The new GT3 is the most powerful naturally-aspirated 911 Porsche has ever produced.
A pair of unexplained fires has led Porsche to issue an urgent warning to owners of the maker’s new 911 GT3 supercar: “stop using (your) car” until the maker can figure out what’s wrong.
Unveiled at the New York Auto Show last year, only about 785 of the GT3 models have been built, with even fewer actually delivered since they began rolling into showrooms last month. Priced at $130,400, they’re among the most powerful cars the German maker has ever sold. But it may be awhile before buyers will be able to experience that performance.
According to a Porsche spokesman, two GT3 models, one sold in Italy, the other in Switzerland, “went up in flames” in recent days. Each of them had less than 20 miles on their odometers. The problem, TheDetroitBureau.com was advised, “seems to be engine-related,” possibly the result of an oil leak.
But Porsche engineers have yet to identify the precise cause of the fires – nor have they been able to determine if this was an isolated problem limited to the two vehicles or something that might be the result of a defect impacting other cars.
“We want to know why,” U.S.-based spokesman Bernd Harling told TheDetroitBureau.com.
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As a result, the maker wants owners to park their GT3s immediately. Porsche has said it will take responsibility for picking up the vehicles and having vehicles taken to dealers where they can be inspected and, if necessary, repaired.
The move is not being considered a recall as Porsche said it did not want to wait for the normal regulatory process to get underway before taking action. An official recall in the U.S. and other markets could yet follow, however.
“We don’t want to put our owners, or our cars, at risk,” added Harling.
The 2014 Porsche GT3 is powered by a 3.8-liter 6-cylinder boxer engine that makes 475 horsepower and 324 pound-feet of torque, a 7-speed double-clutch PDK transmission sending power to the rear wheels. The supercar can launch from 0 to 100 kmh (0 to 62.5 mph) in just 3.5 seconds and boasts a top speed of 195 mph.
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