Photo: Zhe Huang on Behance
In 2020, Porsche released a book featuring 15 secret (at the time) concept cars the company had come up with. Not only did this introduce the public to a host of exciting Porsche-branded vehicles never before seen, but it also confirmed something we've all been suspecting for a long time: behind every production model that ends up at dealerships, there are dozens of different proposals that, for one reason or another, never make it out the design studio.
You may think the current 911 is a great-looking design, but who's to say you wouldn't have preferred one of the versions that were ultimately scrapped by the company's higher-ups? Who knows what your favorite brand or model would be if, somewhere along the line, an executive for one of the carmakers made a different decision? The butterfly effect? More like automotive company CEO effect, right?
I somehow get the feeling we'd have to go back a very long way and make some drastically different decisions to end up with a Porsche racing minivan (or MPV, if you prefer), but somewhere in the multiverse, there must be at least one alternate reality where such a vehicle exists. Now, thanks to the wonders of the digital realm, we have one over here too.
Among the 15 concepts unveiled by the Stuttgart-based company in its book, there was one called Porsche Renndienst. According to the description, it was loosely based on an old Volkswagen service van (with "rennen" meaning "racing" and "dienst", "service"), but in reality, it was the company's attempt to explore a possible design identity if it was ever going to expand into the minivan segment. I know, a ludicrous thought, but, as they say, it's better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.
The exercise proved completely futile, but it does seem to have sparked the imagination of a young aspiring designer by the name of Zhe Huang. Intrigued by the concept's unconventional 1-2-3 seat configuration, Zhe used it as a source of inspiration for something almost completely different - and, if we're being honest, a lot more in tune with the brand's core values: a "hyper racing MPV".
Yes, that sounds ridiculous, but only until you see what the Mission S, as Zhe calls his creation, looks like. With an exterior design that sleek, the only thing you can call it without sounding silly is "beautiful".
The idea behind the Mission S is that it should open up the currently very exclusive world of racing to the wider public by acting as a sort of extended track taxi. Like in the Renndienst, the driver would sit by themselves up-front in the center, whereas the four passengers would occupy the four remaining seats arranged in two rows with two seats each.
Well, that's all very nice in principle and I can't imagine who would say "no" to the chance of riding in the Porsche Mission S with a professional driver behind the wheel. However, I also can't fathom why anyone would agree to sit in the third row unless, of course, those seats were cheaper - in which case we'd have the whole first class/economy class separation you get on board an airplane, minus the all-important physical divider.
To be fair to him, Zhe did try to mitigate the disadvantage by having the seats in the two rows staggered, like in a theater. That's definitely better than nothing, yet it does very little to pique my interest in trying any of those two seats out during a stint on the track.
The limited height of the glasshouse adds even more reasons to avoid sitting at the back, if not in fear of claustrophobia, then at least because you would be missing half the fun while getting double the dose of nausea - neither of which is a good return for your money.
Considering all this, you have to ask yourself what is the point of having a five-seater as a track taxi when only three of the people on board are having fun? You'd be much better off if you simply eliminated those two seats and turned the vehicle into a three-seater with the two passengers sitting each side of the driver and slightly further behind. You know, the same layout you'll find in a McLaren SpeedTail, a car that also happens to be quite capable around a track.
Indeed, there never was and, most likely, never will be a demand for a high-speed, track-focused minivan, even if Zhe's intention with this odd vehicle - that of opening up motorsport to the masses and allowing more people to experience the thrills offered by a racecar - is noble and deserving of support. However, it's not so much a new type of car that's needed, particularly if it's going to be an expensive Porsche, but rather making the already existing ones more affordable.
It's not hard to imagine the Porsche Mission S would be anything but cheap. We know how much the German company is asking for its current crop of EVs, and, capable as they are, they still lack the race-grade parts the Mission S would require. The only thing this concept can do that other track-capable cars that already exist can't, is to move the driver in the middle and have two passenger-exclusive rows.
I realize it may sound as though I'm criticizing Zhe Huang and his concept, but I'm not. I think it's a great project that makes just as much sense as Porsche's own Renndienst van, and since I commended the carmaker for staying on its toes and coming up with concepts nobody asked for, I see no reason to treat Zhe's creation in any other way. The only thing I'm arguing against is the plausibility of this concept (and of others like it) ever to make it past the drawing board, and since nobody ever said that it might, I'm basically arguing with myself. And, before you even ask, no, I don't have heated debates with the people on TV. Not yet, at least.
I somehow get the feeling we'd have to go back a very long way and make some drastically different decisions to end up with a Porsche racing minivan (or MPV, if you prefer), but somewhere in the multiverse, there must be at least one alternate reality where such a vehicle exists. Now, thanks to the wonders of the digital realm, we have one over here too.
Among the 15 concepts unveiled by the Stuttgart-based company in its book, there was one called Porsche Renndienst. According to the description, it was loosely based on an old Volkswagen service van (with "rennen" meaning "racing" and "dienst", "service"), but in reality, it was the company's attempt to explore a possible design identity if it was ever going to expand into the minivan segment. I know, a ludicrous thought, but, as they say, it's better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.
The exercise proved completely futile, but it does seem to have sparked the imagination of a young aspiring designer by the name of Zhe Huang. Intrigued by the concept's unconventional 1-2-3 seat configuration, Zhe used it as a source of inspiration for something almost completely different - and, if we're being honest, a lot more in tune with the brand's core values: a "hyper racing MPV".
Yes, that sounds ridiculous, but only until you see what the Mission S, as Zhe calls his creation, looks like. With an exterior design that sleek, the only thing you can call it without sounding silly is "beautiful".
The idea behind the Mission S is that it should open up the currently very exclusive world of racing to the wider public by acting as a sort of extended track taxi. Like in the Renndienst, the driver would sit by themselves up-front in the center, whereas the four passengers would occupy the four remaining seats arranged in two rows with two seats each.
Well, that's all very nice in principle and I can't imagine who would say "no" to the chance of riding in the Porsche Mission S with a professional driver behind the wheel. However, I also can't fathom why anyone would agree to sit in the third row unless, of course, those seats were cheaper - in which case we'd have the whole first class/economy class separation you get on board an airplane, minus the all-important physical divider.
To be fair to him, Zhe did try to mitigate the disadvantage by having the seats in the two rows staggered, like in a theater. That's definitely better than nothing, yet it does very little to pique my interest in trying any of those two seats out during a stint on the track.
The limited height of the glasshouse adds even more reasons to avoid sitting at the back, if not in fear of claustrophobia, then at least because you would be missing half the fun while getting double the dose of nausea - neither of which is a good return for your money.
Considering all this, you have to ask yourself what is the point of having a five-seater as a track taxi when only three of the people on board are having fun? You'd be much better off if you simply eliminated those two seats and turned the vehicle into a three-seater with the two passengers sitting each side of the driver and slightly further behind. You know, the same layout you'll find in a McLaren SpeedTail, a car that also happens to be quite capable around a track.
Indeed, there never was and, most likely, never will be a demand for a high-speed, track-focused minivan, even if Zhe's intention with this odd vehicle - that of opening up motorsport to the masses and allowing more people to experience the thrills offered by a racecar - is noble and deserving of support. However, it's not so much a new type of car that's needed, particularly if it's going to be an expensive Porsche, but rather making the already existing ones more affordable.
It's not hard to imagine the Porsche Mission S would be anything but cheap. We know how much the German company is asking for its current crop of EVs, and, capable as they are, they still lack the race-grade parts the Mission S would require. The only thing this concept can do that other track-capable cars that already exist can't, is to move the driver in the middle and have two passenger-exclusive rows.
I realize it may sound as though I'm criticizing Zhe Huang and his concept, but I'm not. I think it's a great project that makes just as much sense as Porsche's own Renndienst van, and since I commended the carmaker for staying on its toes and coming up with concepts nobody asked for, I see no reason to treat Zhe's creation in any other way. The only thing I'm arguing against is the plausibility of this concept (and of others like it) ever to make it past the drawing board, and since nobody ever said that it might, I'm basically arguing with myself. And, before you even ask, no, I don't have heated debates with the people on TV. Not yet, at least.
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