New Car: 2012 Ruf CTR 3

The Porsche 911 is already a must-have accessory for The Man Who Has Everything, but for the man who wants more than that, there’s this: the updated form of Ruf’s CTR 3 supercar.

The so-called Ruf CTR 3 is produced by the engineering mavens at German manufacturer Ruf. Ruf has long been known for tuning the snot out of all sorts of Porsches, but the CTR 3 is its own unique beast — despite the fact it picks liberally from Porsche’s parts bins.

So, what’s changed? The original CTR 3, as released in 2007, and featured a tweaked version of the Porsche 911’s 3.8-liter flat-six engine, which was good for 691 hp and 657 lb-ft of torque. Coupled with a curb weight of just over 3000 pounds, that made for a veritable road rocket — but Ruf apparently believes there’s always room for improvement.

The new model also has a 3.8-liter flat-six, but output has been increased to 750 hp and 708 lb-ft of torque — all of which is sent to the rear wheels through a six-speed sequential manual gearbox. For those keeping score at home, that’s 130 ponies more than the mighty 911 GT2 RS. With that amount of power, it’s no surprise the car is quick. Ruf says gear ratios limit the CTR 3 to 236 mph (1 mph better than before), and 0-60 mph runs are ticked off in a scant 3.2 seconds.

For the first time, Ruf will stuff the massaged flat-six into the middle of the car, within a custom modular tube space frame. Body panels are crafted from lightweight Kevlar composites, aluminum, and galvanized steel. The new CTR 3 uses MacPherson struts up front and a pushrod suspension in back, and engineers have stretched the wheelbase to help high-speed stability. All four brakes receive six-piston setups to make sure the car can stop just like it goes. Sound like a road-legal racer? Perhaps that’s also why Ruf fits an integrated roll cage into the interior, which is otherwise trimmed and customized for each customer with leather and Alcantara materials.

Ruf hasn’t yet announced pricing for the new CTR 3, but considering that the last model rang in at close to $510,000, don’t expect the updated model to be any less expensive.

Thanks to: Motor Trend