911's Race Car Days Numbered Because Mid-Engined Porsche 960 is Happening

"BLCKSTRM" (BLCKSTRM)
06/07/2016 at 11:10 • Filed to: Porsche, 911, Black Flag, racecar, 960

I can’t say it was inevitable, but it certainly makes sense. The 911's days as the standard-bearer for Porsche’s racing efforts may be numbered, and it’s because the rumored 960 is really happening.

This seems to be coming from left field

I know. I just added it all up last night. So stay with me.

First, the 911 RSR GTE car will be mid-engined starting next year (as Steph has already pointed out !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! ).

In that article is this interesting bit:

Rumblings that the layout of the 2017 911 GTE car would be different go back to the end of 2015, when Porsche Head of Motorsport Dr. Frank-Steffen Walliser confirmed to !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! that they considered developing a purpose-built mid-engine GTE race car for 2016, but the timing didn’t work.

So, there are lots of reasons the timing might not work, but we’ll come back to that.

But how do you propose to build a purpose-built GTE race car? By definition GT class cars ARE NOT purpose-built race cars, but are production-based.

So if they were working on a new, mid-engined race car, it’s because they were working on a new, mid-engined road car that would have had to be going into production in the same general timeframe.

Enter !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! .

1400kg (3100 lbs) target weight, built on a new aluminum-based platform.

AWD likely pushing the weight up to 1500 kg (3300 lbs), but lighter RWD-only versions to follow (think along the lines of a hardcore GTx series).

650 hp quad turbo flat 8, already running around testing in a Cayman mule.

VarioCom trademark to go with patents detailing eccentric piston wrist pin bearings that enable variable compression - great for high compression under low boost / low temp, and lowering compression under high boost / high temp situations. ( !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! )

Ł200,000 ($300,000) target price.

Production initially targeted for February 2017, delayed now until 2019.

While the scope and detail are so specific they’re a bit hard to believe, it’s hard to argue with the facts (the trademarks, the patents), the logic - and the timing.

The Timing

So, they were working toward a 2016 race car, which would likely be close enough for a car starting production in early 2017. Given the way OEMs date their production years (and how sanctioning bodies provide for some wiggle room) it’s not hard to imagine this was all lining up nicely.

Naturally a company like Porsche initiated development of the the race car at the same time it began development of the road car. After all, where would all those improvements pay off more than at the track?

While far too risky to spend development money hoping for an exception, it makes perfect sense for a company like Porsche to develop the new flagship in conjunction with the race car.

Once the benefits became apparent but it became clear the timing of the road version of the car would be delayed, there was absolutely no risk in asking the FIA to grant an exception allowing the car to utilize some of the development work the company had already completed, especially when the alternative was simply letting that work sit on the shelf for a couple years.

And it seems clear the changes to the car go beyond simply adjusting the location of the engine and gearbox.

From the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! ,

Head of Porsche Motorsport Dr. Frank-Steffen Walliser has confirmed to Sportscar365 that an all-new Porsche 911 RSR is in the works, which is understood to feature some radical changes under the bodywork.

I may be reading too much into that word “radical” - but I doubt it.

RIP 911?

So what does that mean for the 911?

Probably not much for the road car. As if the company has shown any desire to change the formula there.

As for the GT2/GT3 lot, probably not much for them either, especially considering the Cayman recently got a GT4 version.

But as for the 911 carrying the flag as the company’s race car, it seems clear that the racing right now is competitive enough that the race teams need that extra edge a mid-rear platform can provide.

The company has made the decision to invest in the development of a MR platform that’s more affordable than the 918 and better balanced than the 911.

An old maxim says the one thing that never changes is change itself. And nowhere is that more true than in the crucible of motorsport.

Perhaps Darwin said it best; “It is not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive, but those who can best manage change.”

While it may be sad to think of the 911 finally being put out to pasture, embracing this change is a sign that Porsche leadership is willing to make the hard decisions to guarantee a bright future in racing.

The king is dead. Long live the king!

DISCUSSION (13)

Wheelerguy > BLCKSTRM
06/07/2016 at 11:15

Still, over 60 non-stop years of racing is nothing to sneeze at.

And while Porsche may be going MR in GTE, they can still fight with a 911 in GT3, which is even more loaded.

chaozbandit > BLCKSTRM
06/07/2016 at 11:19

Quad turbo seems a bit extreme, as does the move to a flat 8 and how that would interact with potential BOP. Given that GTE rules technically open up powerplant options, I’m curious how the V4 would perform in a mid-engine GT car given that it struggles to push an LMP1 chassis past a certain speed (without ERS) due to the aero load (a much lesser issue for a GT car).

WiscoProud > BLCKSTRM
06/07/2016 at 11:20

While I do think Porsche is going to go mid-engine for their top sports car, I think the 911 will continue in the mid-level, with the Boxster/Cayman pulling the low end. There's just too much history to get rid of it in my opinion.

I did read any interesting piece that basically alluded to the same conclusion you’re making, but saying that the 911 would become even more of a GT than it currently is.

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > BLCKSTRM
06/07/2016 at 11:22

GTE is quickly becoming what GT1 used to be in the 90s. I like it.

BLCKSTRM > WiscoProud
06/07/2016 at 11:27

I think all those points are very likely.

And I’d love to read that story if you’ve got the link handy.

Clemsie McKenzie > TheTurbochargedSquirrel
06/07/2016 at 11:37

Yeah but with that come increased costs, and we all know where that went last time. Hopefully the ACO/FIA can keep things a bit under control. Right now it’s pretty much perfect.

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > Clemsie McKenzie
06/07/2016 at 11:39

That is a concern though the economy is doing better than it was at the end of the GT1 era. Only thing I would change with the GT categories right now is switch GTE AM to GT3 spec machinery to return to 4 distinct classes.

Clemsie McKenzie > BLCKSTRM
06/07/2016 at 11:44

This all sounds very exciting, although a quad-turbo flat-eight sounds a bit too good to be true. I suppose if we do see this, it’ll still be a pretty small displacement thing.

Also I read about sharing the platform with other VW brands. Wouldn’t it make sense to use the R8/Huracan platform then?

Clemsie McKenzie > TheTurbochargedSquirrel
06/07/2016 at 11:45

Hey, that’s a cool idea! Count me in!

BLCKSTRM > Clemsie McKenzie
06/07/2016 at 12:06

I ran down the numbers, and the Huracan is about 1400kg, so that might work.

It seems like they (VAG) were developing some other platform, but I can’t remember (I might be thinking about the new Panamera platform that’s supposed to get shared).

Clemsie McKenzie > Clemsie McKenzie
06/07/2016 at 12:11

Yeah, plus they do offer the Huracan in RWD too, now. We’ll see I guess!

torque > BLCKSTRM
06/07/2016 at 13:53

While 911 model has been in more races probably than all other Porsche models combined, MR layout is not exactly new to them either

Porsche running MR layout in smaller/lighter cars in racing dates back to the early 50s with the 550's, followed by the closely related 718 > RS 60 > RS 61 > W-R-S & RS 61 GTR in to the early 60s

While I too love the 911 I think this move makes sense as a way of “filling the big gap” that’s left between the current 911 and the 918

Though I’d be in favor of them more openly branding it as something new/different “960" rather than trying to pretend this is a 911 as the 911 needs to be RR otherwise it really isn’t a 911 any more

BLCKSTRM > torque
06/07/2016 at 15:12

Yeah, I think that’s the end goal.

My guess is that this new race car is actually based on the 960 engineering under the skin, and will match up once the 960 road car is released (hence the “radical changes under the bodywork” part).

So I don’t think the 911 is going mid-engined. I think it will remain as-is, and the 960 will take over as the car they base their GTE race cars on.