Words by Marcus Boothby
Given that the current global and automotive climate is a bit of a mess at the moment, a lot of car makers are cutting back their product portfolio by getting rid of a lot poor selling models, and reducing the number of diesel models being sold in favour of crossovers and electrified models.
However at Porsche, they’re heavily investing in electric models, with the newly launched Taycan and an electric Macan in the works. The Taycan has proved to be an excellent car loved by all and even holds a record for the longest drift set by an EV. It helps that the Taycan drives like a proper Porsche, with many saying it drives like a 911. This is impressive considering that all current Taycan’s are 4WD and weigh 2 tonnes.
So this got me thinking, what if Porsche were to develop the next generation of 911 based around an enhanced version of the Taycan platform? This will anger the purists but it makes the most amount of sense to make an electric 911 in the current climate as Porsche have already proved they can make an excellent EV sports car in the form of the Taycan.
Honestly, it won’t take much as the Taycan platform is ready to go, but we’d like some small improvements over the current platform. Granted, the Taycan has only been on sale for less than 12 months at this point, but I have a feeling that Porsche are already working on a next-gen version which will largely influence what the next 911 will be like. Currently, the J1 platform which underpins the Taycan and upcoming Audi e-tron GT, is the first dedicated EV platform from Porsche meaning they still have a lot of time to develop it further with better packaging and structural capabilities.
The Taycan is an excellent sports tourer, but can Porsche translate this to the 911?
Sure, the Taycan can hold itself against a 911 in its current form but for the next 911 to better than the Taycan, it needs to stand out, while not upsetting the 911 GT models. What I’m saying, it needs to be better than the already excellent 992 generation. Saying that’s with a fully electric platform, the electric 911 should in theory be better to drive than a run of the mill Carrera or dare I say, GTS model as the battery cell can live on the floor, meaning a better centre of gravity, and with motors being at both ends of the car, the electric 911 can retain the perfect 50/50 weight distribution the model line is known for.
We don’t expect much in the way of a styling revolution, but more of an evolutionary change, like all 911’s since the 996. So we expect it to have a cutting edge interior similar to the latest Panamera and Taycan models, with the classic exterior design staying, but with more Taycan influenced looks.
One thing we don’t want for the electric 911 to be boring, but hopefully this won’t be the case if the Taycan is anything to go by. Sure, the sound of the flat-6 will go, but internal combustion is a dying breed…which is a shame but progress has to be made in order for things to survive.
We don’t think an electric 911 is coming anytime soon though, as the Taycan is still fresh and still has room for improvement. Also, the 992 generation hasn’t been around for too long either, meaning we’ll see a 992.1 model in a couple years before Porsche even starts working on the next generation of their iconic sports car.