In spite of its 911 moniker, the Porsche 911 GT1 actually had very little in common with the 911 of the time, only sharing the front and rear headlamps with the production sports car. Designed and developed to compete in the GT1 class of sportscar racing, which also required a street-legal version for homologation purposes.
The 911 GT1 was a departure from the rear-engined 911s as it adopted a mid-engine layout. What further set it apart was its origin – it wasn’t adapted from a street-legal car but was purpose-built as a full-fledged race car. Its power source was a twin-turbo flat-six engine, churning out an impressive 600 bhp. In 1996, the 911 GT1 achieved a top speed of precisely 330 km/h (205 mph) on the renowned Mulsanne Straight.
Experience what its like to drive this 1990s beast as it goes full throttle around Le Mans in this video.
