Porsche Won’t be Making a Fully-Electric 911, Says CEO
As for other vehicles in the automaker’s lineup, it’s too early to tell.
Electrification of cars is the new hot topic, and everything from econoboxes to supercars is getting battery packs. Porsche purists rejoice because the beautiful 911 won't be losing its guts, according to an interview AutoGuide had with Porsche CEO Oliver Blume.
Now, don't get too giddy, because there's a keyword we need to look at: "fully." That is, the Porsche 911 will be getting an electrified drivetrain, which is something we already knew, but it's not going to lose the driving experience that made the German luxury sports car manufacturer so popular to begin with.
Porsche CEO Oliver Blume confirmed that Porsche has been working on a plug-in hybrid version of the 911 that will likely come in time for Porsche's next-generation refresh. With that information came the knowledge that the 911 will never be fully electric, or the company at least has no plans in the works to completely electrify the platform. This could be the reason that Porsche broke off its electrification into the Mission E project rather than just work with its current lineup, to allow for a separation of the purist and pure electric cars.
What about the rest of the Porsche lineup, though? The Cayenne and Panamera already have ventured into electrification in the form of hybrids, so Porsche is open to the idea of electrification. The Boxster and Cayman, two of Porsche's other more entry-level sports cars, may also see electrification, but Blue says that that is still undecided.
“We launched the 718 Boxster and Cayman in 2016,” Blume told AutoGuide. “We are not yet at the point where we have to decide how things will progress.”
Even though Porsche is looking to keep its heritage, the manufacturer seems genuinely open to hybridization and even electrification. It appears that Porsche has identified that there are some consumers who still prefer the grunt of a gasoline-powered sports car and are resisting electrification. Not only is it important to satisfy the consumer, but retaining Porsche's rich heritage is key to the company's vision.
