Daily Slideshow: Porsche 930 Uses an '80s McLaren Formula One Engine for Power
Who knew that one of the coolest Porsches ever lives inside McLaren's Technology Center?
1. One of a Kind
Porsche's museum in Stuttgart is chock full of amazing, rare, and one-off machinery. Which, of course, you would expect. But what you wouldn't expect is to see a Porsche 930 sitting inside McLaren's Technology Center. And yet, here we are, staring at perhaps the most unique 911 in the world. At first, it doesn't really make sense, until you consider what lies underneath that massive rear whale tail.
2. The Monster Within
Which, naturally, is a 1.5-liter TAG turbocharged V6 McLaren Formula 1 engine. Yes, the very same mill that powered McLaren F1 cars back in the '80s. The tiny little engine sports a pair of massive intercoolers, which are there for a reason. A full 58 psi of boost is good for a whopping 650 horsepower, though in some cases reached 1,000+ raging ponies. Obviously, the whole rig is a tight fit in the back of this 911, but we bet it sounds amazing.
3. Project with a Purpose
Outside of the noise and massive intercoolers, there's little evidence here that this is anything other than a pretty normal Porsche. RUF wheels and a center console-mounted green start button are the only real clues that there's something going on here. Well, that and the massive U.K.-sized "TAG Turbo" front license plate. But this car wasn't just built by some hot rodding McLaren engineers. The seemingly crazy project actually served a valid purpose.
4. The Unicorn of Porsches
Turns out, the special 911 was built as a test bed for the Porsche-developed, TAG-funded turbo engine used in McLaren's F1 cars at the time. But it doesn't look like the car has been driven very hard. And even though McLaren proudly displays this special Porsche inside their facility, photography supposedly isn't allowed. So we have the folks over at Drive Cult to thank for ignoring this rule and proving that this car actually exists.
5. Time for a Test Drive?
As incredible as it is that something like this F1-powered Porsche exists, it only leaves us to wonder what it's like to drive. Nestled among countless (and priceless) machinery, the car sits, somewhat by itself, really. We doubt anyone other than some lucky McLaren engineers and maybe an F1 driver or two have ever had the pleasure. But if McLaren ever decides to let anyone test drive this beast, we'd like to call dibs!
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