The design of the new Porsche 911, now available as a hybrid, risks making the work of the tuners difficult, especially when it comes to touching the engine.
Like all manufacturers, Porsche has no choice but to reduce its CO2 footprint. Electrification has been a big part of the range for a long time, as have plug-in hybrids and “zero emissions” with all the Taycan variants, but the Stuttgart firm had not yet touched the sacrosanct 911. It is now done on the occasion of a restyling of the 922 and the introduction of a GTS equipped with an electric motor. The only “simple” hybrid Porsche for the moment, the 911 GTS “2024”, has not yet made efficiency its priority, but the manufacturer has set a first milestone and reassured its customers about driving pleasure and sound, whereas the 911 hybrid is expected to turn the corner.
So while the mission seems accomplished and buyers won’t be disappointed, not everyone will necessarily be happy with this turning point. Especially the tuners, who will a priori face a new technical difficulty, which could well block them!
A turbo is at the heart of the hybrid system
Indeed, to increase power, a tuner often resorts to increasing the turbo pressure. The “1” level of mechanical optimization has the merit of not being too expensive and immediately noticeable. But with the new 911, the problem lies in the very design of the engine, which is “watted” in two ways. On the one hand, Porsche has integrated a small electric motor into the PDK dual-clutch gearbox. This, powered by a 1.9 kWh li-ion battery, produces 54 hp and 150 Nm but never drives the wheels alone. On the other hand, the new turbo of this 911 itself integrates a very small electric motor placed between the compressor and exhaust wheels. This gives a dual use to this small blower, which allows both to avoid the turbo start-up time and to produce current at high revs to recharge the 1.9 kWh battery. Complex, but not unprecedented, since Mercedes inaugurated it on the C63 AMG. The fact remains that this new turbo will probably not be able to be tinkered with so easily by just anyone.
Not impossible, but not obvious
For the engineers interviewed, tackling this electric turbo directly linked to the operation of the engine would be “opening Pandora’s box”. Perhaps it would be better to be satisfied with the 541 hp that the 911 GTS hybrid already develops in combined power, or else wait a little for the future Turbo version. However, it would seem that the task is not impossible either. Especially since the engineers have not locked down the electronics. On the other hand, the preparation would probably be much more expensive because it would be necessary to develop a new electric turbo to replace the existing one. But hey, courage to the preparers who would like to tackle it to make the 911 hybrid even more efficient. Is the game worth the candle?
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