RUF is an incredible automaker in their own right—while it may seem easier to start with an existing chassis to create your model line, when you consider how much work goes into each RUF you quickly realize that this is not necessarily true. Creating a RUF is not easy; starting with modern Porsche body-in-whites (meaning, a bare welded-together chassis without VINs, sold to RUF), RUF does the rest of the assembly, fitting mostly bespoke components and re-engineering nearly everything else to craft an entire package engineered to work together from the get-go. First, there’s the integral rollcage that RUF installs in each chassis, a signature element that adds rigidity and safety—a tradition started with the CTR2 in 1996. After that, things get wilder. The RGT-8 is a good example: it doesn’t even feature a Porsche-based engine. Instead, RUF designed its own original V8—a 4.5-liter flat-plane crank masterpiece—from scratch in two years flat. The resulting engine is less than an inch longer than the 3.6-liter flat six found in a normal 911, and it’s a full 88 lbs. lighter. To make matters even more interesting, it produces about 550 horsepower without the aid of turbochargers or superchargers. Outside, the RUF is enhanced with special aerodynamic bodywork for a unique look, and RUF also fits upgraded suspension in several flavors. The RGT-8 is a fine example of what makes RUF special; completely redone from top to bottom, the result is a vaguely familiar shape with completely unique driving characteristics.
