Porsche won’t turn its back on the turbocharger move of the entire non-GT 911 lineup – despite reports to the contrary.
Rumors based on feedback from eagle-eared scouting photographers suggest the 911 could get the 4.0-litre naturally aspirated engine currently available in 718 Cayman and Boxster GTS as an option with its mid-life upgrade.
But if asked if the 4.0 from the 718 GTS range would end with the 911, Frank-Steffen Walliser, the board member responsible for the 911 and 718, simply told us “no”.
The motor in question shares its displacement with the engine in 911 GT3 and Cayman GT4 RS, but really a single unit specially developed for the 718 GTS and GT4.
Given the development costs and commonality of an engine, it is rare for brands to create a separate unit for a single, relatively low model range.
While Walliser doesn’t give away too much, he thinks the engine will see wider use when development begins in 2014, before rapidly changing emissions regulations forced Porsche to change it. change your plans.
“Knowing all I know today, maybe we’ll do something different,” Mr. Walliser said.
“It wasn’t a bad decision, you can’t go back. The engine is a marvel, the 4.0 liter in the GTS. He said:
“Things have changed, other plans have changed,” Mr. Walliser said. “It will remain a single engine, a single car – a very collectible car.”
Porsche has always been unable to fit a naturally aspirated, high-revving engine into a Cayenne, Macan or Panamera, making the 911 the only other sensible home.
The brand pledged to power up the entire 911 Carrera line in 2015, with the reveal of the 991.2 generation 911.
The current 911 Carrera, Carrera S and Carrera GTS range is powered by a 3.0-liter turbocharged flat-six that produces 283kW and 450Nm in its least powerful tune, and 353kW and 570Nm in its most powerful guise.
The 718 GTS engine has a displacement of 1000cc on the turbo’d engine of the 911 and produces 309kW of power and 430Nm of torque when mated to the PDK gearbox on the Cayman GT4 and the Boxster Spyder.
By 2024 or 2025, this engine appears to be nearing retirement – Porsche has confirmed the 718 will be electric.
Don’t expect a balance between engine and old-fashioned driver focus present in current models will be thrown out when the next-generation vehicle rolls around.
“The most important thing is the weight control of an electric vehicle, the technical feel of the car,” said Frank-Steffen Walliser, vice president responsible for the Porsche 911 and 718 models. CarExpert.
Porsche wanted to create that feeling by creating a “relatively small, nimble car” with “nice proportions”, according to Mr. Walliser. Acceleration and performance are not necessarily the focus at all.
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