This Might Look Like A Production Porsche 959 At A Glance, But It Definitely Is Not
I wouldn’t criticize you if you tried to say this was a normal Porsche 959, as the body does look pretty similar to the production car. However, this isn’t the case. In fact, as if being one the few surviving examples of just 12 prototypes built didn’t make this car rare enough, it’s also one of the few that were finished in Ruby Red. The car was apparently designed specifically for electric system testing and hot weather testing on the U.S. West Coast and in Europe.
Still need proof that this is an authentic prototype, well that proof comes on the inside. Throughout the testing phase, several different interior layouts were installed, including one with different seats. You can find extra and disconnected electric wiring under the passenger seat along with hard mounts for the electronic testing equipment next to the rear seats. The car is also lacking power steering, ride-height control, a passenger-side mirror, alarm, windshield washer, and the fuel filler cap among other things.
Porsche 959 specifications
Engine
2849 cc Bi-turbocharged flat-6
Bore x stroke
95.0 x 67.0 mm
Compression ratio
8.3:1
Horsepower (DIN)
444 HP @ 6,500 RPM
Torque
370 LB-FT @ 5,500 RPM
Fuel delivery
elect. port injection
Transmission
6-speed manual
0-60 mph
3.7 seconds
Top Speed
197 mph
This 959 Prototype’s History Is Interesting
How much do you think the asking price is?
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After the Porsche 969 hit the production lines, Porsche destroyed most of the other prototypes that were built alongside this one. This car, however, was imported into the U.S. in the latter half of the 1980s and was displayed like a trophy at the HQ of Vasek Polak – a Porsche importer and dealer. Sometime after that, it was shipped off to Japan for demonstrational activities before being sold to Belgium and later the United Kingdom. The car eventually made it back to its homeland of Germany, where it’s currently on sale. According to the listing, it has just 26,520 km (16,478 miles) on the odometer, but the asking price is a mystery. If you’re interested in owning a very rare care, you’ll have to contract the owner through Mechatronik to find out how much you’ll have to shell out.
Our spy photographers caught the upcoming Porsche 911 Sport Classic out for a new testing session on the public roads of Germany. As you can see the car is missing most of the camouflage which means the testing sessions are pretty much done, and all that is left is mostly fine tuning.
The prototype follows the design lines of the 911 models, but there will be a few distinctive features. First one is of course that little ducktail at the back – a signature of the Sport Classic models. The 911 Sport Classic will also feature a double bubble roof and the lines of the special hood will match perfectly the lines of the roof.
The only camouflage we can see on this prototype is some tape around the sides of the ducktail spoiler and in the middle of the rear light arrangement.
As for the engine, rumors suggest the 911 Sport Classic will get the same engine as the 911 GTS: a 3.0-liter twin-turbo flat-six that delivers 480 horsepower and 420 pound-feet of torque.
Rumors suggest Porsche will only build 2,000 units of the 911 Sport Classic.
Porsche claims that they are indeed the most successful brand in customer motorsport, with 30 one-make cups globally, over 4,400 911-based Cup cars manufactured to date, with 31 years of Carrera Cup racing in Germany. As a result, the folks at Zuffenhausen and Weissach are probably wondering as to what the future of customer racing using pure EV’s looks like.
The German brand clearly isn’t satisfied with Formula E. They are hence already looking ahead with the Mission R, which – on paper – looks like an electric 911 GT3 Cup car.
The Mission R could in fact go on to become the centerpiece of the Porsche single-brand cups in the not-too-distant future. The car embodies everything that makes Porsche what it is; They include attributes like Performance, Design, and in keeping with the times, Sustainability.
Bodywork with a focus on Sustainability
Upon first appearance, the concept resembles the very successful Le Mans 919 racer, although with a far more gracious-looking front and a rather stubby back. The rudiments of the Cayman floor unit are hidden under the shell. The car is 14’ long, which makes it shorter than the 718. A width of 6’6”, on the other hand, is notably more, while its height of 3’11″ is considerably lower than that car. The Mission R incorporates the most recent advances in active aerodynamics, both in the front and in the back, where a massive, two-section movable spoiler resides. The Mission R also features Porsche Active Aerodynamics (PAA) with Drag Reduction System (DRS) on the nose section as well as that giant rear wing.
Through the domed roof, a carbon-fiber superstructure visible from the outside may be viewed.
Instead of fitting a separate roll cage, this construction by itself acts as a supporting and load-bearing structure. Not only is it visually appealing, but it is also lightweight and stable, with room for an emergency exit hatch for the driver.
This robust structure also has a roof, which Porsche refers to as an exoskeleton. On top of that, body panels composed primarily of Natural Fiber Reinforced plastic (NFK) are used. Porsche uses the same material for the front splitter, diffuser, and side skirts.
“Porsche is the brand for people who fulfill their dreams. This is also true in motorsports. We experience our innovative strength on the race track, demonstrate courage in pursuing new avenues and delight car owners with sporting performance,” says Oliver Blume, Chairman of the Executive Board of Porsche AG.
A sporty Bespoke Racing Cockpit
Porsche uses NFK On the inside, as well. The material is used to make the inside door scales, the rear bulkhead, and the seat, among other things. When it comes to the interior, the driver is the focal point. All controls are easily accessible to the driver.
The cockpit is influenced by cars used in gaming simulators. A helmet holder is also in place to dry and cool the driver’s helmet using the onboard air conditioning. The car features a steering wheel that incorporates the main information screen and is linked with another unit positioned behind, which complements the first one by showing the image from the rearview cameras. A third screen, to the right of the seat, displays the driver’s biometric information.
“In addition to our involvement in the Formula E World Championship, we are now taking the next big step forward in electric mobility. The concept study is our vision of all-electric customer motorsports. The Mission R embodies everything that makes Porsche strong: performance, design and sustainability.”
The Powertrain
The Mission R features two electric motors. The motors are derived from the Taycan, but they were further improved for motorsport to the point that they are now virtually separate designs. It comes as no surprise that Mission R’s electric drivetrain exceeds 1,000 horsepower. Two motors, one on each axle, that produces 430 horsepower at the front and 644 horsepower at the rear. The race car’s standard continuous power output remains 671 horsepower. (This is nearly the same as the upcoming hybrid LMDh Le Mans car). While in qualifying mode, the two motors produce1085 horsepower. A Four-wheel drive system transfers tractive force to the tarmac.
Porsche has also worked on the weight distribution. The battery pack is situated ahead of the rear axle, as opposed to the Taycan. Porsche refers to this as the e-core arrangement. This layout implies that the Mission R has driving characteristics similar to those of a mid-engine racer. The Mission R’s permanently excited synchronous motors have stators that are directly tempered with oil as a coolant. Speaking of cost savings, the Mission R does away without the Taycan’s two-speed transmission; acceleration from a standstill isn’t very important in customer motorsports. Also, there’s no limit to the power that drives with only one gear. The transmission and pulse inverter on both the front and rear drives are designed identically, saving both parts and money.
Blistering Performance
The Mission R will be able to sprint from 0-60 mph in 2.5 seconds and reach speeds of over 187 mph.
The cells of the 80 kWh battery are also oil-cooled. Unlike in a typical electric motor where the coolant goes through a jacket outside the stator, the oil in direct cooling flows straight along the copper windings. More heat can be dispersed directly at the source as a result of this.
They run at 900 volts, which helps explain why the batteries can be charged from 5% to 80% in under 15 minutes during racing. Charging can be done at a rate of up to 340 kW. Such a short recharge time will enable the Mission R to confront a race weekend with free practice, qualifying, and the race without having to worry about range.
Conclusion
How exactly will motorsports evolve in the future? And how will interfaces withE-Motorsports change over time?. How plausible is this vision? Well, Porsche thinks they have an idea about where motorsports and the industry is headed.
Without a doubt, Porsche will be ready with an order book at the IAA in Munich and at the Porsche Motorsport desks. The maker has not yet stated when a probable manufacturing model will be available, but our guess would be somewhere between 2025 -2026.
As of now, BMW isn’t planning to follow-up on the current BMW Z4 – once it goes out of production, that’s supposed to be it. And last we heard, Audi was completely unsure of what to do with the Audi R8 and the Audi TT, meaning neither may survive beyond their current generations or the next generation at best. With the Toyota Supra being based on the Z4, there’s a good chance it’ll be a one-and-done ordeal too, and Mazda hasn’t exactly been open about electrification plans for the MX-5, either.
So what happens later this year when Porsche unveils a Boxster EV concept that is, reportedly, near-production ready? Will it take less than the five years it took the Mission E to morph into the Taycan and MX-5 electric too. Perhaps a couple of automakers are secretly working on their own electric compact sports cars or maybe they aren’t. If they are, then all the better for us, and if they aren’t, expect to watch them all scatter like roaches when the lights come on as they start scrambling to take their rightful pieces of the pie before Porsche comes to dominate a lightly touched segment.
