Photo: Porsche
Today, after 21 months of production, Porsche has assembled the final unit of the 918 Spyder. Of course, this is unit number 918 and the milestone brings more than that, since Porsche has released a clip in which it talks about its competitors.
To be honest, the move took us by surprised, as carmakers generally use a “no-elephant-in-the-room” attitude when it comes to publicly acknowledging their halo car competitors.
Nevertheless, the video below does mention the Ferrari LaFerrari and the McLaren P1 on more than one occasion. Our German language skills still need a Weissach package, but we were able to understand this much - Porsche used a light-hearted attitude, basically saluting the rivalry and talking about exceeding expectations.
Still, in their press release, the Zuffenhausen people do mention the 918 is the most hybrid of the hypercar triumvirate - “Another example with future implications: the Porsche 918 Spyder can convert far more kinetic energy into electrical energy than other hybrid vehicles because of its intelligent control of generator functionality and conventional brakes. Its enormous regenerative power boosts efficiency and driving range.”
Truth be told, Porsche won the Le Mans 2015 race last weekend while being the only carmaker that competed in the 8MJ top-tier energy category, so there’s a strong similarity between the 918 Spyder and the 919 racecar.
And despite being the most motorsport- and engineering-savvy company in the automotive side of the industry, Porsche did have to shed quite some sweat and tears for the 918. Just think about how complex the production process was - all the tools used during the assembly process are wireless, allowing for greater flexibility at the workplace.
We’ll remind you this isn’t the first time when Porsche’s marketing and communication team turns to hybrid tactics. For instance, there was that recent occasion when they sent the 918 Spyder to 350 km/h (217 mph) out in the Australian Outback for no good reason other than our sheer enjoyment.
Nevertheless, the video below does mention the Ferrari LaFerrari and the McLaren P1 on more than one occasion. Our German language skills still need a Weissach package, but we were able to understand this much - Porsche used a light-hearted attitude, basically saluting the rivalry and talking about exceeding expectations.
Still, in their press release, the Zuffenhausen people do mention the 918 is the most hybrid of the hypercar triumvirate - “Another example with future implications: the Porsche 918 Spyder can convert far more kinetic energy into electrical energy than other hybrid vehicles because of its intelligent control of generator functionality and conventional brakes. Its enormous regenerative power boosts efficiency and driving range.”
Truth be told, Porsche won the Le Mans 2015 race last weekend while being the only carmaker that competed in the 8MJ top-tier energy category, so there’s a strong similarity between the 918 Spyder and the 919 racecar.
The long and winding road to thinking outside the box
And just like the Le Mans return took two years to the podium, the 918 Spyder trip wasn’t without its less fortunate times. We’re referring to the three recalls here. Nevertheless, you can’t learn extra valuable lessons if you stay in the comfort zone.And despite being the most motorsport- and engineering-savvy company in the automotive side of the industry, Porsche did have to shed quite some sweat and tears for the 918. Just think about how complex the production process was - all the tools used during the assembly process are wireless, allowing for greater flexibility at the workplace.
We’ll remind you this isn’t the first time when Porsche’s marketing and communication team turns to hybrid tactics. For instance, there was that recent occasion when they sent the 918 Spyder to 350 km/h (217 mph) out in the Australian Outback for no good reason other than our sheer enjoyment.
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