This, says Porsche, reveals the potential of its Mission R concept.
Last year, Porsche revealed the Mission R electric racer. At the time, we predicted that the all-electric racer was a preview of the future of the 718 Cayman and Boxster, and that suspicion was soon confirmed by the automaker’s head of design, Michael Mauer, a few weeks later. Fortunately, this shift to an all-electric platform should not be a bad thing. Porsche has been working very hard to make this a great concept with an eye to the future and promises that the EV will feel like a mid-engine car. Further confirming Porsche’s intention to make the electric Cayman great to drive is a new all-electric racer called the 718 Cayman GT4 ePerformance.
Porsche
Porsche
Porsche
Porsche
The Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 ePerformance is a test vehicle that uses the chassis of the 500-horsepower GT4 Clubsport in combination with the electric motor and battery technology of the Mission R. In qualification mode, this system can produce 985 hp, while normal racing performance is capped at 603 hp and is available for 30 minutes – the duration of a Carrera Cup race. Amazingly, Porsche says that this combination allows the electric test car to be “on par” with the current 992-generation 911 GT3 Cup car in terms of both lap times and top speed. Like the Mission R, the ePerformance can boost its output to 1,072 hp, albeit for a shorter duration than a full race. With 900-volt technology employed, the racer can be charged from 5-80% in just 15 minutes.
Porsche
Porsche
Porsche
Porsche
As for its design, the ePerformance is 5.5 inches wider than the GT4 Clubsport and features around 6,000 parts that Porsche designed from scratch. The body, rather than being composed of carbon fiber, is made of natural fiber composite materials among others, “with the production intended to generate fewer emissions than the production of comparable synthetic materials.” That wider body with its flared fenders allows more room for the 18-inch racing tires that Michelin supplied, and even these are partly made of renewable materials.
Porsche will premiere the car at the Goodwood Festival of Speed from 23-26 June 2022 and will take part in the famous hill climb. Its world tour as part of the “race2zero” project will see transportation “logistically optimized” and handled exclusively by ship, train, and truck, to reduce emissions. The world tour will stop in North America in early 2023.
Porsche
Porsche
Porsche
Porsche
