The Porsche Carrera GT (Project Code 980) is a mid-engine

sports car A sports car is a type of automobile that is designed with an emphasis on dynamic performance, such as Automobile handling, handling, acceleration, top speed, the thrill of driving, and Auto racing, racing capability. Sports cars originated in ...

that was manufactured by German automobile manufacturer

Porsche Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, usually shortened to Porsche (; see below), is a German automobile manufacturer specializing in luxury, high-performance sports cars, SUVs and sedans, headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Th ...

from 2003 to 2006. ''

Sports Car International ''Sports Car International'' (''SCI'') was an automobile magazine published in the United States from 1986 to 2008 by Ross Periodicals Inc, first in Newport Beach, but then later in Novato, California. History The magazine was unabashedly enthus ...

'' named the Carrera GT number one on its list of Top Sports Cars of the 2000s, and number eight on its Top Sports Cars of All Time list. For its advanced technology and development of its chassis, ''

Popular Science Popular science (also called pop-science or popsci) is an interpretation of science intended for a general audience. While science journalism focuses on recent scientific developments, popular science is more broad ranging. It may be written ...

'' magazine awarded it the "Best of What's New" award in 2003.

History

The development of the Carrera GT can be traced back to the 911 GT1 and LMP1-98

racing cars Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. In North America, the term is commonly used to describe all forms of automobile sport including n ...

. In part due to the FIA and ACO rule changes in 1998, both designs had ended. Porsche at the time had planned a new

Le Mans prototype A Le Mans Prototype (LMP) is a type of sports prototype race car used in various races and championships, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans, FIA World Endurance Championship, IMSA SportsCar Championship, European Le Mans Series, and Asian Le M ...

for the 1999 season. The car was initially intended to use a

turbocharged In an internal combustion engine, a turbocharger (also known as a turbo or a turbosupercharger) is a forced induction device that is powered by the flow of exhaust gases. It uses this energy to compress the intake air, forcing more air into the ...

flat-six engine A flat-six engine, also known as a horizontally opposed-six, is a six-cylinder piston engine with three cylinders on each side of a central crankshaft. The most common type of flat-six engine is the boxer-six engine, where each pair of opposed c ...

, but was later redesigned to use a new

V10 engine A V10 engine is a ten- cylinder piston engine where two banks of five cylinders are arranged in a V configuration around a common crankshaft. V10 engines are much less common than V8 and V12 engines. Several V10 diesel engines have been pro ...

– based on a unit secretly built by Porsche for the Footwork

Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

team in 1992 – pushing the project back to planned completion in 2000. The LMP 2000 was cancelled in November 1999, with rumours that the car had been cancelled as part of a deal with the

Volkswagen Group Volkswagen AG (), known internationally as the Volkswagen Group, is a German public multinational conglomerate manufacturer of passenger and commercial vehicles, motorcycles, engines and turbomachinery. Headquartered in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxon ...

to collaborate on the

Porsche Cayenne The Porsche Cayenne is a series of automobiles manufactured by the German company Porsche since 2002. It is a luxury crossover SUV, and has been described as both a full-sized and a mid-sized vehicle. The first generation was known within Por ...

, while also allowing

Audi Audi AG () is a German automotive manufacturer of luxury vehicles headquartered in Ingolstadt, Bavaria, Germany. A subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group, Audi produces vehicles in nine production facilities worldwide. The origins of the compa ...

to compete at Le Mans without competition from Porsche. File:Porsche Carrera GT (39995187763).jpg, Porsche Carrera GT concept at Petersen Automotive Museum File:Porsche Carrera GT concept (6901776801).jpg, Porsche Carrera GT concept at the 2000

Paris Motor Show The Paris Motor Show () is a biennial auto show in Paris. Held during October, it is one of the most important auto shows, often with many new production automobile and concept car debuts. The show presently takes place in Paris expo Porte de V ...

Porsche did keep part of the project alive by using the 5.5 L V10 from the prototype in a

concept car A concept car (also known as a concept vehicle or show vehicle) is a car made to showcase new styling or new technology. Concept cars are often exhibited at motor shows to gauge customer reaction to new and radical designs which may or may not ...

called the Carrera GT shown at the 2000

, mainly in an attempt to draw attention to their display. Surprising interest in the vehicle and an influx of revenue provided from the

Cayenne Cayenne (; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and capital city of French Guiana, an overseas region and Overseas department, department of France located in South America. The city stands on a former island at the mouth of the Caye ...

helped Porsche decide to produce the car, and development started on a road-legal version that would be produced in small numbers at Porsche's new manufacturing facility in

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

. Porsche started a production run of the Carrera GT in 2004. The first Carrera GT went on sale in the United States on 31 January 2004. Originally a production run of 1,500 cars was planned. However, Porsche announced in August 2005 that it would not continue production of the Carrera GT through to 2006, citing changing airbag regulations in the United States. By the end of production on 6 May 2006, 1,270 cars had been made, with a total of 644 units sold in the United States and 31 units sold in Canada. In the United Kingdom, 49 units were sold.

Design

The Carrera GT is powered by a V10 engine rated at , whereas the original concept car featured a 5.5-litre version rated at . A road test in June 2004 by ''Car and Driver'' showed that the car can accelerate from 0– in 3.5 seconds, 0– in 6.8 seconds and 0– in 10.8 seconds. The official top speed was . File:Carrera GT white (6563845193).jpg, Interior File:Carrera GT. (4657378722).jpg, Rear view File:Porsche Carrera GT Top View.jpg, Top view The Carrera GT was initially offered with five basic colours: Guards Red, Fayence Yellow, Basalt Black, GT Silver metallic and Seal Grey. Custom colours were later available from the factory. A traditional six-speed manual transmission is the only available transmission. The Carrera GT has large side inlets and air dams that help cool the large V10 engine framed by the carbon fibre rear bonnet. Fitted with Porsche's latest Carbon fibre-reinforced Silicon Carbide (C/SiC) ceramic composite braking system, the SGL Carbon disc brakes are fitted inside the 19 inch front and 20 inch rear 5-spoke alloy wheels. Similar to other Porsche models, such as the 911, the GT includes an electronically operated rear wing which deploys at speeds above . The interior is trimmed in soft leather. Bose audio system and a navigation system were standard. In typical Porsche fashion, the ignition is present to the left of the steering wheel. This placement dates back to the early days of Le Mans racing when drivers were required to make a running start, hop into their cars, start them and begin the race. The placement of the ignition enabled the driver to start the car with the left hand and put it in gear with the right. File:Flickr - wbaiv - Porsche Carrea GT.jpg, Fayence Yellow File:Porsche GT - Rétromobile 2023.jpg, Guards Red File:Porsche Carrera GT (9256979914).jpg, Basalt Black File:Porsche Carrera GT - Goodwood Breakfast Club (July 2008).jpg, Seal Grey File:Porsche Carrera GT - Flickr - Alexandre Prévot (4).jpg, GT Silver File:Carrera GT white (6563841105).jpg File:Porsche Carrera GT - Flickr - Supermac1961 (1) (cropped).jpg

Technical specifications

*Engine **Layout: Longitudinal,

rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout In automotive design, an RMR, or rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout is one in which the rear wheels are driven by an engine placed with its center of gravity in front of the rear axle, and thus right behind the passenger compartment. N ...

**Engine type: 68° V10, aluminium block and heads **Code: 980/01 **Valvetrain:

DOHC An overhead camshaft (OHC) engine is a piston engine in which the camshaft is located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with earlier overhead valve engines (OHV), where the camshaft is located below the combus ...

( chain-driven), 4 valves per cylinder (40 valves total),

variable valve timing Variable valve timing (VVT) is the process of altering the timing of a Poppet valve, valve lift event in an internal combustion engine, and is often used to improve performance, fuel economy or emissions. It is increasingly being used in combina ...

on intake camshafts,

sodium-cooled exhaust valve A poppet valve (also sometimes called mushroom valve) is a valve typically used to control the timing and quantity of petrol (gas) or vapour flow into or out of an engine, but with many other applications. It consists of a hole or open-ended ch ...

s **Bore × stroke: ,

Nikasil Nikasil is a trademarked electrodeposited lipophilic nickel matrix silicon carbide coating for engine components, mainly piston engine cylinder liners. Development Nikasil was introduced by Mahle in 1967 and was initially developed to allow W ...

coated bores, forged titanium connecting rods, forged pistons **Displacement: auto motor und sport
Technische Daten Porsche Carrera GT 5.7 V10
. April 2011. **Compression ratio: 12.0:1 **Rated power: @ 8,000 rpm **Max. torque: @ 5,750 rpm **Specific output: **Weight to power ratio: **Redline: 8,400 rpm *Transmission **Clutch: Twin-plate ceramic dry-clutch (PCCC—Porsche Ceramic Composite Clutch) **Gearbox type: 6-speed manual transmission *Body **Tank capacity: 92 litres **Cargo volume: **Max. payload: **Ground clearance: **Dimensions: ***Length: ***Width: ***Height: **Mass: **Track width: **Wheelbase: **Drag Coefficient: 0.39 *Fuel consumption for 2004 model **EPA *** EPA Rated city, highway: / ***Range: ***Tank in gal: **NEFZ: ***Consumption: 28.3 / 11.7 / 17.8 L/100 km *** CO₂

emission Emission may refer to: Chemical products * Emission of air pollutants, notably: ** Flue gas, gas exiting to the atmosphere via a flue ** Exhaust gas, flue gas generated by fuel combustion ** Emission of greenhouse gases, which absorb and emit rad ...

: 429 g/km *** Emission level:

EURO 4 The European emission standards are vehicle emission standards that regulate pollution from the use of new land surface vehicles sold in the European Union and European Economic Area member states and the United Kingdom, and ships in European ...

***Estimated range: **Auto Motor und Sport test: ***Max: 22.5 L/100 km ***Avg: 19.7 L/100 km

Performance Test Results

* : 2.06 secondsAuto Magazine 11/200
Brief performance details
(Retrieved 21 March 2016) * : 2.61 seconds * : 3.57 seconds * : 4.33 seconds * : 5.13 seconds * : 6.46 seconds * : 7.59 seconds *0‒: 10.97 seconds *0‒: 19.42 seconds at *Top speed: (official: ) *: 6.35 seconds (in 6th gear) *Braking to 0: *Braking to 0: *Braking 100 km/h to 0: 33.5 m *Skid pad, ave g: 0.99 ''

Sport Auto ''sport auto'' is a German automobile magazine, established in 1969, published monthly by Motor Presse Stuttgart, based in Stuttgart. The magazine publishes its "Supertest" of cars, featuring the laptime at the Nordschleife. Until 2015 almost a ...

'' tested a maximal lateral acceleration of 1.35 g, even 1.4 g was reached at the ''Schwalbenschwanz'' section of the ''

Nürburgring The () is a 150,000-person capacity motorsports complex located in the town of Nürburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It features a Grand Prix motor racing, Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a long configuration, built in the 1920s ...

Nordschleife'', ''

Motor Trend ''Motor Trend'' is an American automobile magazine. It first appeared in September 1949, and designated the first Car of the Year, also in 1949. Petersen Publishing Company in Los Angeles published ''Motor Trend'' until 1998, when it was sold ...

'' tested 11.1s at for the .

Track tests

Nordschleife: 7:28 *Nürburgring Nordschleife (2024): 7:12 *Bedford Autodrome: 1:20.2 *

Top Gear Test Track The ''Top Gear'' test track located at Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey, United Kingdom was used by the BBC automotive television programme ''Top Gear (2002 TV series), Top Gear''. The track was designed by Lotus Cars as a testing facility, with man ...

: 1:19.8

Technology

Notable technology includes a pure carbon fibre monocoque and subframe produced by ATR Composites Group of Italy, dry sump lubrication and inboard suspension. At speeds above , the electronically operated rear wing raises into the airstream to reduce lift. The radiator of the Carrera GT is about five times the size of that of a 911 Turbo of its time. The car's front and rear suspension system consists of pushrod actuated shock absorbers and dampers with anti-roll bars.

Zagato

In 2013,

Zagato Zagato is a Coachbuilder, coachbuilding company founded by Ugo Zagato in 1919. The design center of the company is located in Terrazzano, a village near Rho, Lombardy, Italy. History The 1910s: Aeronautics Ugo Zagato was an Italians, Italian ...

introduced the Porsche Carrera GTZ based on the Porsche Carrera GT. Commissioned by a Swiss Porsche collector and former racing driver, it has a modified carbon fiber body which is more aerodynamic. The car has the same technical specification as the Porsche Carrera GT. Six Carrera GTZs were built.

References

Notes

Bibliography

External links

Porsche official websiteFinal Carrera GT Produced
{{DEFAULTSORT:Porsche Carrera Gt Carrera GT Rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive vehicles Roadsters Cars introduced in 2003