This Amazing Porsche Hypercar Nearly Made It to Production

What Could Have Been

There have been many cool Porsche sports cars emerging from the German automaker over the past seven-plus decades, covering the entire spectrum of output and performance. At the top of that realm lies the hypercar, of which Porsche has made some pretty special examples too, such as the Carrera GT and 918 Spyder, to name just a few. However, there was one particular Porsche hypercar that was planned for production yet never saw the light of day, as the company's e-fuel expert Marcos Marques recently revealed in an interview with The Intercooler.

Photos: Porsche

Follow Up

This particular Porsche hypercar was slated to be a follow-up to the 918 Spyder - something we've been impatiently waiting on for years now - as that particular car went away back in 2015. Its replacement was slated to ride on the Cayman chassis, surprisingly enough, but it's the engine that was supposed to power this machine that's truly intriguing.

Photos: Porsche

Intriguing Powerplant

That powerplant was a 5.0-liter flat-eight-cylinder engine with two turbochargers and a lofty redline of 9,000 rpm. Output was slated to come in at a hefty 750 horsepower and 738 pound-feet of torque, which would have made for one heck of a capable machine.

Photos: Porsche

Enthusiast's Dream

Even better, this future hypercar was also set to be offered with a manual transmission, seemingly tailor-made for enthusiasts craving an old-school driving experience with so many electrified, automatic-equipped hypercars already existing out there in the world. Sadly, of course, this never quite came to fruition.

Photos: Porsche

Right Car, Wrong Time

This future hypercar made it relatively far in the development process, even going so far as to be tested at Porsche's development center in Weissach. However, the automaker ultimately pulled the plug after determining that the timing just wasn't right for such a machine to be built and sold. "We're an engineering company at the core and we’re always searching for new answers, different solutions, and sometimes those answers aren't needed at that time," Marques said. "But that’s all part of the engineering process. It's what makes Porsche unique as a car company."

Photos: Porsche

Not a Waste?

Marques did note that this dead hypercar had an impact on the current-gen Cayman, however, so not all of this process was wasted. It's also possible that the Living Legend Concept - as seen here - was a bit of a preview of what it might have been, as that particular car was reportedly powered by an eight-cylinder engine of unknown origin.

Photos: Porsche

Killed by Electrification?

Ultimately, it's a shame that Porsche didn't move forward and build the hypercar it was planning to because it sounds like it would have been absolutely amazing. However, with the brand embracing electrification, it certainly doesn't seem like we'll ever see another Porsche hypercar without it.

Photos: Porsche

>>Join the conversation about this Porsche concept right here at Rennlist.com.

>>For help with your do-it-yourself maintenance and repair projects, please visit our how-to section.