At least since its presentation at the end of 2018, it is clear: The current Porsche 911 Carrera (992 series) should get a hybrid drive. Space for an electric motor was left in its eight-speed dual-clutch transmission. But the engineers are still struggling with the implementation – and Porsche does not rule out that they fail.
Exactly 7.2 litres “empty enclosed space” in the PDK every 992er goes for a walk, kept free for the e-machine of a kind of hybrid drive. Hardcore fans are a thorn in the eye anyway, after all, the 11er with just over 1.5 tons to DIN is not exactly a lightweight anyway.
Eleven things you did not know about the Porsche 911
And that’s the whole point: “We want to compensate for the additional weight, but still do not know how,” moans Matthias Hofstetter driving project leader on the sidelines of the presentation of the base 911s. “At the moment, we are holding 70 kg for battery and electronics, and there is not even a plug-in option included.” There is currently no plan, not even, what kind of hybrid should be used. Therefore, Hofstetter admits: “It is still possible that we will make it to the facelift in 2023, but certainly that is not at all.”
No compromise
Because it is clear: There is no hybrid for its own sake, it must be useful to the performance. “A hybrid 911, suspended on the Nordschleife from one without a hybrid, would be a no-go.”
And then there is the space problem – where should the batteries be placed meaningful, in a chassis that is designed for combustion engine drive? “Even there we have no solution …”
And then why not blow everything off? “There will be more and more inner cities, such as London, where you will be locked out with a significant electrical range. There are many customers who are keeping that from buying the 911s. “
It might all be easier if Porsche could completely redesign the necessary components. In fact, the Zuffenhausen have to fall back on what is available or developed in the Volkswagen Group. “In-house developments are unprofitable in view of the quantities we can sell,” Hofstetter congratulates.
So it remains to be seen whether the hybrid 911 remains what the gearbox already contains: an air number.