Porsche’s hypercars are an uncommon sight. While the Carrera GT debuted in 2004, the 918 Spyder was released in 2013. Back even farther, in 1986, the 959 made its debut. Mission X gave a sneak peek at a prospective Zuffenhausen flagship car in 2023. There will be a decision taken later this year regarding the concept’s production. If approved, a significant hardware upgrade is planned.
When the all-electric Mission X debuted in June 2023 to celebrate Porsche’s 75th anniversary, the concept had a rear-wheel-drive layout. However, a subsequent road-legal car would switch to an all-wheel-drive setup. Not to unlock extra performance, but to improve efficiency. As weird as that might sound when talking about a hypercar, it makes sense. An AWD setup would significantly increase energy recovery to put more juice back into the battery and help extend the range.
Mission X project manager Michael Behr provided the following explanation in an interview with the Australian magazine Which Car: “It’s an electric car and you need a four-wheel-driven car to recuperate a lot of energy [for the battery] to have a bigger range on the Nordschleife, not just for one lap, maybe for three laps.” As an example of why AWD would be used.
Considering that three laps would equate to 39 miles on the track, which is just less than 13 miles long, that is still a very short range. Behr, meanwhile, was referring to three laps completed by a skilled driver who was able to squeeze every last bit of performance out of the Mission X. With normal driving, the electric hypercar’s range would probably be much greater.
Nevertheless, it’s clear that Porsche doesn’t want to add weight by packing in a large battery to increase range. Given that the design was only 177.1 inches long, installing a supersized battery would be challenging and would present packing challenges. In contrast to the concept, which had a wheelbase of 107.5 inches between the axles, Behr stated that the production version will have a different wheelbase.
The idea had a centrally located battery behind the seats with direct oil cooling. With a 900-volt system architecture, Porsche was able to develop the Mission X, which allows for charging times roughly twice as fast as the Taycan Turbo S before the facelift. The upgraded electric vehicle can recharge the battery from 10 to 80 percent in 18 minutes and can handle 320 kW of charging power instead of 270 kW.
In the same interview, Behr predicted that in order to cut down on complexity, the production version will probably only be offered with a left-hand drive configuration. In comparison to the 918 Spyder, he said, it would have more headroom, allowing drivers to wear helmets with comfort. This can be achieved by installing doors that open forward and upward, much like the 917 Le Mans racer, which also featured curved glass that extended to the roof.
Porsche has previously stated that only once the Mission X satisfies specific requirements will it be approved for production. It needs to have a 1 to 1 power-to-weight ratio and produce greater downforce than the 911 GT3 RS. It also needs to charge twice as quickly as a Taycan Turbo S. Above all, it has to be the fastest production car on the street around the Nürburgring. The Mercedes-AMG One, with a lap time of 6 minutes and 35.18 seconds, now holds the title.
Porsche’s 919 Hybrid Evo, available only on the course, and its amazing 5:19.55 lap time hold the overall record for the Green Hell.
