Looking at these lovely photos, you will agree with me, unreservedly, that the Gemballa GTR650 EVO Avalanche looks very much at home within the sprawling grounds of the National Museum.
Not that it’s vintage in any sense. But like the many masterpieces displayed inside, the Avalanche is definitely a showpiece – one that grabbed the attention of all and sundry who visited the museum on the faithful day of our photo shoot. Some even asked to have their photos taken with the car.
Any which way you look at it, it just looks fantastic.
A Ferrari F430 Scuderia may look sleeker; a Lamborghini Murcielago LP640 more imposing. But for pure visual impact, the Avalanche, with its bright orange paint work, which is a Gemballa trademark, is a show stopper. And it looks lightning fast, even when standing still.
The Avalanche starts life as a standard 911 Turbo (996) before reaching the hands of the meister-tuners that is Gemballa. There, aerodynamics, cabin, engine, transmission, chassis, suspension and brakes – everything – is tuned and fettled. And what emerges is a car that is capable of taking on the best road cars in the world – and would most probably leave them in its wake.
Get your head around these numbers: 0-100km/h sprint in the Avalanche, with 650bhp, takes just 3.3 seconds. This is quicker than the Scuderia (4.0 seconds), and the Ferrari Enzo and Koenigsegg CCX (both claim 3.4 seconds, and boast some 660bhp and 806bhp respectively).
Keep the pedal of the Avalanche floored and it tops out at 295km/h. It can go faster but its gear ratios have been “shortened”.
But it is precisely this closer gearing, coupled with its finely-tuned 3.6-litre turbocharged engine that gives the Avalanche its awesome acceleration performance.
The engine produces 950Nm of torque at 4300rpm. This makes it arguably the most powerful road car to set foot on our shores. (Well, a Bentley Brooklands worth 1050Nm did drop by recently – Ed).
Titanium piston rods, turbo pistons (compression ratio 8.7:1), race camshafts, race crankshafts, port-and-polished cylinder head, mega-sized, red-coloured Gemballa intercooler, and Gemballa Avalanche-tuned stainless steel exhaust system comprising manifolds, integrated catalysts, silencers and double tailpipes are just some of the special components that make up the extensive list of mods.
Last but not least, a Gemballa-tuned DME Motronic re-map takes care of engine management and guarantees the Avalanche its sky-high and nature-defying outputs.
Keeping the Avalanche firmly on terra firma, while lending a big hand to its performance, is the Gemballa Aerokit Avalanche, a special multi-piece body kit featuring extensive usage of carbon fibre.
And just in case you are wondering why the Avalanche seems wider than the standard 911 Turbo (which is already wider than the base 911), I can assure you that your eyes are not deceiving you. The car comes with the complete Gemballa Wide Body Modification, which “stretches out” the front fenders, doors and rear side panels.
The final design, on top of delivering high-speed stability and handling, also incorporates ducting to cool the brakes and feed the lusting powerplant.
A couple of Avalanche logos, as well as a complete 997 front end, headlights, sidelights and rear lights, were added – purely for cosmetic effect.
In the cabin, Alcantara and leather are the order of the day, and the eye-catching black and orange theme of the exterior was carried into the cabin. Deserving special mention is the Gemballa Competition 3 steering wheel, which made piloting the car a breeze with its directness and sensitivity, as well as the Gemballa Pole Position bucket-type seats.
Elsewhere, the Gemballa Avalanche instrumentation console, with its orange-faced dials and meters, really stood out. And so did the GT2 Clubsport integrated roll cage, and Gemballa dash panel with oil temperature gauge, turbo boost gauge and push/start button.
But enough about the looks, because the Avalanche is really about pure function – a fact I experienced first-hand, courtesy of Gemballa’s representatives, Exquisite Marques.
While I was absolutely enthused with the high-speed stability and sensation of brutal acceleration, it was its surefootedness over the winding country roads of Malaysia, and the staggering power of the brakes, that amazed me. And this was in the wet!
The modified components of the suspension and undercarriage read like the parts catalogue of a Porsche racing team. Top of the list is the Gemballa 96CS-R sport suspension, which features nine levels of adjustment and it is suitable for road and track use.
Next up are the Gemballa Type Supercup sports stabiliser bars, front strut bar, front and rear axle links, and alloy rear axle mounts, which work as a team to ensure that body roll is kept to an absolute minimum. And keeping understeer at bay at all times, even under hard cornering, is a GT3 RS front axle.
Greatly assisting in all-round traction, and adding to the visual stimulation, are a set of 20-inch Gemballa Racing 3-piece Black Addition alloy wheels, shod with Michelin Pilot Sport 2 ultra high-performance tyres measuring 245/30 R20 in the front and 325/25 R20 in the rear.
The matt black finish of the wheels complements the stainless steel lip and polished bolts, and they look a real treat. Best of all, each front wheel weighs just 9kg. Each rear one, which is 11.5 inches wide, tips the scales at just 11kg. The weights of these wheels are comparable to high-quality 18-inch alloy wheels that are commonly found in tyre shops.
I loved the wheels, but I loved the huge brake disc rotors and callipers even more. Even after almost 30km of sweeping roads and constantly changing gradients that demand serious commitment from the anchors, they didn’t betray even the slightest hint of fade.
Gear changes were a delight as well. The Gemballa Sport Shifter Race features a 40 per cent reduced throw. And while the super-heavy action of the RS spec clutch required strong thigh muscles, the take-up was smooth and progressive.
The soaking wet weather should have made the violently powerful Avalanche an absolute handful, with clutch, superlative performance and what else. But it didn’t. I suppose, to consider this orange agent some kind force of nature would not be an overstatement.
THE LIST
+ Exterior
Gemballa Bespoke Parts including:
> 97 LOOK front skirt
> 97 LOOK GT carbon fibre bonnet
> 97 AVALANCHE LOOK wide body carbon fibre lip
> AVALANCHE GTR side skirts
> GT2 EVO rear skirt
> GT2 Evo rear spoiler
> GT2 carbon fibre rear wing
> AVALANCHE logos
+ Engine
> AVALANCHE stainless steel exhaust system
> DME MORTRONIC Re-Map
> Race crankshaft
> Race camshafts
> Race ball-bearing turbochargers
> Sport intercooler
> Tuned alloy intake header
+ Gearbox/Drivetrain
> Porsche GT3 Cup driveshafts
> Limited-slip differential with GT2-ABS
> Race clutch conversion kit
> Gearbox oil cooler
> Race sport shifter
> Ball design gear knob
+ Suspension/Handling
> 96 CS-R sport suspension
> Sport stabiliser bar
> Front strut bar
> 96 GT3 RS front axle
> Sport front axle link / Rear axle link
+ Brakes
Front: 8-piston callipers with 380mm rotors
Rear: 4-piston callipers with 345mm rotors
+ Wheels
Front: Black Edition 9J x 20 3-piece
Rear: Black Edition 11.5J x 20 3-piece
+ Tyres
Front: Michelin Pilot Sport 2 245/30 R20
Rear: Michelin Pilot Sport 2 325/25 R20
+ Cabin
> Porsche GT2 CS integrated roll cage
> Porsche GT2 rear compartment
Gemballa Bespoke Parts including:
> Competition 3 steering wheel
> Pole Position bucket seats
> Leather/Alcantara interior
> AVALANCHE instrument dials
> Engine start panel
> Alloy pedal set
> Floor mat set
> Carbon fibre entrance blends
