Our spy photographers caught the upcoming Porsche 911 Sport Classic out for a new testing session on the public roads of Germany. As you can see the car is missing most of the camouflage which means the testing sessions are pretty much done, and all that is left is mostly fine tuning.
The prototype follows the design lines of the 911 models, but there will be a few distinctive features. First one is of course that little ducktail at the back – a signature of the Sport Classic models. The 911 Sport Classic will also feature a double bubble roof and the lines of the special hood will match perfectly the lines of the roof.
The only camouflage we can see on this prototype is some tape around the sides of the ducktail spoiler and in the middle of the rear light arrangement.
As for the engine, rumors suggest the 911 Sport Classic will get the same engine as the 911 GTS: a 3.0-liter twin-turbo flat-six that delivers 480 horsepower
and 420 pound-feet of torque.
Rumors suggest Porsche will only build 2,000 units of the 911 Sport Classic.
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Naturally, the high-revving 4.0-liter normally-aspirated flat-six will be even more powerful than the standard GT3, which has 503 horsepower (375 kilowatts) at 9,000 RPM and 347 pound-feet (470 Nm) at 6,100 RPM. In the 2022 Porsche 911 GT3 RS, the 4.0-liter flat-six will produce between 540 and 580 horsepower. Torque is expected to be around 347 to 369 pound-feet (470 – 500 Nm).
The Porsche 911 GT3 RS has always been the closest thing to a street-legal track weapon.
Since lap times are what counts on a racetrack, the GT3 RS will come with the PDK gearbox only.
Nevertheless, it is expected to be slightly quicker to 62 mph (100 km/h) than the “normal” 911 GT3’s 3.4-second (3.9 with the manual) time. However, the extra aero bits might create more drag, thus slowing the car down at high speeds. On the other side, this will, no doubt, result in better lateral acceleration, thus allowing the rear-engine track weapon to carry a lot more speed through the corners.
Design
The Porsche 911 GT3 RS has always been the closest thing to a racecar for the road. Essentially, it pretty much is one. As with other generations before it, the most obvious thing is the crazy aero. Gigantic air vents in the front hood and a rear wing stolen from a Porsche racecar. And all of that in combination with a wide body.
Although there’s still a lot of camouflage, we can tell that, just like previous 911 GT3 RS models, the 992 will have additional air extractors on the front and rear fenders. The most distinctive feature is the even bigger bi-plane rear wing with swan necks.
Price
We know that the Porsche 911 (992) GT3 RS will be more expensive than the regular 911 GT3, just like it has always been. We know that the regular 992 GT3 starts at $143,600 in the U.S. and €167,518 in Europe. If we use the European prices for the previous generations, we can get an idea of how much more the GT3 RS will cost.
In Europe, the 991.2 GT3 RS had a starting price of €195,137, while the regular GT3 cost €152,416. With this in mind, we can expect the 992 GT3 RS to cost around €205,000 in Europe and $195,000 in the US.
Conclusion
With the latest 991 GT3 RS underway, the Porsche 992 will have a complete portfolio. That is if we don’t count the 991 GT2, which might appear in the 992’s last production year as a very limited version. Regardless, this will be the most hardcore normally-aspirated Porsche 911 and, possibly, the last one without a hybrid powertrain. With that being said, there are indications that the GT3 RS might get slightly delayed since Porsche apparently has problems with getting the engine certified for emissions. Whether that is the case, remains to be seen.
This Might Look Like A Production Porsche 959 At A Glance, But It Definitely Is Not
I wouldn’t criticize you if you tried to say this was a normal Porsche 959, as the body does look pretty similar to the production car. However, this isn’t the case. In fact, as if being one the few surviving examples of just 12 prototypes built didn’t make this car rare enough, it’s also one of the few that were finished in Ruby Red. The car was apparently designed specifically for electric system testing and hot weather testing on the U.S. West Coast and in Europe.
Still need proof that this is an authentic prototype, well that proof comes on the inside. Throughout the testing phase, several different interior layouts were installed, including one with different seats. You can find extra and disconnected electric wiring under the passenger seat along with hard mounts for the electronic testing equipment next to the rear seats. The car is also lacking power steering, ride-height control, a passenger-side mirror, alarm, windshield washer, and the fuel filler cap among other things.
Porsche 959 specifications
Engine
2849 cc Bi-turbocharged flat-6
Bore x stroke
95.0 x 67.0 mm
Compression ratio
8.3:1
Horsepower (DIN)
444 HP @ 6,500 RPM
Torque
370 LB-FT @ 5,500 RPM
Fuel delivery
elect. port injection
Transmission
6-speed manual
0-60 mph
3.7 seconds
Top Speed
197 mph
This 959 Prototype’s History Is Interesting
How much do you think the asking price is?
Swipe up to learn more about it, see the full gallery, and find a link to the sale listing!
After the Porsche 969 hit the production lines, Porsche destroyed most of the other prototypes that were built alongside this one. This car, however, was imported into the U.S. in the latter half of the 1980s and was displayed like a trophy at the HQ of Vasek Polak – a Porsche importer and dealer. Sometime after that, it was shipped off to Japan for demonstrational activities before being sold to Belgium and later the United Kingdom. The car eventually made it back to its homeland of Germany, where it’s currently on sale. According to the listing, it has just 26,520 km (16,478 miles) on the odometer, but the asking price is a mystery. If you’re interested in owning a very rare care, you’ll have to contract the owner through Mechatronik to find out how much you’ll have to shell out.
Porsche claims that they are indeed the most successful brand in customer motorsport, with 30 one-make cups globally, over 4,400 911-based Cup cars manufactured to date, with 31 years of Carrera Cup racing in Germany. As a result, the folks at Zuffenhausen and Weissach are probably wondering as to what the future of customer racing using pure EV’s looks like.
The German brand clearly isn’t satisfied with Formula E. They are hence already looking ahead with the Mission R, which – on paper – looks like an electric 911 GT3 Cup car.
The Mission R could in fact go on to become the centerpiece of the Porsche single-brand cups in the not-too-distant future. The car embodies everything that makes Porsche what it is; They include attributes like Performance, Design, and in keeping with the times, Sustainability.
Bodywork with a focus on Sustainability
Upon first appearance, the concept resembles the very successful Le Mans 919 racer, although with a far more gracious-looking front and a rather stubby back. The rudiments of the Cayman floor unit are hidden under the shell. The car is 14’ long, which makes it shorter than the 718. A width of 6’6”, on the other hand, is notably more, while its height of 3’11″ is considerably lower than that car. The Mission R incorporates the most recent advances in active aerodynamics, both in the front and in the back, where a massive, two-section movable spoiler resides. The Mission R also features Porsche Active Aerodynamics (PAA) with Drag Reduction System (DRS) on the nose section as well as that giant rear wing.
Through the domed roof, a carbon-fiber superstructure visible from the outside may be viewed.
Instead of fitting a separate roll cage, this construction by itself acts as a supporting and load-bearing structure. Not only is it visually appealing, but it is also lightweight and stable, with room for an emergency exit hatch for the driver.
This robust structure also has a roof, which Porsche refers to as an exoskeleton. On top of that, body panels composed primarily of Natural Fiber Reinforced plastic (NFK) are used. Porsche uses the same material for the front splitter, diffuser, and side skirts.
“Porsche is the brand for people who fulfill their dreams. This is also true in motorsports. We experience our innovative strength on the race track, demonstrate courage in pursuing new avenues and delight car owners with sporting performance,” says Oliver Blume, Chairman of the Executive Board of Porsche AG.
A sporty Bespoke Racing Cockpit
Porsche uses NFK On the inside, as well. The material is used to make the inside door scales, the rear bulkhead, and the seat, among other things. When it comes to the interior, the driver is the focal point. All controls are easily accessible to the driver.
The cockpit is influenced by cars used in gaming simulators. A helmet holder is also in place to dry and cool the driver’s helmet using the onboard air conditioning. The car features a steering wheel that incorporates the main information screen and is linked with another unit positioned behind, which complements the first one by showing the image from the rearview cameras. A third screen, to the right of the seat, displays the driver’s biometric information.
“In addition to our involvement in the Formula E World Championship, we are now taking the next big step forward in electric mobility. The concept study is our vision of all-electric customer motorsports. The Mission R embodies everything that makes Porsche strong: performance, design and sustainability.”
The Powertrain
The Mission R features two electric motors.
The motors are derived from the Taycan, but they were further improved for motorsport to the point that they are now virtually separate designs. It comes as no surprise that Mission R’s electric drivetrain exceeds 1,000 horsepower. Two motors, one on each axle, that produces 430 horsepower at the front and 644 horsepower at the rear. The race car’s standard continuous power output remains 671 horsepower. (This is nearly the same as the upcoming hybrid LMDh Le Mans car). While in qualifying mode,
the two motors produce1085 horsepower. A Four-wheel drive system transfers tractive force to the tarmac.
Porsche has also worked on the weight distribution. The battery pack is situated ahead of the rear axle, as opposed to the Taycan. Porsche refers to this as the e-core arrangement. This layout implies that the Mission R has driving characteristics similar to those of a mid-engine racer. The Mission R’s permanently excited synchronous motors have stators that are directly tempered with oil as a coolant. Speaking of cost savings, the Mission R does away without the Taycan’s two-speed transmission; acceleration from a standstill isn’t very important in customer motorsports. Also, there’s no limit to the power that drives with only one gear. The transmission and pulse inverter on both the front and rear drives are designed identically, saving both parts and money.
Blistering Performance
The Mission R will be able to sprint from 0-60 mph in 2.5 seconds and reach speeds of over 187 mph.
The cells of the 80 kWh battery are also oil-cooled. Unlike in a typical electric motor where the coolant goes through a jacket outside the stator, the oil in direct cooling flows straight along the copper windings. More heat can be dispersed directly at the source as a result of this.
They run at 900 volts, which helps explain why the batteries can be charged from 5% to 80% in under 15 minutes during racing. Charging can be done at a rate of up to 340 kW. Such a short recharge time will enable the Mission R to confront a race weekend with free practice, qualifying, and the race without having to worry about range.
Conclusion
How exactly will motorsports evolve in the future? And how will interfaces withE-Motorsports change over time?. How plausible is this vision? Well, Porsche thinks they have an idea about where motorsports and the industry is headed.
Without a doubt, Porsche will be ready with an order book at the IAA in Munich and at the Porsche Motorsport desks. The maker has not yet stated when a probable manufacturing model will be available, but our guess would be somewhere between 2025 -2026.
Porsche is asking its 1,300 suppliers to only use renewable energy as they manufacture Porsche parts, starting this month.
The German automaker is doing so in order to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
This change applies to any supplier awarded a contract for providing production material for new-vehicle projects. Suppliers who can’t or won’t comply will no longer be considered for Porsche contracts over the long term.
“Our battery cell suppliers have already had to use green energy since 2020. And now we are taking the next important step: we stipulate that our series suppliers also use only renewable energy to produce our components, to help reduce CO2-emissions even further. We recognise that we have a responsibility to ensure that supply chains are transparent and sustainable,” Uwe-Karsten Städter, member of the executive board for procurement at Porsche AG said in a statement.
It’s all part of a larger goal the company has set to be carbon dioxide neutral across the entire supply chain by 2030. As it stands now, the company’s supply chain is responsible for about 20 percent of the company’s total greenhouse-gas emissions, with it projected to rise to 40 percent as electrification becomes more prevalent.
“By using only renewable energy sources, our suppliers are following our example in our efforts to reach CO2-neutrality. We plan to have even more intensive talks with our partners in order to drive forward improvements in our sustainability. It is only by working together that we will be able to combat ongoing climate change,” said Städter.
Porsche is also trying to reduce emissions from its own plants — the company claims that production of the Taycan is carbon-neutral since 2019, for example, and that the same holds true for the 911 and 718 since 2020 and the plant that produces the Macan and Panamera since 2021.
It’s not as ambitious as having an EV Day, but Porsche, like everyone these days, is making claims about its ability to be green.
ALD founder and Creative Director Teddy Santis is fulfilling a dream with the olive-coloured 911 SC: a very personal 911 based on his family’s roots and values. “The vision for this project was always to portray the Super Carrera with a completely different type of intimacy than the 964 but in a way that would feel equally impactful,” says Teddy Santis. “The design of the vehicle and the creative direction for the project both come from my childhood on the Greek islands and the unique beauty of things that get better with age and wear in that environment.”
Unique handcrafted combinations
Like the Carrera 4, the 911 SC demonstrates his pure passion for the brand and loving attention to detail. For the exterior, he chose the classic Porsche colour Olive. Auxiliary lights on the bonnet, Fuchs wheels and a roof rack also make the historic 911 the perfect everyday companion. These features mean that the 911 SC is equipped for driving on roads that might be rather less than perfect.
Inside the car, Santis combined materials and colours in a unique way. Persian carpets are used as floor mats, for example. The fashion designer also integrated these into the doors. The original Recaro seats were painstakingly restored by the supplier itself. All the materials – from the leather to bouclé – were processed by hand.
“Working in partnership with Porsche is always a deeply humbling experience and a privilege, but this project specifically left me with a deeper appreciation for the company, its core values, and the amazing people that work there,” says Teddy Santis. “It is a testament to the dedication, resourcefulness, and vision of the Porsche team that our relationship became tighter during the coronavirus crisis when all our plans were being thrown into chaos and we needed to adapt. More so than ever, the realization of this project is as much about teamwork and collective belief as it is about the shared vision of the two brands.”
“Just like the first vehicle that we created as part of our partnership, the 911 SC is a characteristic interpretation of the 911 idea,” says Robert Ader, Vice President Marketing (CMO) at Porsche AG. “I am delighted that we are not just able to show Porsche fans a fantastic project at the interface between sports cars and fashion, but also that we were able to help Teddy Santis to make his dream come true.”
Premiere of the restored 911 SC in New York City
The restored vehicle will premiere in New York City from 21 to 23 May: customers and fans of both brands will be able to admire the 911 SC in the heart of Manhattan, at the brand’s NYC flagship. At the same time, Aimé Leon Dore will launch a capsule collection using materials and patterns from the redesigned car. The collaboration with Teddy Santis is another example of an authentic partnership between Porsche and a brand enthusiast, who has been able to realise a long-held dream thanks to the sports cars from Zuffenhausen.
The five-minute video is both a history lesson on the race-spec 959 and a highlight footage of the car’s Paris-Dakar adventure. It documents how the 959 was designed and developed and it talks about its then-revolutionary all-wheel-drive system. It also gives us a closer look at the twin-turbocharged inline-six engine, rated at 400 horsepower, and the adjustments Porsche had to make to turn the 959 into a rally race winner.
Finally, it talks a bit about how the three Porsche 959s fielded in the 1986 Paris-Dakar Rally finished the race in first, second, and sixth positions, scoring a historic win for the German brand.
The 959 did more than just race at Paris-Dakar, though. While the video doesn’t mention it, simply because it documents this historic event only, the 959 was also raced at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Called the 961, it won its class and finished seventh overall in 1986.
Of course, the 959 is actually more famous as a road-going car.
Introduced in 1986, it was the world’s fastest streel-legal production car with top speeds of up to 211 mph.
It was also considered the most technologically advanced sports car of its time and set the standard for the competition. It also provided the basis for Porsche’s first all-wheel drive 911, the Carrera 4. Fitted with a twin-turbo, 2.8-liter flat-six engine rated at up to 523 horsepower, the 959 remained in production until 1993. Porsche built 337 units in seven years.
Although they’re part of the same nameplate, these Caymans are actually very different.
There is a nine-year gap between the 987 Cayman R and the 2020 718 Cayman GTS, so they come with a very different amount of tech and driving assist systems. More importantly, they’re fitted with completely different engines. The Cayman R is the more old-school car, as it shares its 3.4-liter flat-six engine with the 911. It packs 326 horsepower and 273 pound-feet of torque. The 981-gen Cayman GTS also features a 3.4-liter flat-six, but it’s rated at 335 horses ad 280 pound-feet. Finally, the latest 982-gen Cayman GTS features a turbocharged, 2.5-liter flat-four instead of a naturally aspirated flat-six. But it’s the most powerful at 359 horsepower and 317 pound-feet of torque.
It’s pretty obvious which Cayman is the quickest and most powerful, but this isn’t what this comparison is about. Yes, the latest Cayman would win a battle that’s only about how modern each generation is in 2020, but this test focuses on more than that, and the result might surprise you. Check out the comparison in the video below and let us know which Cayman is your favorite.
The Porsche Cayenne GTS doesn’t look very different from the regular model
Both GTS models are fitted with a Sport Design package and GTS-specific features.
However, these don’t make it look significantly different compared to the regular Cayenne. Notable elements include LED headlamps and taillights with dark-tinted covers and black trim for the front air intakes, side windows, the badges on the rear fascia, and the tailpipes. The GTS is also fitted with 21-inch RS Spyder Design wheels finished in satin-gloss black.
The Porsche Cayenne GTS comes with a sporty, exclusive interior
While the exterior doesn’t stand out unless you look really close, the interior comes with plenty of cool and exclusive features. These models are fitted with eight-way sports seats as standard that are exclusive to the GTS trim. Likewise, the cabin features “GTS” logos on the front doors, door sills, the rev counter, and the headrests. The GTS also comes with extra Alcantara, now covering the roof lining, the seat center panels, the center console armrests, and the doors. There’s also dark-brushed aluminum trim on the dashboard and the upper doors. You can spice things up a bit more with the optional GTS Interior Package, which adds decorative stitching in Carmine Red or Crayon.
The Porsche Cayenne GTS returns to the V-8 engine
The second-generation GTS started life with a naturally aspirated V-8 engine, but Porsche replaced with a twin-turbo V-6 during the 2015-model-year facelift.
Now, Porsche is ditching the V-6 in favor of a turbocharged, 4.0-liter V-8.
Rated at 460 horsepower and 457 pound-feet of torque, this V-8 is essentially a detuned version of the 4.0-liter in the Turbo model, but it’s a bit more powerful than the outgoing GTS. Specifically, it delivers an extra 20 horsepower and an additional 14 pound-feet of twist.
Compared to the Cayenne S, powered by a twin-turbo, 3.0-liter V-6, the GTS comes with an extra 26 horsepower and 51 pound-feet of torque. Compared to the Cayenne Turbo, the GTS falls behind by a notable 90 horsepower and 111 pound-feet of twist.
As far as performance goes, Porsche says that the new GTS hits 60 mph from a standing start in 4.5 seconds. Opt for the Sport Chrono Package, and that benchmark drops to only 4.2 seconds. That’s 0.6 seconds quicker than the outgoing model. Top speed for the GTS is rated at 168 mph, five mph more than the old version.
