Photo: S.Baldauf/SB-Medien
Despite all the successes it has had over the years in off-road rallying, Porsche has never officially built a high-riding 911 for the street, a marketing mistake it will fix sometime this year.
The sports carmaker has been active with the 911 in rallying since the ‘60s, with models like the 911 SC rewriting the history books by winning the grueling 3,100-mile (5,000 km) East African Safari Rally, or the 953 and 959 Group B winning the legendary Paris Dakar Rally in both 1984 and 1986.
All these racing successes should have been enough to persuade Porsche to build a production version of a 911 dune buggy at some point, but that has only happened in the aftermarket realm until now.
This is the year when Porsche will finally offer a high-riding version of the 911, this time of the 992 variety, and proof of it are the countless pre-production prototypes spotted by spy photographers in the last year.
Unlike previous sightings, the latest 911 "Safari" prototype was seen sporting what appear to be production body parts and almost no camouflage on the Nürburgring Nordschleife, where we have to admit it still looks in its element despite the increased ground clearance.
Speaking of the raised suspension and how well it seems to hold the car hugging the Carraciola-Karussell corner, it will be interesting to find out what engineering solution has been chosen to raise the ground clearance so high without losing points in handling.
The regular Porsche 911 (992) uses a coilover suspension system that technically doesn’t allow ride height adjustments, save for the optional nose-lift. It wouldn’t make sense to use the same nose-lift system for both axles since it’s only suitable for low speeds as it doesn’t offer any rebound.
Traction is likely to be all-paw as standard, but don’t expect any lockable differentials or any fancy off-roading technology found in the Macan or the Cayenne, which aren’t exactly off-road monsters anyway lately.
On top of it, modern 911s have never been known for having great attack angles, which is why they offer that optional nose-lift system for accessing underground parking lots in the first place.
Engine-wise, the 2022 Porsche 911 "Safari" is expected to feature a similar 3.0-liter twin-turbo flat-six as the one found in the Carrera S and 4S, if not slightly more powerful.
All these racing successes should have been enough to persuade Porsche to build a production version of a 911 dune buggy at some point, but that has only happened in the aftermarket realm until now.
This is the year when Porsche will finally offer a high-riding version of the 911, this time of the 992 variety, and proof of it are the countless pre-production prototypes spotted by spy photographers in the last year.
Unlike previous sightings, the latest 911 "Safari" prototype was seen sporting what appear to be production body parts and almost no camouflage on the Nürburgring Nordschleife, where we have to admit it still looks in its element despite the increased ground clearance.
Speaking of the raised suspension and how well it seems to hold the car hugging the Carraciola-Karussell corner, it will be interesting to find out what engineering solution has been chosen to raise the ground clearance so high without losing points in handling.
The regular Porsche 911 (992) uses a coilover suspension system that technically doesn’t allow ride height adjustments, save for the optional nose-lift. It wouldn’t make sense to use the same nose-lift system for both axles since it’s only suitable for low speeds as it doesn’t offer any rebound.
Traction is likely to be all-paw as standard, but don’t expect any lockable differentials or any fancy off-roading technology found in the Macan or the Cayenne, which aren’t exactly off-road monsters anyway lately.
On top of it, modern 911s have never been known for having great attack angles, which is why they offer that optional nose-lift system for accessing underground parking lots in the first place.
Engine-wise, the 2022 Porsche 911 "Safari" is expected to feature a similar 3.0-liter twin-turbo flat-six as the one found in the Carrera S and 4S, if not slightly more powerful.
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