Next month could see an avalanche of new Porsche models being previewed, if reports out of Germany are to be believed. According to the Handelsblatt newspaper, rumors of Porsche working on a reskinned Audi Nuvolari/Lamborghini Temerario may have been off the mark, and Porsche is instead working on its own platform for a new flagship halo, said to be internally named “S1.”
This may be shown to investors on October 7, during Capital Markets Day, and the hypercar could also be joined by the 992 GT2 RS or the 992.2 GT3 RS, the gas Macan replacement, the 718 sports cars, and/or the brand’s flagship SUV. The paper claims that the S1 will cost start around €500,000, or around $575,000 at current exchange rates, but regional pricing will obviously vary depending on taxes. What’s most intriguing isn’t the six-figure asking price, however, but the rumored eight-cylinder boxer engine.
Porsche S1 Isn’t a New 911 Variant
Porsche
The report indicates that Porsche is developing a standalone hypercar unrelated to its rear-engine 911, which would make fitting the boxer-eight a lot easier. Porsche has confirmed the existence of flat-eight engines in the past, with eFuels project manager Marcos Marques saying a few years ago that a 5.0-liter eight-cylinder boxer with two turbochargers, 750 horsepower, and 738 lb-ft of torque was crammed into the chassis of a 718 Cayman. Redline was set at 9,000 rpm, and all the shunt was sent to the rear wheels through a manual transmission. It didn’t make production because Porsche felt the timing was off, but perhaps now that Porsche is trying to become even more upmarket, selling fewer cars to make more money, a low-volume hypercar may be the right call.
Related: Porsche CEO Hints at New Hypercar to Follow the 918 Spyder
It’s also worth mentioning that while Porsche surely has made advances allowing for even more power to be produced from an evolution of the abovementioned prototype, ultra-elite buyers are looking for more engagement and theater (just ask McLaren), and a rear-drive, manual hypercar that screams to 9,000 rpm (or higher) sounds enticing. By the way, if the S1 is the flat-eight monster this report claims it is, it may soon have a direct rival in Ruf’s upcoming supercar.
Porsche May Revive a Stillborn Le Mans-Based Hypercar
Porsche
It’s also worth mentioning that nearly ten years ago, Porsche revealed the Le Mans-inspired 919 Street, but while it was no more than a full-size clay model, Porsche has since refined the recipe with the 963 Le Mans Hypercar, built atop a spec chassis. It’s also converted one of these into a semi-road-legal hypercar called the 963 RSP, so it appears that building a racecar-like road car would certainly be possible. However, we suspect this option is less likely, as the noise, vibration, and harshness limits of a racing car are much higher. The layout is also uncomfortable for more than one occupant, and getting in and out would not be graceful. Whatever the case, Porsche has not officially confirmed that its working on a flat-eight hypercar of any sort, a Le Mans-inspired road car, or anything else. However, with more detailed reports trickling out of Stuttgart, it’s only a matter of time before we get an announcement.
