Race of Base: 2018 Porsche 911 GT2 RS

Last Friday, the boffins in Stuttgart saw fit to unleash the Build and Price tool for its foaming-at-the-mouth GT2 RS. With a twin-turbo flax-six making 700 horses, it has been suggested the king of all Porsches will hit 60 miles per hour from a standstill in 2.7 seconds on its way to a top speed of 211 mph.

In a world where a single option package can cost $31,000 and a dab of paint on the dashboard air vents will set you back $1,720, is it really worth inspecting a $293,200 base model? Yes, yes it is. Let’s see what’s in store.

First off, Porsche sees fit to deign the commoners with a $0 quartet of tasty color choices. Black, White, Guards Red, and Racing Yellow will take nary a penny from buyers wallets, with the latter three colors showing off the contrasting hood and air vents. The fabulous-in-person Miami Blue (and any of the other four special colors) ring up a $4,220 charge. Do not be seduced.

Porsche will gladly charge you $690 to paint the GT2 RS’s wheels, but the standard equipment lightweight forged-alloy center-locking wheels look great as they are, finished in White Gold metallic with a high gloss finish. Magnesium wheels (mag rims, baby!) are part of the $31,000 Weissach package.

Eh? What? A Camry’s worth of options in a single package? Yes, dear reader, it’s true. The Weissach package includes a raft of carbon fiber in the roof, front lid, and rear wing, plus a special lightweight glass rear window (sans defroster). Various bits and bobs such as the gearshift paddles are also finished in the fiber that is carbon. The entire package saves 39.68 lbs of weight, or 17 kg in Metric measure. Alert readers will realize that’s $781.25 per pound, or about the price of lean ground beef in Canada.

Porsche used to be the type of manufacturer where only those in the know realized that this model, for example, was called the GT2 RS. Now, of course, thanks to the development of a society where one must BROADCAST THEIR ACHIEVEMENTS, the model designation is stamped on the rump of every 911 like a naughty lower-back tattoo. Thankfully, one can delete the model designation for $0, thereby keeping the Great Unwashed guessing as to if you’re piloting a GT2 RS, a Carrera 4 GTS, or a Turbo S. The Porsche logotype remains.

A front axle lift system is $3,490, so it will be prudent for the Ace of Base GT2 RS buyer to exercise caution near those speed bumps on access roads around the track. Masochists can choose to delete the A/C for $0.

But the best $0 option of them all is the Porsche Delivery Experience. Their factory collection program allows buyers to collect their Porsche directly from either the factory in Zuffenhausen or Leipzig, or the Porsche Experience Center in Atlanta. Transport, hotel reservations, and a factory tour are included in the European deliveries, while the southern hospitality will treat you to a 90-minute track session. Why anyone would leave this box unchecked is a mystery.

It’s terrifyingly easy to ratchet the GT2 RS sticker over $340,000. A zero-options car holds a lot of appeal to this slovenly journalist, although it should be noted that a $31,000 option package on a $293,200 car is simply akin to adding five grand in options to a F-150 Lariat SuperCrew. Now, you try it, and report below with your findings.

[Image: Porsche]

Not every base model has aced it. The ones which have? They help make the automotive landscape a lot better. Any others you can think of, B&B? Let us know in the comments. Naturally, feel free to eviscerate our selection.

The model above is shown in American dollars with American options and trim, absent of destination charges.