Porsche 911 Hybrid Confirmed for Summer Debut
For years, the possibility of a hybridized Porsche 911 has been the topic of much discussion among enthusiasts. Some said the move would spoil the recipe, suggesting the brand create an entirely new model for electrification like it did with the Taycan. Others believed the potential performance gains associated with hybridization were too lofty to ignore, often citing the legendary Porsche 918 as proof. Regardless of which camp you happen to occupy, Porsche is indeed building a hybrid 911 and has even confirmed its official debut for this summer.
The vehicle was included in Porsche’s Annual and Sustainability Report for 2023 and has since been referenced by top-ranking executives. Documents stipulate that the model (currently coded as the Porsche 992.2) will be part of the revamped 911 lineup and include a hybridized version of a six-cylinder powertrain. However, we don’t know which of the flat-sixes Porsche already has at its disposal are to be chosen.
"Once again we are deploying technology in series-production models that we have derived from the world of motorsport," Porsche CEO Oliver Blume said in the report. "And our customers can look forward to further technological innovations along those same lines."
Last year, Blume stated that any hybrid versions of the 911 likely wouldn’t be of the plug-in variety. Assuming that’s still true, expect the model to forego a charging port. However, the company has broken down future models into three categories: combustion models, plug-in hybrids, and all-electric vehicles. That doesn’t appear to provide space for the hybridized 911, as described by Blume, unless the company sees hybrids without a charging port as internal-combustion models.
There have been a lot of rumors about the vehicle. But the assumption is that the hybrid would be a 48-volt mild hybrid with a small electric motor powering the front wheels — leaving the gasoline motor to take care of everything happening at the rear axle. It has likewise been said that engineers were tasked with not making the vehicle heavy, perhaps explaining why Porsche seems like it dumped the plug-in concept boasting a larger battery pack.
While the above is obviously being done to adhere to increasingly strict emissions regulations, Porsche does not want the hybrid to be seen as a compliance vehicle. Leaks have suggested that engineers are dedicated toward building something that will surpass most members of the 911 family. But we won’t know for certain until the vehicle debuts early this summer.
"2024 is going to be a year of product launches for Porsche — more so than any year in our history," stated Blume. "We will be introducing a variety of exhilarating sports cars to the road, they will delight our customers around the world. This will put the wind at our back for years to come."
[Image: Porsche]
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A staunch consumer advocate tracking industry trends and regulation. Before joining TTAC, Matt spent a decade working for marketing and research firms based in NYC. Clients included several of the world’s largest automakers, global tire brands, and aftermarket part suppliers. Dissatisfied with the corporate world and resentful of having to wear suits everyday, he pivoted to writing about cars. Since then, that man has become an ardent supporter of the right-to-repair movement, been interviewed on the auto industry by national radio broadcasts, driven more rental cars than anyone ever should, participated in amateur rallying events, and received the requisite minimum training as sanctioned by the SCCA. Handy with a wrench, Matt grew up surrounded by Detroit auto workers and managed to get a pizza delivery job before he was legally eligible. He later found himself driving box trucks through Manhattan, guaranteeing future sympathy for actual truckers. He continues to conduct research pertaining to the automotive sector as an independent contractor and has since moved back to his native Michigan, closer to where the cars are born. A contrarian, Matt claims to prefer understeer — stating that front and all-wheel drive vehicles cater best to his driving style.
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Car and driver seems to think all 911s will have 48V assist on a minor level. We shall see, this car just gets bigger and more digital yet is somehow still the luxury sports car benchmark.
The only place a hybrid 911 fits in, is between the Turbo S and the GT3. Any other performance level, and all the criticisms are correct. Make it faster than the Turbo S, no one can talk smack about it's focus: speed on a track. It only slots below the GT3 because that one is the actual racecar; when GT racing goes hybrid, this new 911 BECOMES the next GT3. The system will come in a car that weighs less than the Turbo S, is marginally faster, probably slower than the GT3 (could actually be "faster" than the current GT3 for "homologation" reasons, but with less "endurance"), and would be a competitor to itself, like Zipper says, making slots then filling them.
Here's what nobody doubts: they will sell. When battery/storage tech becomes less of a weight issue, a hybrid 911 will be stinkin' fast, and loads of fun. It will burn E-fuel, so no regulatory nonsense can stop our fun. It will NOT violate ANY fundamentals of Racecar Philosophy. Watch Germany get E-fuels into zero-emissions zones...if E-fuel is "in" then there will ALWAYS be a pure ICE 911 for sale, that is Porsche's current goal for the 911. Long live the personal luxury coupe!