carrera GT may have spawned in the hypercar wave of the early 2000s that also gave us the SLR, Enzo, Murcielago, Ford GT etc, but it's origins oddly originate in early 90s Formula 1.

Back in 1990, Porsche wanted to return as an engine supplier having previously supplied TAG badged turbo engines to McLaren from 1984-1987, they decided on a 3.5 V12 to supply to the Footwork Arrows team, and the results were abysmal. The engine was short on power and the extra weight and length upset a car that had previously been designed to run a V8. In the end, Footwork swapped back to Ford V8 power mid season and scored no points with either engine.

Porsche, naturally rather embarrassed went back to the drawing board and lopped two cylinders off to become a V10 as was becoming the prime choice in F1. But Arrows went with the Mugen Honda engine that Tyrrell used in '91 instead of the new engine, so Porsche decided to bore the engine out to 5 litres and enter into the LMP1 class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2000 since the plan to enter '98 spec 911 GT1s in the LMGTP class in '99 fell through. Porsche had a car ready to race but considering they'd be competing with fellow VW-Audi Group members Audi and Bentley, the project was canned. 

But around this time, Porsche unveiled the Carrera GT at the 2000 Paris Motor Show, now with the eponymous 5.7 V10 said to be producing 588 BHP along with different headlamps. It would cost around £250,000 and be capable of 200 MPH. Needless to say, lot's of people were interested.

Upon launch in early 2004, the Carrera GT instantly became one of the cars of the moment. Whilst it wasn't as fast as it's rivals being capable of 0-60 in 3.9 seconds with a top speed of 205 MPH, thanks to a 612 BHP engine. Performance figures don't tell you everything though. Underneath the skin, it has a pure carbon fibre monocoque chassis and subframe as well as a carbon fibre clutch and a radiator 5x bigger than the 911 Turbos.

In terms of handling and grip, the Porsche is certainly above the Zonda and McLaren SLR and it's definitely up there with the Ferrari Enzo, weighing in at 1380 KG, it weighs around the same as the Enzo, with both being mid-engined and having retractable rear wings, but that's where the similarities end. The Enzo used sophisticated traction control and various other electronics and Formula 1 knowhow to create a car that can go round corners as well as it goes down straights. The Carrera GT by comparison has little in driver aids outside of ABS and traction control, it's more about mechanical engineering, physical components like the carbon ceramic brakes and the 6-speed manual gearbox, but most of all, the driver to keep the Carrera GT on the straight and narrow. Some claimed the car was difficult, and several who drove it summed it as demanding but enjoyable. It's a car that's all about engaging with the driver to create an experience others can't match.

But, is the Carrera GT the best Porsche? Tough question, some would point to the various 911s like the 2.7 RS of '73 or newer stuff like the GT3 RS 4.0 from 2012. I myself would highlight the 918 for it's incredible use of it's hybrid system to create an excellent all-round package, that's hard to top even now. 

 But ultimately, as a car to drive, enjoy and experience, the Carrera GT ticks all the boxes by which we judge supercars. performance, engine sound and driver appeal, and by that criteria the Carrera GT simply can't be beaten by any other Porsche.  

Years Produced: 2004-2006

Engine: 5.7 Litre V10

Top Speed: 205 MPH

0-60: 3.9 Seconds

Power: 612 BHP

Torque: 435 Ib/ft

Weight: 1380 KG

Rivals: Mercedes SLR McLaren, Pagani Zonda, Ferrari Enzo, Koenigsegg CC8S