However, its frontal chassis is based on the 993-generation 911, while the rear subframe was derived from the 962C Group C prototype [5] along with its water-cooled, twin-turbocharged and intercooled, 4 valves per cylinder 3,164 cc (3.2 L) flat-six engine fuel fed by Bosch Motronic 5.2 fuel injection, which was longitudinally-mounted in a rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout, compared to the rear-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout of a conventional 911.

The 911 GT1 made its debut in the BPR Global GT Series (the FIA championship's predecessor) at the Brands Hatch 4 hours, where Hans-Joachim Stuck and Thierry Boutsen won comfortably, although they were racing as an invitational entry and were thus ineligible for points.

The 1996 911 GT1 clocked at a top speed of exactly 330 km/h (205 mph) on the legendary Mulsanne Straight in the practice sessions of the 1996 Le Mans 24 Hours Race.

The front end of the car was revised including new bodywork which featured headlamps that previewed the all-new generation of the (996) Porsche 911 which would be unveiled in 1997.

At Le Mans the works cars led the race but did not last the full distance; a privately entered 1996 specification GT1 managed 5th overall and third in the GT1 class.

Designed to match the also new Toyota GT-One and the Mercedes-Benz CLK LM, the 911 GT1-98 featured bodywork that bore more of a resemblance to traditional sports-prototypes than the previous two models.

However, in the 1998 Le Mans 24 Hours test days, the car hit 330 km/h (205 mph) on the Mulsanne Straight on a lower downforce setup.

The first was delivered in early 1996 to the German Federal Ministry of Transport, Building, and Urban Development for compliance testing, which it passed.

The second prototype vehicle is in the hands of a Bahrain-based private car collector Khalid Abdul Rahim.

[9] The production car - dubbed "911 GT1 Straßenversion" - was a run of approximately 20 units which were built in 1997 and featured 996 style front headlights.