Porsche 911 T-Hybrid: More performance and power with unchanged fuel consumption

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Porsche is revamping its classic 911 for the umpteenth time, and once again it offers more power. Visually, however, apart from details on the front and rear aprons, little has changed. There is also an instrument screen with a 12.6-inch diagonal, for the first time with an animated rev counter, but with new display options. However, a contemporary head-up display is still not available. Many had expected this in vain, as well as a hybrid drive with plug-in function. Nevertheless, the "precisely developed" hybrid drive should "significantly increase performance", as Frank Moser, responsible for the 911 and 718 model series, promises. However, if things had turned out differently, he would rightly have had to pack it in. And Porsche along with it.

Battery in the trunk

The new design of the six-cylinder boxer engine for the Porsche 911 T-Hybrid brings a return to 3.6  liters of displacement. Instead of the previous double turbocharger, this engine is equipped with a single turbocharger. An electric motor in the eight-speed dual-clutch gearbox not only compensates for the lack of responsiveness, it also improves the values. It also recovers power from kinetic energy, for example when accelerating or braking.

The permanently excited synchronous machine with 41 kW offers a maximum torque of 150 Nm from the engine's idling speed. In addition, the exhaust gas turbocharger of the T-Hybrid also benefits from electrification. If there is not yet enough exhaust gas pressure, it is driven up to speed by an 11 kW electric motor without delay in order to build up boost pressure immediately. This makes the engine more elastic. As a result, the driver is less required to rev and pull the engine, which means he can operate more smoothly from a lower engine speed.

Better response behavior

Both electric motors are connected to a 400-volt battery with a capacity of 1.9 kWh and a weight of 40 kilograms. In order not to further increase the kerb weight of the 911, the 12-volt consumers are supplied by a lightweight lithium-ion battery. The electrification not only improves the responsiveness, which should be clearly noticeable, but also increases the output of the 3.6-liter boxer engine from an already impressive 357 to 398 kW, and its power from 570 to 610 Nm. However, the driving performance has only changed marginally compared to its predecessor and the standard consumption remains almost the same. According to the Porsche developers, however, there should be notable improvements at high speeds.

Mixed tires as an option

The revised basic version Porsche 911 Carrera remains with 3.0 liter displacement, twin-turbo and thus offers an increase in power to 290 kW and a maximum torque of 450 Nm. This slightly improves its driving performance, with a top speed of 294 km/h. Following the facelift, the 911 versions are optionally available with mixed tires in 19-/20- or 20-/21-inch format, with the GTS and the later turbo versions featuring rear-axle steering as standard.

The new Porsche 911 Carrera is now available to order as a Coupé and Cabriolet with rear-wheel drive at prices starting at 128,700 Euro. All-wheel drive and the Targa body variant are also available for the 911 Carrera GTS. Both model variants are equipped with dual-clutch transmission as an alternative. Prices for the Porsche 911 Carrera GTS Coupé start at 170,600 Euro, with deliveries beginning in the fall.

(olb)