Earlier this week, a 991-generation Porsche 911 GT3 was lapping the Nurburgring during one of the Touristenfahrten days when the circuit is open to the public. Unfortunately, this drive turned to a catastrophe when the German sports car caught fire.
It remains unclear exactly how the blaze started, but the YouTuber behind thisvideo says the 911 GT3’s engine started to bellow smoke shortly before the driver pulled over. Fortunately, the driver was able to escape before the inferno consumed the car.
For at least 15 minutes, the 911 was engulfed in flames before fire crews could arrive on the scene. By the time they showed up, the entire car was destroyed and nothing but a burnt-out shell remained. The fire was eventually extinguished thanks to heaps of water and a foam cannon before the car was lifted onto a truck bed and carried away.
In 2014, Porsche recalled all 991-generation 911 GT3s it had built up to that date after a number of examples unexpectedly caught fire. Porsche ultimately determined that an issue with the connecting rod fasteners was responsible for the infernos. All 785 examples built at the time were fitted with new engines.
At this time, it’s unclear if this fire was related to that issue. In any case, here’s hoping the owner’s insurance policy covered use on the track, or else this could prove to be a very expensive ‘Ring ride.
https://youtu.be/01aH5Znfv0I