2022 Porsche 911 Safari Is in a Class of Its Own

With hardcore models like the 718 Cayman GT4 RS, which also represents a swan song for naturally aspirated engines in the soon-to-go-electric 718 range, or the downright mental 911 GT3 RS (992), Porsche is definitely at the peak of ICE, sort of speak.

The carmaker is now expanding the 911 lineup with a model that has been foreshadowed and expected for about half a century – a rally inspired, high-bodied version of the Nuenelfer.

Porsche was actively racing and winning in rallies using the 911 since the 1960s, with cars like the Porsche 911 SC demolishing their competition in the hellish 5,000 (3,100 miles) East African Safari Rally, or the fantastic 953 and 959 Group B monsters winning the illustrious Paris Dakar Rally in 1984 and 1986.

Generations upon generations of 911 aficionados have expected Porsche to develop a production version of its dune-bashing buggies well into the last generations of the air-cooled era, yet the German carmaker stubbornly said no each time.

The only high-bodied, Safari-style versions of 911s that exist so far have been the work of aftermarket fans and specialists, even though Porsche almost fulfil this legacy on the 997 generation but pulled back at the last minute.

There was even a secret concept car called the 911 Safari a few years back, and its existence only surfaced publicly in 2020.

Coincidentally, that the same year where some mysterious prototypes of 911 (992) on stilts began making the rounds on public roads and even the Nurburgring.

We can confirm that Porsche is indeed launching a production 911 Safari, and it might be one of the coolest 911 versions of all time when it goes on sale in early 2022.

As you can see from the latest spy photos, the prototypes are pretty much devoid of any camouflage and seem to be sporting every production element expected on the finalized car.

By far the biggest difference compared to a any other 911 is the raised ground clearance, which seems to be almost as high as that on a Macan, thus completely transforming the stance of the rear-engine sports car.

That said, looks closely and you can spot other differences as well, such as the wider track and the extra fairing on the more flamboyant wheel wells.

The main mystery revolves around the type of suspension that Porsche engineers have decided upon, because simply using longer springs and the same geometry isn’t going to cut it.

To put it in layman terms, the normal Porsche 911 (992) has a coilover suspension system that can only offer ride height adjustments on the front axle, and that is thanks to an option nose-lift system.

With that in mind, using this solution to raise the ground clearance on both axles isn’t feasible because the system doesn’t offer any rebound, and in the regular 911 is only usable for low speeds for this very reason.

Porsche is in the habit of surprising everyone with their engineering prowess, with the double wishbone front suspension of the latest 911 GT3, the first of its kinds and derived straight from the 911 RSR racer, being a good example as any.

At least when it comes to track driving, the 2022 Porsche 911 Safari prototypes don’t seem to lose any handling points despite their ground clearance, so despite being likely more comfortable than a standard 911, the model probably won’t feel like a crossover.

As expected, the car is will be strictly all-wheel-drive, but don’t go looking for some differential locks or some of the off-road gizmos found on the mighty Cayenne, as the 911 Safari will have a much more tarmac-friendly setup than any Porsche SUV.

Any rock-crawling capabilities would be rendered useless by the poor attack and departure angles any way, but you can be sure that the Safari will be the most usable 911 version on poorer road surfaces, and maybe even some occasional dune-bashing if the right tires are fitted.

On the powertrain department, it is expected that the model will be fitted with the same 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged flat-six found on the rest of the ‘normal’ lineup, with its output being either identical to the one had by the Carrera S and 4S or the Carrera GTS, which is more likely.

That means we are looking at either 450 horsepower and 530 Nm (391 lb-ft) of torque or 480 horsepower and 570 Nm (420 lb-ft) of torque, which would enable the crossover-ish sports car to get from naught to 100 kph (62 mph) in well under four seconds.

In a weird way, if the 911 Safari is classified as a crossover/SUV, it might even dethrone another Porsche from the Nurburgring fast lap times for SUVs list, the mighty Cayenne Coupe Turbo GT.