Porsche’s History Inspires Designer To Reimagine A 1960s Racer As A Modern Longtail
What if 908, but more Hybrid?
Porsche's 908 chassis was little more than a lightweight body wrapped around a tube frame with a flat-8 engine hung behind the driver. Because of that car's simplicity, it was also lightweight, contributing to speed and translating into race victories. From the late 1960s through the early 1970s it was near the top of the time sheets at important endurance and sprint races all over the world. The same basic chassis design was continued on through the 936 program as well, making the 908 perhaps even more important a design than its contemporary stablemate, the venerable 917.
This group of designers in China were so inspired by the 908's contribution to Porsche's history, that they decided they wanted to put together a modern interpretation of the car, one that incorporates some of the 908's best design features, while mixing them expertly with some 918 Spyder road car influence, as well as Porsche's 919 Hybrid LMP1 race car. The wheels even have heat extraction fans built into them, harkening back to the 1980s when Porsche was the most dominant force at Le Mans.
While this model would not be likely to be competitive in any kind of current motorsport, it is an interesting display of Porsche's history aligning with their present efforts all in one convenient package. When Porsche caught wind of the project, they offered to have the computer rendering crafted into a fully realized 3D model. You can see the designers' faces light up when they see the model for the first time. They collectively spent about 5000 hours on the project, and to see it completed must have been an absolute joy. Porsche even went to the trouble of making the doors open and the headlights illuminate. How cool is that?
