It's been decades since Porsche started lifting rear-engined cars for offroad races such as the Paris-Dakar rally. And it looks like Zuffenhausen is finally preparing to bring a such a model into the showroom, with a new prototype of a jacked-up 911 having been recently spotted testing.
Rumors revolving around the German automaker introducing a high-riding version of the Neunelfer have been around for as long as we can remember and, before moving on to discussing these fresh spy pics, we need to mention the recent background.
After many years of waiting, the said unofficial talk started looking like it could materialize last month, when an also-lifted 992-generation 911 prototype was unleashed on the Nurburgring. This featured foam-built wheel arch extensions, the type of hardware normally used to measure wheel tolerances, but its generous ground clearance was easily noticeable.
Then November came and Porsche opened up its design studios to the world, revealing that, among others, it had built a 911 Safari concept in the early days of the previous 991 generation. And note that we're talking about a working prototype rather than a display model. Heck, given the evolutionary updates the generation change brought to the chassis of the sportscar, we can't help but wonder how much of that experience was used on these new prototypes.
Speaking of which, the test vehicle that brought us here was spotted doing its thing at the Porsche center in Weissach, Germany, which also saw the said 991 development coming to life.
Judging by the markings on the vehicle's staggered wheels, as well as by the message on the rear plate, it looks like the car is performing braking tests - could this go-anywhere special pack special ABS calibration for non-paved surfaces?
Regardless, the ducktail spoiler adorning the machine seems to be new and we can't wait to see more of that posterior as the vehicles reaches the final stages of its development.
After many years of waiting, the said unofficial talk started looking like it could materialize last month, when an also-lifted 992-generation 911 prototype was unleashed on the Nurburgring. This featured foam-built wheel arch extensions, the type of hardware normally used to measure wheel tolerances, but its generous ground clearance was easily noticeable.
Then November came and Porsche opened up its design studios to the world, revealing that, among others, it had built a 911 Safari concept in the early days of the previous 991 generation. And note that we're talking about a working prototype rather than a display model. Heck, given the evolutionary updates the generation change brought to the chassis of the sportscar, we can't help but wonder how much of that experience was used on these new prototypes.
Speaking of which, the test vehicle that brought us here was spotted doing its thing at the Porsche center in Weissach, Germany, which also saw the said 991 development coming to life.
Judging by the markings on the vehicle's staggered wheels, as well as by the message on the rear plate, it looks like the car is performing braking tests - could this go-anywhere special pack special ABS calibration for non-paved surfaces?
Regardless, the ducktail spoiler adorning the machine seems to be new and we can't wait to see more of that posterior as the vehicles reaches the final stages of its development.