Despite the fact that some Porsches are already running mild-hybrid hardware (see video), the company sees no viable way to make the 911 a plug-in car – not until a major technological breakthrough, at least.
According to Frank Moser, one of the Stuttgart company’s executives, such a hybrid was indeed in development for a while but was eventually dropped. One of the main reasons for doing so was the engine bay space requirements. The powertrain of the modern 911 is laid out in an extremely tight and efficient way, so allocating more space for a bulky battery pack and a good-enough charger is hardly possible.
This isn’t the only hurdle, though. Modern power cells are large and heavy for what is essentially still a classic RWD sports car. Committing to a full rebuild would also mean redesigning all the weight distribution and the handling, and the result will still be guaranteed to offend the purists with its different feel on the road. Preserving a car’s unique character is a challenge even when changing minor things, far more so when replacing the powertrain.
In the end, Moser admitted that Porsche might revisit the idea of a plug-in hybrid 911 one day. He stressed that it could only happen after a major advancement in technology, such as the mass-market introduction of lightweight solid-state batteries. These batteries have been in development for many decades now, but even with all the research, they always seem to be just a few more years away.
