Porsche appears to be testing an electrified version of its 911 flagship at the Nürburgring, suggesting that the launch of the long-standing hybrid variant is on the horizon.
Based on the top-of-the-line 911 Turbo, this prototype carried the telltale yellow sticker that is mandatory for hybrid test vehicles in Germany and had blackened rear windows – likely to hide additional batteries and their associated wiring.
Porsche has previously confirmed that the current 911 Mk8 (992 series) has been developed to accommodate both light hybrid and plug-in hybrid powertrains, primarily leaving more room in the rear to incorporate an electric motor in the form of a disc in the gearbox.
August Achleitner, then head of sports car development, told Autocar in 2018: “We have used the experience we have gained with the hybrid versions of the Cayenne and Panamera, as well as the 918 Spyder, and the ‘have applied to the new 911. In the future, this will allow us to offer [the 911] with a purely electric capacity.
As part of the mechanical adaptation of the hybrid, the 911 uses a gear train based on that used by the Panamera and Cayenne hybrids. It is 100mm shorter than that used by the 991 generation car, opening up space in the rear of the gearbox for an EV motor.
The eight-speed automatic gearbox has also been upgraded to cope with higher torque loads than in the previous car.
At this point, little is known about its precise technical makeup or performance potential, but Achleitner has hinted that rough pace parity with the Panamera S E-Hybrid could be expected, suggesting a hybrid 911 could pack up to 671 hp and 626 lb-ft.
The standard combustion variant of the 911 Turbo produces 572 hp and 553 lb-ft and can sprint from 0 to 62 mph in 2.8 seconds. Hybrid cars will weigh more, but should use front-mounted batteries for better weight distribution.
No charging port is visible on this prototype, suggesting that the batteries are charged via brake regeneration, although production cars may bring a different setup.
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Source: www.autocar.co.uk
This notice was published: 2021-07-09 11:34:00
