Photo: Carpix
Imagine you're part of the Porsche engineering team that hones upcoming 911 models. And while that might sound like the ideal job, you should know such positions have their difficulties. For one thing, a test driver probably can't be engaged in the development of the nearly-ready 2018 911 GT2 and that of the next-generation Neunelfer at the same time. Nevertheless, we might just be ready to give up our role in the GT2 team to join the 992-generation camp, especially now that the German automaker has kicked off the development of the all-new 911 Turbo.
This is the first time when the Turbo incarnation of the rear-engined coupe shows up, following the Coupe and the Cabriolet incarnations of the Carrera models, which we've shown you on previous occasions.
For now, we're dealing with a test mule, one that mixes the current 991.2 body with engine and chassis components set to go into the next-gen model.
Even so, it's obvious that the generation change will make the supercar wider - the 911 line-up now offers three possible widths, with the Turbo being on the list of models that get the most aggressive version. It's way too early to try and peek inside the cabin of the thing, so we'll stick to mentioning the classic Neunelfer t-shirt of the passenger.
Zuffenhausen will replace the current 3.8-liter twin-turbocharged heart of the current model and, since the current Turbo and Turbo S sit at 540 and 580 hp, respectively, we can expect the "standard" version to sit around the 600 hp mark.
As for the Turbo S, this might just morph into the Turbo S E-Hybrid, as we explained in a story delivered last month. Rumors about the German carmaker building 700 hp super-hybrids for the Panamera and the 911 line-up have been floating around since 2014.
Now that hybrid propulsion has been confirmed for the 992 Neunelfer and the second-generation Panamera has mixed the Turbo S and the E-Hybrid badges, we could expect a 700 hp gas-electric 911.
Given the fact that the 911 line-up usually holds over 20 models, we'd bet on Porsche offering two hybrid powertrains for the Neunelfer, but this is another story for another time.
For now, we're dealing with a test mule, one that mixes the current 991.2 body with engine and chassis components set to go into the next-gen model.
Even so, it's obvious that the generation change will make the supercar wider - the 911 line-up now offers three possible widths, with the Turbo being on the list of models that get the most aggressive version. It's way too early to try and peek inside the cabin of the thing, so we'll stick to mentioning the classic Neunelfer t-shirt of the passenger.
Zuffenhausen will replace the current 3.8-liter twin-turbocharged heart of the current model and, since the current Turbo and Turbo S sit at 540 and 580 hp, respectively, we can expect the "standard" version to sit around the 600 hp mark.
As for the Turbo S, this might just morph into the Turbo S E-Hybrid, as we explained in a story delivered last month. Rumors about the German carmaker building 700 hp super-hybrids for the Panamera and the 911 line-up have been floating around since 2014.
Now that hybrid propulsion has been confirmed for the 992 Neunelfer and the second-generation Panamera has mixed the Turbo S and the E-Hybrid badges, we could expect a 700 hp gas-electric 911.
Given the fact that the 911 line-up usually holds over 20 models, we'd bet on Porsche offering two hybrid powertrains for the Neunelfer, but this is another story for another time.
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