It’s finally happening, folks: Development of the first-ever Porsche 911 hybrid has concluded after more than five million kilometers of testing. Hoo boy.
It’s now all set to go into production this summer, and we'll see the finished article as part of the facelifted 992.2 reveal on May 28. Mark your calendars, people.
Details of the powertrain are being kept under lock and key for now, though it’ll no doubt be some kind of electric motor paired with a flat-six.
Porsche has, however, confirmed a big power bump has resulted from the addition of electricity, and it has let slip that the Nürburgring lap time is 8.7sec faster than “the corresponding version of the predecessor model.”
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The new time was 7min 16.934sec, which would suggest Porsche is comparing this 992.2 hybrid to the 992 Carrera 4 GTS (7min 25.632sec). Interesting.
As we understand, the 992 was engineered with hybridization in mind, with the eight-speed dual-clutch gearbox built to work alongside an electric motor, while Porsche left plenty of empty spaces for batteries to be dropped in. Don't expect radical changes for the facelift, then.
“We left nothing to chance during development and tested the new 911 under all sorts of conditions all over the world,” says Frank Moser, vice president of the 911 and 718 models.
“From the freezing cold to scorching heat, as was the case during the final stages of testing in Dubai. Whether at a high drivetrain load in the demanding conditions of mountain passes or in the stop-and-go traffic of an urban environment, the new 911 has mastered even the most difficult challenges with aplomb.”
You can see some of those testing photos here, but you’ll have to wait until later this month for the full download on the hybrid 911.
NOTE: This article first appeared on TopGear.com. Minor edits have been made.
