Art of Gears
Fansided

Can’t Buy The New Porsche 911 GT3? Well, Try These Instead!

By Neeraj Padmakumar

NEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 23: A view of the Porsche 911 GT3 available for auction at Gabrielle's Angel Foundation's Angel Ball 2017 at Cipriani Wall Street on October 23, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Gabrielle's Angel Foundation For Cancer Research )
NEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 23: A view of the Porsche 911 GT3 available for auction at Gabrielle's Angel Foundation's Angel Ball 2017 at Cipriani Wall Street on October 23, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Gabrielle's Angel Foundation For Cancer Research ) /
facebooktwitterreddit

These are the ones to look for if your pocket is too puny for the new 911 GT3…

Yes, the 991.2 generation Porsche 911 GT3 with its  500 hp, 4.0-liter flat-six engine, definitely is one such beast that any auto-junkie would fall head over heels for. But enthusiasm and pockets don’t always go hand in hand, definitely not for all!

But don’t you worry folks, the automobile market today is so flourished that it has on offer ample options, even for the less fortunate ones, that would bestow on them a driving experience comparable to these extremely expensive sets of wheels. We had come up with a bunch of just alternatives for the Mercedes Benz G Class early this month and now we have this, the best possible alternatives for the new 911 GT3, a fairly loaded copy of which would set you back by as much as $200,000!  Here are 5 cars that offer you the thrill of a sports car with a manual box at a remarkable margin in price.

Porsche 911 GT3 (996)

Unsurprisingly enough, the best possible alternative to a 991.2  GT3 indeed is one from the olden times!  As with most cars out there, used GT3s can be seen up for sale at affordable ( for most !) rates. The 996 gen seems to be the most affordable of the lot if we are to analyze the used car market. Though its seemingly strange headlamp design and overblown IMS issues had rendered the 996 gen unappealing to some during its age, the GT3 had luckily escaped this fate then and still continues to lure the hearts of enthusiasts all over the world and has under its hood, a  3.6-liter flat-six that churns out an amazing 380 hp of power.  If lucky enough, you can even find deals as good as $70,000 for one of these machines!

LONGFIELD, ENGLAND – AUGUST 31: The Trackspeed Porsche 997 GT3 R of Jon Minshaw and Phil Keen drives during the Avon Tyres British GT Championship race at Brands Hatch on August 31, 2014 in Longfield, England. (Photo by Ker Robertson/Getty Images)
LONGFIELD, ENGLAND – AUGUST 31: The Trackspeed Porsche 997 GT3 R of Jon Minshaw and Phil Keen drives during the Avon Tyres British GT Championship race at Brands Hatch on August 31, 2014 in Longfield, England. (Photo by Ker Robertson/Getty Images) /

Porsche 911 GT3 (997)

Hosting another 3.6-liter flat-six mill, but with the power figures boosted to 415 hp, a manual

More from Art of Gears

transmission, better interiors, and a price tag south of $100,000, the 997 911 GT3 seems to be just the perfect buy for the enthusiasts! Search again and you might even land upon an ad asking as low as $90,000 for one of these. Things might even go to the extent of you stumbling upon a  997.2 gen, flaunting a more-economic 435 hp 3.8-liter flat-six for under $ 100,000.

BRUSSELS, BELGIUM – JANUARY 11: The new LOTUS Exige is perpared for the 84th European Motor Show on January 11, 2006 in the Belgian capital of Brussels. (Photo by Mark Renders/Getty Images)
BRUSSELS, BELGIUM – JANUARY 11: The new LOTUS Exige is perpared for the 84th European Motor Show on January 11, 2006 in the Belgian capital of Brussels. (Photo by Mark Renders/Getty Images) /

Lotus Exige

The Exige is one car, the sales of which have been on a stall for quite some years now, as far as the US market is concerned. This also means that you can find fair deals for models belonging to years between 2006 & 2009.  By ‘fair’ we intend to bring down your expectations to as low as  $50,000 to $65,000.  Being powered by a 1.8-liter supercharged Toyota engine, capable of letting out either 240 or 257 hp, the car also has an advantage over the GT3 as it has its curb weight figures hovering just above 2,000 pounds. However, don’t expect it to be anywhere near the Porsche when it comes to refinement.

DETROIT, MI – JANUARY 14: A Chevrolet Corvette Z06 is displayed at the press preview of the 2014 North American International Auto Show January 14, 2014 in Detroit, Michigan. Approximately 5000 journalists from more than 60 countries are expected to attend. The 2014 NAIAS opens to the public on January 18 and ends January 16. (Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)
DETROIT, MI – JANUARY 14: A Chevrolet Corvette Z06 is displayed at the press preview of the 2014 North American International Auto Show January 14, 2014 in Detroit, Michigan. Approximately 5000 journalists from more than 60 countries are expected to attend. The 2014 NAIAS opens to the public on January 18 and ends January 16. (Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images) /

Corvette Z06

This can be addressed America’s most befitting answer to the 911. Powered by a 7.0-liter LS7 V8 mill letting out a chunky 505 hp of power, the C6 Z06 clearly has an upper hand over the GT3. We would always recommend the C6 gen over the more recent C7 generation due to its better ranking in overcoming overheating issues on track. The best part about this car, however, is that you get to see many copies up for sale for under $40,000!

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – MARCH 06: The BMW logo is seen during the 83rd Geneva Motor Show on March 6, 2013 in Geneva, Switzerland. Held annually with more than 130 product premiers from the auto industry unveiled this year, the Geneva Motor Show is one of the world’s five most important auto shows. (Photo by Harold Cunningham/Getty Images)
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – MARCH 06: The BMW logo is seen during the 83rd Geneva Motor Show on March 6, 2013 in Geneva, Switzerland. Held annually with more than 130 product premiers from the auto industry unveiled this year, the Geneva Motor Show is one of the world’s five most important auto shows. (Photo by Harold Cunningham/Getty Images) /

BMW M3 Lime Rock Park Edition

This car isn’t necessarily a far cry from a normal M3 bestowed with the competition package when it comes to the mechanical aspects.  Also, most of the 200 units of this car ever made have 7-speed DCTs. The rest, however, are manual and can now be found for under $70,000! Are you to buy one now, we suggest you go ahead without a second thought, who knows if you would be bagging a collector car for the future…

Next: Porsche 911: An extremely brief history.

Still thinking of the new GT3? Well here is a video of the beast. Going for one of these instead? Well, we would love you for that…

Home/Cars