It’s soothing to know that many owners of the latest GT2 RS thrash the car around the circuit on a regular basis. Perhaps none of these well-heeled trackday drivers is better known than “sebastien vittel“, whose exploits we’ve covered on this site many times before.
Naturally, taking a GT2 RS to a track day puts a big bullseye on the car’s back, since running with a GT2 RS on a track day is barroom boast that’ll earn the teller quite a few rounds. However, unlike most cars, the camera car in this clip is one which actually stands a chance against vittel’s mildly tuned GT2 RS.
His car uses a Manthey alignment, steel brakes, Endless brake pads, and a taller rear wing. Most importantly, vittel uses the new Michelin Cup 2 R tires, which are what Manthey used on their car to outrun the 918 at Portimao.
Despite having 60 horsepower more, the GT-R isn’t as quick as the Porsche on the straights.
The Nissan has been stripped to 3,300 pounds, makes 760 horsepower, and wears Michelin slicks. That’s still about sixty pounds heavier than the Porsche, but it makes sixty horsepower more than the 911 does. Still, it’s the Porsche that’s the quicker of the two in a straight line. The two engines displace the same volume, but the Porsche’s makes 553 lb-ft from just 2,500 rpm. That might help.
The GT-R’s great strength, four-wheel drive, help it find grip off the driving line.
A straightline advantage, strong brakes, and a handy driver help the Porsche stay ahead, but it’s clear the Nissan is faster in most corners. Searching for grip in some odd places, the Nissan uses its four-wheel drive system to deploy its incredible thrust off the well swept driving line and pass around the outside. It’s fitting that it takes such a brazen move to finish this spectacular battle between two giants, which ought to have given the two drivers plenty to talk about in the bar afterwards.
