New 2019-2020 Porsche 911 992 hikes power and adds hybrids. New line-up will be turbo only and all models will pack more power. Hybrids due 2020.
Porsche is preparing to reveal the eighth-generation 911 at November’s Los Angeles motor show, but now the new model, codenamed 992, has been spotted virtually undisguised while testing. Evolutionary design tweaks will be brought in for the revised model, but extensive changes to the powertrain range will feature. For the first time, every petrol engine in the 911 line-up will be turbocharged, marking the end of naturally aspirated units found in more hardcore variants of the current 991.2-generation model.
The new 911 line-up will also include two new four-wheel-drive plug-in hybrid models, including a range-topping version with more than 600bhp and a top speed of nearly 200mph.
Although the Jaguar F-Type rival will be launched with traditional combustion-engined Carrera and Carrera S models, the petrol-electric versions will be an integral part of the line-up. A senior Porsche official has told Drive-My that Carrera 4 E-Hybrid and Turbo S E-Hybrid 992 variants will be added to the model line-up in 2020. The 911 model range will eventually grow to 24 variants.
The technical layout of the new 992 911 models is currently shrouded in secrecy, although they are expected to receive a disc-shaped electric motor in two different power outputs housed within the gearbox. Space up front will be used to house a lithium ion battery similar in capacity to the 14.1kWh unit used by the Cayenne E-Hybrid – a position that, Porsche sources suggest, provides almost perfect 50/50 weight distribution.
The Turbo S E-Hybrid is claimed to eclipse the 572bhp and 553lb ft of the current twin-turbocharged 3.8-litre six-cylinder 911 Turbo S 992. Insiders at Porsche’s Weissach-based R&D centre suggest it will offer more than 450kW (603bhp) of power.
The hybrid 911s will feature the firm’s traditional flat six engine with an electric motor, which, Porsche officials have previously admitted, was a packaging challenge. The decision to add hybrids to the range was in part driven by the need to meet the tightening EU CO2 regulations.
Despite the added weight of the lithium ion battery, the hybrid’s greater low-rev torque will allow for a sub-3.0sec 0-62mph time similar to the current Turbo S’s. That model is expected to be priced similarly to the £147,540 current Turbo S. The Carrera 4 E-Hybrid will be pitched at a similar price to the Carrera S, which costs £87,335. Both will be offered in coupé and cabriolet bodystyles.
The various 911 test cars that have been spotted show the more haunched back of the new model, which resembles the 997-generation 911 Speedster from 2011 – which was in turn influenced by the original 356 Speedster from 1954. That rear is understood to be purely a design feature, rather than to house the new hybrid powertrains. The rear also has similar styling to Porsche’s all-electric Taycan sports saloon, which is due next year. The initial range-topper of the new 911 line-up will be the Turbo S, which will feature a 620bhp twin-turbo 3.8-litre flat six. It will use engine hardware from the GT2 RS to raise the output by 50bhp from the current Turbo S’s.
Below that will sit a Turbo model tipped to produce about 570bhp, roughly 30bhp more than the current Turbo. Both the Turbo and Turbo S will feature wider rear arches and a fixed rear wing to signal their potent performance – and each will have a top speed in excess of 200mph and cover 0-62mph in less than 3.0sec. The 911 GT3 will deliver more than 500bhp, while standard models will get 10-15bhp more than the current Carrera and Carrera S.
The new 911 will be built around an evolved version of Porsche’s MMB structure, which will be wider than the current generation. Some of the early test cars sported wheel-arch extensions, also pointing to the car having a wider track than the previous model. That should improve stability and rear-seat space. The spy shots also showed cars will feature a retractable rear wing, to aid high-speed stability.
HOW THE NEW 992 911 LINE – UP WILL LOOK
2019 Porsche 911 992 Carrera 4 E-Hybrid 2.8-litre flat six plus electric motor, 350bhp(est)
2019 Porsche 911 992 3.0-litre twin-turbo flat six plus electric motor, 450bhp (est)
2020 Porsche 911 992 Carrera, Carrera 4 3.0-litre twin-turbo flat six, 385bhp (est)
2020 Porsche 911 992 Carrera T 3.0-litre twin-turbo flat six, 385bhp (est)
2020 Porsche 911 992 Carrera S and 4S 3.0-litre twin-turbo flat six, 445bhp (est)
2020 Porsche 911 992 Targa 4 3.0-litre twin-turbo flat six, 385bhp (est)
2020 Porsche 911 992 Targa 4S 3.0-litre twin-turbo flat six, 445bhp (est)
2020 Porsche 911 992 GT3 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat six, 520bhp (est)
2020 Porsche 911 992 GT3 RS 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat six, 535bhp (est)
2021 Porsche 911 992 GT2 RS 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat six, 720bhp (est)
2022 Porsche 911 992 Turbo 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat six, 690bhp (est)
2022 Porsche 911 992 Turbo S 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat six, 760bhp (est)
2022 Porsche 911 Turbo S E-Hybrid 992 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat six plus electric motor, 850bhp (est)
2023 Porsche 911 GTS 992 3.0-litre twin-turbo flat six, 490bhp (est)
2023 Porsche 911 Carrera 4 GTS 992 3.0-litre twin-turbo flat six, 470bhp (est)
2023 Porsche 911 Targa 4 GTS 992 3.0-litre twin-turbo flat six, 470bhp (est)
