Photo: original image by autoevolution
Now that Ferrari has revealed its future plans, we’d like to hear the same from others. Well, it appears Porsche is next on the list of the automotive industry crystal ball reveals. Zuffenhausen seems to be working on stuff like hybrid 911s and Panameras north of 700 hp and it’s all going to happen by 2017.
The information comes from a Motor Trend report, which states Porsche is ready to up the ante on the power front in order to compete with the creatures such as the Lamborghini Aventador or the Ferrari F12 Berlinetta.
Of course “up” is a relative term, since what the Germans will actually do is... downsize the technology they’ve used on the 918 Spyder. The hypercar’s 156 hp electric motor could be strapped somewhere in between Porsche’s current twin turbo flat six (911 Turbo S) / twin turbo V8 (Panamera Turbo S) and their PDK transmission. In current form, the units deliver 560 and 570 hp, respectively, so expecting a petrol-electric output of over 700 hp is reasonable.
Among other pleasures, the hyperpowered PHEVs will allow you to drive into places such as London's congestion area like a sir, using electric power only.
The resulting models will be plug-in hybrids and should receive Porsche’s e-Hybrid badge. Still, there’s one important question to be answered here and that concerns the exact positioning of the models. Porsche may be a jack of all trades and a master of special editions, but the 911 and Panamera line-ups already have enough models. The new PHEV beasts could replace the Turbo S models or be slotted above them. Either way, expect quite a price premium to come with the electric assistance.
Speaking of the Panamera, Porsche is also on track to deliver us a production version of the Sport Turismo Concept. You can regard this as a Porsche-esque melange between a multi-door coupe and a shooting brake.
The same coupe-ization process also seems to be in store for the Cayenne, but nothing has been officially confirmed so far.
700 hp plus monsters aside, Porsche is also working on the hottest Cayman yet. Tentativelly called GT4, this will truly throw the gauntlet to the 911 and you can read about it here.
The report also states Porsche will not build the rumored flat four, claiming the Germans will force us to live with an L4 instead. An earlier official confirmations means this is not true and we’ll go deeper into the cylinders of the topic here.
Of course “up” is a relative term, since what the Germans will actually do is... downsize the technology they’ve used on the 918 Spyder. The hypercar’s 156 hp electric motor could be strapped somewhere in between Porsche’s current twin turbo flat six (911 Turbo S) / twin turbo V8 (Panamera Turbo S) and their PDK transmission. In current form, the units deliver 560 and 570 hp, respectively, so expecting a petrol-electric output of over 700 hp is reasonable.
Among other pleasures, the hyperpowered PHEVs will allow you to drive into places such as London's congestion area like a sir, using electric power only.
The resulting models will be plug-in hybrids and should receive Porsche’s e-Hybrid badge. Still, there’s one important question to be answered here and that concerns the exact positioning of the models. Porsche may be a jack of all trades and a master of special editions, but the 911 and Panamera line-ups already have enough models. The new PHEV beasts could replace the Turbo S models or be slotted above them. Either way, expect quite a price premium to come with the electric assistance.
Speaking of the Panamera, Porsche is also on track to deliver us a production version of the Sport Turismo Concept. You can regard this as a Porsche-esque melange between a multi-door coupe and a shooting brake.
The same coupe-ization process also seems to be in store for the Cayenne, but nothing has been officially confirmed so far.
700 hp plus monsters aside, Porsche is also working on the hottest Cayman yet. Tentativelly called GT4, this will truly throw the gauntlet to the 911 and you can read about it here.
The report also states Porsche will not build the rumored flat four, claiming the Germans will force us to live with an L4 instead. An earlier official confirmations means this is not true and we’ll go deeper into the cylinders of the topic here.
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