To associate Porsche’s high-performance GT2 series with the enduring “race car for the road” adage could hardly ring truer. The track-focussed machine came to being as the German marque expressed its wish to campaign the 993-generation 911 in GT2-class racing. The homologated car became available to purchase for use on the road—essentially offering enthusiasts a ready-made, factory-tuned racing car with number plates—and the GT2 formula has been faithfully observed in following generations of the 911.

The 996-generation 911 GT2 followed in 2001, some four years after the base model 911 Carrera made its bow as the first water-cooled 911. While the preceding 993-era GT2 was derived from its application in motorsport, the next-gen version was largely designed from the beginning as a road car, coinciding with Porsche’s withdrawal of the GT2 from factory-backed race activity. Compared to the regular 911, the GT2 sported a wider body shape, a sharper nose design, and was topped by a towering fixed rear wing to increase downforce at speed.

Underneath its impressive and aggressively styled bodywork lay an equally remarkable mechanical set-up. Porsche’s signature 3.6-litre flat-six engine was boosted by the addition of twin-turbochargers, which—assisted by a modified air intake and exhaust system—ramped up power output to 456 horsepower (later increasing to 476 horsepower) and delivered a blistering top speed of 198 mph.

The example offered here was completed by the factory on 24 February 2003, finished in Basalt Black Metallic over a Black leather interior—the configuration it retains to this day. The 911 GT2 was generously specified with many of the most desirable options from the 911 configurator’s checklist, notably featuring 18-inch “Turbo-look” alloy wheels, the Aluminium Package, air conditioning, ceramic brakes, leather interior with sports seats, stainless steel tailpipes, and the preference of no factory sunroof.

The Porsche was delivered new to the UK and registered on 1 September 2003. Remaining with its first owner until May 2016, the 911 GT2 was then acquired by its consigning owner who has cared for the car since. The car is accompanied by its Porsche Guarantee and Maintenance Manual, last stamped with a service performed by Porsche Service Centre Brooklands in May 2023. In their ownership the car has travelled little over 100 miles, and its odometer reads just 4,565 miles at the time of cataloguing.

A legend of the Porsche 911 model family, and thought to be one of only 129 right-hand-drive examples of the 996-era GT2, this blisteringly fast “race car for the road” would be just as at home on the racetrack as it is on the streets.