Porsche Recycling Unused F1 Tech into New Hybrid Supercar
Porsche's unused Formula One tech might just land on their next great roadgoing hypercar.
Recycled Tech
It's been a few years now since the Porsche 918 Spyder graced us with hypercar power. Which also means that it's just about time for Porsche to bless us with something new and incredible, a car positioned to blow everyone away with incredible performance and technology. But how will they possibly build a car more impressive than the 918? Well, according to a recent report from Autocar, they'll do it with some otherwise discarded Formula 1 technology.
Photos: Porsche
Finding a Home
As we already know, Porsche hasn't participated in Formula One racing in decades. But they did recently consider making a comeback in F1, and even went to the trouble of developing a drivetrain for the racing series. Upwards of 40 people were reportedly working on these parts with a goal toward being ready by 2021. But now that it's not happening, Porsche has a perfectly good engine sitting around with nothing to go in.
Photos: Porsche
Slow Development
Instead of getting back into F1, Porsche ultimately decided to put all its eggs in Formula E's all-electric basket. They also considered building an all-electric Hypercar derived from that technology. But apparently solid-state battery tech hasn't quite advanced to the point where Porsche feels comfortable using it in a new supercar. At least for now.
Photos: Porsche
Formula One for the Road
Thus, it makes sense to build at least one more road-going supercar with an internal-combustion engine. But like all of today's F1 cars, the 1.6-liter turbocharged V6 will also utilize an electric-assist system, making it a hybrid. This would also position the future Porsche as a direct competitor to the Mercedes-AMG One, which employs a drivetrain lifted directly from the brand's Formula One cars.
Photos: Porsche
Bumpy Road
And that should make Porsche fans rather excited. After all, who doesn't want to drive an F1 car on the road? Of course, Mercedes has encountered a host of problems trying to make an F1 drivetrain road legal, including figuring out how to tame something that idles at speeds some engines redline at. But Porsche could certainly sort all of this out, as we've seen in the past.
Photos: Porsche
Back to Le Mans?
The other big piece of news that comes from Autocar's report is that this project could wind up convincing Porsche to once again participate in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. This new hypercar would fit nicely into new Le Mans rules, of course. And since Porsche has won the race more times than any other manufacturer, you have to believe that they'll want to continue to hold that distinction.
Photos: Porsche
Going out with a Bang
Obviously, this exciting project is in its infant stages, and Autocar doesn't believe that we'll see it before 2023 at the earliest. But it makes a ton of sense on the surface. After all, it could be many more years before solid-state battery technology becomes viable enough to see production use. So why not go out with a very loud, very high-revving Formula One-derived bang in the meantime?
Photos: Porsche
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