| Jeremy Clarkson, Sunday Times columnist, announced the 911 GT3 Touring as his ‘Car of the Year’ at the annual News UK Motor Awards last night“It’s not just a sports car. It’s the best sports car I’ve ever driven.”First time Jeremy has chosen a Porsche as his coveted ‘Car of the Year’ – award was presented to Andreas Preuninger, Head of GT Cars, Porsche AGThe 911 GT3 is revered among owners and fans for its powerful normally-aspirated flat-six engine and engaging dynamic performanceAward comes as Porsche Cars GB celebrates 75 years in the UK, the first 356 making its London debut at the Earls Court Motor Show in October 1951 |
| Almost 75 years to the day since Porsche made its debut in the UK, the Sunday Times columnist and renowned motoring journalist Jeremy Clarkson named the 911 GT3 Touring his ‘Car of the Year’ 2026 in the News UK Motor Awards in London last night. In addition, the new Cayenne Electric was shortlisted in the Large SUV category and the Porsche wireless inductive charging pad for the Cayenne was shortlisted for Tech Innovation of the Year. |
In the Porsche tradition, the 911 has always been distinguished by its broad spread of talent, spanning exhilarating driving dynamics and comfort, high performance and efficiency, balanced with everyday usability; the latter most obvious in the versatile luggage capacity and rear seating.
In recognising the 911 GT3 Touring as his ‘Car of the Year’, Jeremy Clarkson commented: “The steering is perfect. The gear change is so delightful I actually purred every time I dropped a cog. And the power is more than enough. It’s fast but not scarily so. It’s not just a sports car. It’s the best sports car I’ve ever driven. And at £158,200 it’s not even stupidly expensive. That said, the car I drove, which had a few extras fitted, such as seats and wheels, was £203,700. Too much? Nah.”
The appeal of the 911 GT3 lies in its charismatic, motorsport-bred normally-aspirated flat-six engine combined with the incisive steering and chassis feedback derived from decades of success on the race track.
In keeping with its motorsport origins, the 911 GT3 places its emphasis on the driver and circuit lap times, with a focus on light weight and honed aerodynamics. Hence, the rear seats are absent, and a large rear wing generates downforce at high speeds.
In the case of the GT3 Touring, it forsakes the rear wing of its track-biased sibling and features rear seats, in combination with a more luxurious interior trim, underlining its appeal for everyday driving in lieu of attacking the race track.
The 911 GT3 is also offered with a choice of manual transmission, which further heightens the marque’s characteristic deep connection between car and driver. In combination with the free-revving, 510 PS six-cylinder engine, this raises the emotive experience from behind the wheel.
Andreas Preuninger, Head of GT Cars, Porsche AG, received the award on behalf of his team, based at the company’s Research and Development Centre at Weissach in Germany.