2017 Porsche 911 RSR Is Freaking Mid-Engined, All Hail the Aerodynamics

Yes, the mind starts to wonder violently when the RSR gives up on the engine-behind-the-rear-axle setup that has made the Neunelfer what it is for over half a century now.

However, before anybody purist goes crazy, there are a few things we need to point out. First of all, the all-new 4.0-liter (more on that in a few paragraphs' time) isn't mid-positioned in the Cayman sense.

At first, you wouldn't say that, simply because the rear window, along with the rear side windows, with all their air vents and intakes, offer an impression that contradicts this.

*However, what Porsche actually did was to switch the position of the flat-six and its also-new six-speed sequential gearbox, with the tranny now sitting behind the engine.

So, if we go for a bit of a long stretch, we could say Porsche's move is not that far from the one that saw Bentley pushing the heart of the Continental GT3 racecar lower and further behind the front axle compared to the road car.

Then there are the aero-related reasons behind the switch. Since Zuffenahusen's brand image is built around a motorsport core, the Germans decided to take full advantage of the new racing regulations and gift the new car with a diffuser that's considerably more generous, a move that the engine placement simply didn't allow in the past.

Factor in the 919 Hybrid LMP1 racer-like wing and we might end up with a 911 that has serious chances of wiping the Le Mans smile off the Ford GT's face next year - the 911 RSR will compete in both the World Endurance Championship and the IMSA WeaterTech Championship. Then there's the Ferrari 488 GTE, a competitor that shouldn't be overlooked.

Heck, even the mufflers are new, as rearranging the furniture in the back room now allows for individual units.

Of course, the other version would be for the mid-favoring layout seen here to make its way into the next-gen 911 street car. But that doesn't seem to be the case.

While the spied prototypes do appear to be a little wider, this could mean the engineers are making room for moving the engine slightly closer to the middle of the car, but not in a brutal manner that would turn the thing into a two-seater. After all, the 991 generation has also seen the flat-six at its back getting just a tad further away from the rear bumper and there's nothing wrong with that.

Speaking of which, it's ironic to see how nobody has an issue with Porsche's homologation special, the GT3 RS, only being able to accommodate two humans and we can say the same thing about the rear-seat delete feature, which spreads further in the Nuenelfer line-up.

Returning to the 2017 911 RSR, the 4.0-liter unit has now left the Metzger block behind, with the direct-injected powerplant delivering 510 hp (this is the maximum value, depending on the restrictor size).

And while that might not sound like a lot these days, keep in mind that the steel body of the retired RSR had made room for carbon fiber panels. The scales are smiling now and it's all thanks to the 2,740 lbs of the newcomer. And quick-release fasteners allow mechanics to switch broken pieces mid-race quicker than you can change your socks.

With safety in mind, the RSR makes an important step towards avoiding those painful impacts involving faster LMP1 or LMP2 prototypes, packing a radar-based feature that, according to Porsche's alphabet soup obsession, gets the Collision Avoid System designation.

The 2017 Porsche 911 RSR will make its competition debut on January 28th at Daytona and meanwhile you can feast your senses on the piece of footage below, which personifies the racecar in a way that makes us car nuts feel normal for a moment.