At the 2025 World Car of the Year awards, the Porsche 911 GTS—the first-ever hybrid 911—garnered the title of 2025 World Performance Car of the Year. Voted by 96 international automotive journalists from 30 countries, the 911 GTS was recognized for its lightweight T-Hybrid system.

A total of 17 vehicles vied for the title this year, and the 911 GTS held off the Porsche Turbo Taycan GT and the BMW M5 to win the title.

With their 2025 win, it marks Porsche’s eighth World Performance Car title. It also marks their ninth award in the World Car of the Year’s 21-year history.

“Performance has been in the DNA of the 911 since it was first introduced in 1963,” said Oliver Blume, Chairman of the Executive Board at Porsche AG. “With each of the eight generations since then, our aim has been to set the bar higher. The 911 Carrera GTS with the innovative, lightweight T-Hybrid system is the latest advancement in that quest. We are thrilled that the World Car jury could experience the power and performance of the car first-hand and are very grateful for the recognition.”

Meanwhile, another variant of the 911, the GT3 claimed the record of the fastest production car with a manual transmission at the Nürburgring-Nordschleife.

Porsche brand ambassador Joerg Bergmeister beat the previous record, set by the more powerful Dodge Viper ACR under a privateer effort, way back in 2017.

The German sportscar maker credits the extensive continued development of all performance-relevant vehicle components that helped the 911 GT3 with the optional Weissach Package lap 3.633 seconds faster than the GT3 (992.1) equipped with the 7-speed dual-clutch automatic (PDK).

“More and more customers of the 911 GT3 are opting for the six-speed manual transmission. And more and more often we are asked by these customers how fast a 911 GT3 with manual transmission would be on the Nordschleife”, Andreas Preuninger, Director GT Cars said. “We have now answered this question. Even without the automated, super-fast and precise gearshifts of the PDK and with a mechanical instead of electronically controlled limited-slip differential, the new 911 GT3 takes around 3.6 seconds off its predecessor with PDK.”

“The new 911 GT3 inspires even more confidence at the limit than the previous model. I was faster in almost every corner,” Bergmeister said, describing the handling of the sports car. “We learned a lot from the 911 GT3 RS, especially with the chassis. The car is even more stable on bumps and over the curbs. And thanks to the eight percent shorter gear ratio, there is noticeably more power on the rear axle when accelerating with the same engine power. Even if it would have been a few seconds faster with the seven-speed PDK – with the six-speed manual gearbox I definitely had more to do on the fast lap and thus also a bit more fun.”