Yahoo Autos The Porsche 911 Hybrid Is Here, and It Packs Some Radical Changes
So, this is it. The hybridized Porsche 911. We’ve known the 911 would go down this route for a while, but the finer details were a very well kept secret. Well, now we have them: the new refreshed Porsche 911 -- or 992.2 if you prefer -- arrives in two flavors. The Carrera essentially carries over the old 3-liter twin-turbocharged flat-six and produces 388 bhp and 331 lb-ft of torque. It costs from $120,100. Nothing much to see here. The big news revolves around the Carrera GTS.
A purist’s nightmare, perhaps? We’ve witnessed the non-GT models move away from normally-aspirated engines and now we must get used to the 911 hybrid. Is this the straw that broke the camel’s back? Well let’s not be too hasty. Porsche reveres its ultimate icon and has employed a very 911-style solution to the sticky subject of hybridization.
The system, dubbed T-Hybrid, features an all-new 3.6-liter flat six with a single electric turbocharger - great for response and control - supplemented by an electric motor housed within the PDK gearbox and a small 400V 1.9 kWh battery located between the bulkhead and frunk. (luggage space is unaffected.) The total output for the GTS is 532 bhp at 6500rpm and 449 lb ft from 1950rpm-6000rpm. That horsepower number matches a 991 Turbo with a capital T, such is the rate of progress in the 911’s evolution.
The Carrera GTS covers 0-60 mph in 2.9-seconds and reaches 194 mph. It costs from $164,900 and has an electric range of precisely zero miles. It’s just not that sort of hybrid. Oh, and it can lap the ‘Ring in 7:16.93 - a full 8.7 seconds faster than the previous GTS. The new 3.6-liter engine makes 478 bhp and 420 lb ft (almost exactly the same as the previous GTS) and the e-motor is good for 53 bhp and 110 lb ft. Porsche claim the GTS is just 110 lbs heavier than its predecessor, although this is somewhat muddied by the fact the 911 now comes standard as a two-seater. The four-seat configuration is a no-cost option. The Carrera GTS comes in at just over 3500 lbs.
The new engine is fascinating and, according to Porsche, offers much, much better response time than the twin-turbocharged solution it replaces. For example, it can hit full boost and deliver peak torque within a second of full throttle application from low revs. The old car needed three seconds to achieve the same result. They also shared a metric of "distance covered" from a standstill after 2.5 seconds (without launch control engaged). The last GTS would cover 47.5 ft, whereas the new model would be well up the road having covered 70.5 ft in the same time. Maybe those EVs won’t get away at the stop light so easily now?
The eTurbo
The key to the performance and response of the Carrera GTS is the big eTurbo hanging off the side of the engine, which separates the compressor and turbine and inserts an "E-machine" or small e-motor between the two. This motor, powered by the same battery as the bigger e-motor in the PDK ‘box, can spin-up the turbocharger incredibly quickly and such is the control that no waste gate is required. It can also act as a generator, developing as much as 11 kW from excess exhaust gases to recharge the battery, or sending power directly to the main e-motor if the battery is already full. Maximum boost is 1.8-bar and the whole eTurbo assembly is weight neutral to the twin-turbo arrangement for the previous twin-turbo arrangement.
As emissions regulations become ever tighter this step-change to the 911’s powertrain was deemed essential. For example the new engine always runs in Lambda 1 mode as full enrichment at higher loads will no longer be permitted under European regulation. A demonstration of the challenges of emissions control can be seen with the new Carrera. It carries over the old Carrera GTS engine (complete with bigger turbos as compared to the old Carrera and Carrera S models) but compared to the previous GTS is down on power by 92 bhp.
What else is new?
Rear-wheel steer is also now standard on the Carrera GTS. As before, it runs 10 mm lower as compared to the Carrera and on PASM adjustable dampers. The optional PDDC active roll control system is now integrated into the 400V system, for faster response time and greater precision.
At the front there are active vertical slats for the GTS to deliver the optimum cooling level, all headlight functions are integrated into the main lamp, freeing up space for larger intakes and the 992 has generally been gently tweaked without looking radically different. Hey, this is a 911, what did you expect?
Inside there are some departures and perhaps they’re not all that positive. The dash is now simply a curved 12.6-inch screen -- the previous physical central dial is gone -- and where once you twisted a kind of ‘key’ to start the 911, now it’s a starter button just like, well, everything else on sale. Shame.
The hybrid system of the Carrera GTS means there is no manual transmission option. The same is true of the entry-level Carrera. So, right now there is no 992.2 model available with a stick. Will there ever be? The engineers wouldn’t be drawn on specifics but seemed to suggest they understood the demand. Perhaps a future Carrera T will provide the opportunity for a manual ‘box.
On the test track in the Carrera GTS
After the tech presentation, some time discussing the new T-Hybrid system and a bit of time poking around various 992.2 models in a studio, Porsche also took us to Weissach for a couple of laps of the test track riding along with factory racer and, increasingly, key development driver Jörg Bergmeister.
The demonstration starts with launch control, followed by two pretty flat-out laps around this superb test loop. This is not a racetrack, so it’s narrow, there are walls very close by and plenty of blind turns and elevation change. It goes without saying that Jörg is fully committed and absolutely calm as he demonstrates the grip, agility and throttle adjustability of the GTS. "The throttle response is fantastic," he says. "This is probably the biggest step as you have the control of a normally aspirated car." As if to prove this, he exits the next turn sideways and corrects in one, fluid movement.’
For me, what’s really encouraging is the way the car wants to rev (the cut-out is 7500 rpm) and the noise. There’s real character here and it seems to have a bit more menace than the previous 3-liter twin-turbocharged engine. It feels a bit more racy. Do you feel the added weight? Not from where I’m sitting. Jörg is a fantastic driver but the way he can hustle the car and flick so rapidly between direction changes is incredibly impressive and speaks volumes for the body control. Considering it’s wearing a set of standard and well-worn Goodyear tires, the speed, grip and control is stunning. "It’s so good at the ‘Ring," he says. "The time is impressive but the handling balance is even better, too."
Of course, he would say that, but just a couple of laps in the passenger seat is enough to leave a vivid impression. Most importantly, in sound and response it feels vey familiar. There’s more power but the way the engine builds and builds to the rev limiter is natural, rather than feeling overly augmented. We’ll be driving the 911 Carrera GTS in late June and this has whetted the appetite pretty nicely.
Prices
2025 911 Carrera Coupe: $120,100
2025 911 Carrera Cabriolet: $133,400
2025 911 Carrera GTS Coupe: $164,900
2025 911 Carrera GTS Cabriolet: $178,200
2025 911 Carrera 4 GTS Coupe: $172,700
2025 911 Targa 4 GTS: $186,000
2025 911 Carrera 4 GTS Cabriolet: $186,000
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