Concept Porsche Mission X


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Porsche Mission X: yet another dream takes shape

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At Porsche, innovative concept cars have always laid the groundwork for the future. The sports car manufacturer is continuing this tradition with this latest concept study. Mission X is a spectacular reinterpretation of a hypercar, with Le Mans-style doors that open upwards to the front and a high-performance, efficient electric powertrain.

The Mission X is a dramatic-looking two-seater and will celebrate its premiere on 8 June 2023 – the eve of the ‘75 Years of Porsche Sports Cars’ exhibition opening at the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen. A special date: 75 years ago, on 8 June 1948, the 356 ‘No. 1’ Roadster became the first automobile bearing the name Porsche to receive its general operating permit. This was the birth of the sports car brand.

“The Porsche Mission X is a technology beacon for the sports car of the future. It picks up the torch of iconic sports cars of decades past: like the 959, the Carrera GT and the 918 Spyder before it, the Mission X provides critical impetus for the evolutionary development of future vehicle concepts,” says Oliver Blume, Chairman of the Executive Board of Porsche AG. “Daring to dream and dream cars are two sides of the same coin for us: Porsche has only remained Porsche by constantly changing.”

Michael Mauer, Head of Style Porsche, says: “The Mission X is a clear commitment to the core of the brand. The continuing, enhanced expression of our brand and product identity is an important compass for us to navigate the development of our series-production models. The concept study symbolises a symbiosis of unmistakable motorsport DNA with a luxurious overall impression.”

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Measuring approximately 4.5 metres long and two metres wide, the Mission X concept study is a relatively compact hypercar. With a wheelbase of 2.73 metres, it has the dimensions of the Carrera GT and 918 Spyder. For aerodynamic purposes, the concept car has mixed-size tyres, with 20-inch wheels at the front and 21-inch wheels at the rear.

Design: classic brand elements reinterpreted

The Mission X represents the pinnacle of performance and modern luxury. At the same time, its sculpted form and muscular lines demonstrate that hypercars don’t have to look aggressive. The low-slung bodywork, which is less than 1.2 metres tall, is finished in Rocket Metallic – an elegant paint colour specially designed for the concept study. Design elements in a carbon-weave finish are found below the beltline. These components are varnished in a satin finish and are therefore slightly coloured, but their material structure remains recognisable.

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The wheels of the concept study feature elaborate details: the rear axle is fitted with almost transparent aeroblades, which are designed like turbines for better cooling of the brakes.

A lightweight glass dome with an exoskeleton made of carbon-fibre-reinforced plastic extends over both occupants. The Le Mans-style doors are attached to the A-pillar and the roof; they open forwards and upwards. This type of door was previously used on the legendary Porsche 917 racing car. Another eye-catcher is the light signature: for the Mission X, the designers have reinterpreted the characteristic Porsche four-point graphic. The vertical base form of the headlights was inspired by historic racing cars such as the Porsche 906 and 908 and drawn well down towards the road. A high-tech support structure frames the LED light modules and presents the exposed narrow elements of daytime running lights and indicators. When activated, the light opens up like an eye blinking open. Fully illuminated, the headlights make a confident statement.

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The modernised Porsche crest makes its debut on the Mission X
A full-length light unit that appears to float characterises the rear of the Mission X. Transparent, illuminated Porsche lettering is a standout feature. The sculptural rear light emerges, as if suspended in the air, from a modern support structure and extends across the entire width of the vehicle in four segments. While charging, the ‘E’ of the Porsche lettering pulsates, adding a sense of mystery.

One special detail is the modernised Porsche crest, which makes its debut on the Mission X. Brushed precious metal, a three-dimensional honeycomb structure, a refreshed heraldic beast and more subtle gold colour – on close inspection, these are the differences between the modernised Porsche crest and its immediate forerunner. With its cleaner and more state-of-the-art execution, the refined crest communicates the character of Porsche. On the Mission X, it is found on the bonnet and steering wheel as well as in monochrome form on the wheel centres.

The driver focus can be seen in the asymmetry of the interior and its colour concept. The two seats are coloured differently. Apart from the leather pads in Andalusia Brown, the driver’s seat is Kalahari Grey and forms a single unit of colour with the centre console and the dashboard. The passenger seat is in the contrasting Andalusia Brown shade. Beyond the CFRP seat shells, and their six-point seatbelts integrated into the monocoque, further motorsport parallels include the open-top steering wheel, which has mode switches and shift paddles. There are multiple cameras on board. Recording starts as soon as the driver presses the Record button (REC) on the multi-purpose controller.

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Another highlight is found on the passenger side, where there is a bayonet system embedded in the instrument panel to which a stopwatch module can be attached. For the Mission X, Porsche Design has created a special stopwatch module with an analogue and digital display. The clocks are designed for both racetrack and rally use and can display the lap times or vital data of the driver, among other information.

Technical vision: top marks in power-to-weight ratio, downforce and charging performance

Porsche exemplifies e-performance yet is also a pioneer in sustainable mobility. The concept study meets both objectives in full measure. The visions: if the Mission X goes into series production, then it should be the fastest road-legal vehicle around the Nürburgring Nordschleife;

have a power-to-weight ratio of roughly one PS per kilogram;
achieve downforce values that are well in excess of those delivered by the current 911 GT3 RS;
offer significantly improved charging performance with its 900-volt system architecture and charge roughly twice as quickly as Porsche’s current frontrunner, the Taycan Turbo S.

The battery is installed centrally behind the vehicle’s seats. This ‘e-core layout’ centres the mass in the car. As with a conventionally powered mid-engined car, this provides the basis for excellent agility.

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Porsche hybrid technology reached a spectacular zenith with the 918 Spyder. In September 2013, the 652 kW (887 PS) two-seater was the first road-approved vehicle to crack the seven-minute barrier on the Nürburgring’s 20.6-kilometre Nordschleife, completing the lap in 6:57 minutes. Porsche aims to stay true to this standard of the highest e-performance. The vision, should the Mission X go into series production, is for it to be the fastest road-legal vehicle on the Nürburgring Nordschleife.

 
I'm gonna be the first one to say it.. I see the potential in the design but it's lost a lot of the "simple elegant beauty" of the 918 IMO.

Really cool that it looks like a proper race car, but to me I like the 918 more!

Excited to see the performance numbers and a shattered Ring record!
 
Cool, cutting edge but confidently identifiable as a Porsche.

I like it and understand why it’s mid-engine shaped for aero purposes. I am more curious about whether a detuned version of the drivetrain will be available in other body styles.

Unlike with ICE cars where was minimal economies of scale to be achieved between a V6, TTV8 and a NA V10. However with EVs, there should be more scope for a trickle down effect.

Then again, the Model S plaid and Taycan are fast beyond human need. That begs the question of whether the performance of the Mission X is something worth getting excited about. :unsure:
 
Hmm. I have no problems with the design language or with how the car looks. However, it's a bit disappointing that Porsche are choosing to go full electric, while Ferrari and Mclaren are still doing a hybrid. I don't see at all how this car will be competitive with their hybrid offerings in anything other than straight line acceleration.

More downforce than GT3RS - I don't see how. The downforce on the GT3RS is already tire limited, same as on the Valkyrie. On a car that will be 1800kg+, there is even less of a cushion. Porsche have a very good relationship with Michelin, so maybe in a few years they can develop a tire that can take more, but still the downforce claim is pretty dubious.

1PS per Kg - I don't see a big problem here, there is really no limit to how much power they can pack in.

Be the fastest road legal car around the Nürburgring - Yeah, I don't know. Even though it's Porsche - in which I have more confidence in than almost any other brand - it's gonna be a struggle to pull that off. EVs are fundamentally challenged when it comes to achieving good lap times. Even if they do achieve GT3RS beating downforce levels, that's gonna be at the cost of increased drag (the GT3RS has something like 0.50 drag coefficient with the wing up) and that's gonna play havoc with the range. The only way the car could be competitive around a track would be if it had a relatively small battery - but then with the increased drag the range would be unusably small (way under 200 miles). And if it needed to produce 1500PS+, then you can't run a very small or light battery anyway.

I have seen in other articles that they are targeting 1500kg weight, but that's completely unrealistic unless there is a HUGE sudden jump in power and energy density. Which would be completely contrary to the past ten years where we have only seen a very small incremental change. And, to be fair, even if the current battery density was DOUBLED, 1500kg would STILL be unrealistic. So yeah, I have my doubts. It's worth mentioning, though, that this is not something Porsche have said anywhere, unless it was behind the scenes. It's just something that the magazines have divined somehow and could be completely wrong.
 

Revealed: Porsche Mission X – 1500bhp hypercar celebrates firm’s 75th anniversary
Porsche’s 75th birthday present to itself is an all-new electric hypercar with its sights set on being the fastest road-legal car around the Ring!

On the weekend of Le Mans celebrating its centenary and Porsche its 75th anniversary, you didn’t expect anything else from the German icon than a concept car inspired by some of the most successful race cars of the last century, did you? With its LED eyes set on being the fastest road-legal car to lap the Nürburgring Nordschleife, the Mission X will be Porsche’s most extreme road car ever.

The Mission X is a concept for now, but Porsche rarely displays such a thing that doesn’t make production, and not only is it designed to be the fastest road car on the Ring, but it will also generate more downforce than the new 911 GT3 RS, charge twice as quickly as a Taycan S and produce 1bhp per kilo.
Inspired by Porsche’s sports car icons and the handful of hypercars that have been created in Stuttgart, including the 959, Carrera GT and 918 Spyder, the Mission X blends the company’s motorsport design and heritage with tomorrow’s technology.

Measuring 4.5 metres long with a 2.73 metre wheelbase, the Mission X has a footprint that matches the Carrera GT and 918’s and will be built – yes, it will eventually become a production-ready hypercar for launch from 2027 – on a new electric hypercar architecture that will provide a foundation for future potential products from within the Porsche empire, such as Bugatti’s next generation of hypercars.

At 1.2 metres high it’s as low as the racing snakes its design is inspired by. From the 906 and 908 racers, to the 917 and beyond, Porsche head of style Michael Mauer and his team have immersed themselves in the company’s rich back catalogue of endurance racers to create a homage to those legendary machines. With hinged doors attached to the A-pillar and roof, a glass dome canopy and 20 and 21-inch wheels aerodynamically designed to aid brake cooling, the Mission X is a future racer with roots inspired by the successes of the past.


The Mission X’s development will see Porsche’s engineering team work closely with Rimac Automobili – in which it took a 45 percent stake in 2022 – not only on the car’s chassis design but also its 900-volt battery and motor technology and architecture too. The Mission X is not a further evolution of the Rimac Nevera hypercar but will be an all-new machine.

Powered by a centrally mounted battery, drive will arrive at each wheel via individual motors, with a total output expected to be in the region of 1500bhp to power the 1500kg machine. The batteries will be developed by Porsche’s new specialist battery company Cellforce, a joint venture with battery specialist Customcells that was established in 2021 and focuses on battery cell technology for motorsport and bespoke vehicle applications.

Porsche has a number of objectives for the Mission X. Top of the to-do list is to set the fastest lap time of the Nordschleife for a road-legal car, a record currently held by the Mercedes-AMG One with a time of 6.35:18. The quickest lap by an EV is held by VW’s ID.R with a time of 6.05:34, while Porsche holds the outright lap record of 5.19:55, set by the 919 Evo.

The Mission X will also generate ‘significantly more’ downforce than the current 911 GT3 RS, which produces 860kg at 177mph, so expect around 1000kg of the magic stuff pushing this fully charged hypercar into the surface. On a more practical side, Porsche has said its EV hypercar will charge at twice the speed of the current Taycan S; the electric supersaloon takes 22.5 minutes to go from five to 80 percent charge using an 800-volt charger.

Porsche isn’t one to show concepts and then simply retire them to its museum, with the expectation being that the Mission X will take a similar four-year period of development that the Mission E required to go from motor-show crowd-puller to Taycan sales success."

So yes although it's very obvious as I stated in the other thread Rimac Automobili will definitely be involved in this no questions about it.

It'll possibly lead to a tie in with Bugatti with the Chirons replacement but it's difficult to see how just yet. Anyway it'll cause ripples in all kinds of directions I'm sure.

Biggest? Weight, claimed but possibly 600-750KG lighter than others. That's massively impressive IF achieved, but 2027 is long way away.

Also EVO Magazine are really, really good for this stuff now. Infact I'm using them more regularly than Autocar. Unbelievable, least to me.🙂
 
Breath-f#cking-taking.

Wow.

I couldn't contain it either. Well not elsewhere!


As I said in the other place it reminded me a couple of other marques! And that's no bad thing! I can say one of the Pininfarina guys said "ooo yes!". Praise doesn't come much higher.🙂
 
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This or Evija?

That's a very very tough question man. I'll need to think on it, but it's a bloody impressive car or concept absolutely. Simon Lane the Boss of Lotus Advanced Performance told me they are being delivered this year, the Lotus Evija's, also the technologies in 2027 will be like the difference possibly between Concept 1-2 level Rimacs. There'll be significant changes I'd say.

But incredibly impressive as I've said. My first reaction was OMG! I was a huge Lover of the 918 too.🙂
 
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I wonder if, with this new EV tech by Porsche, is there any room for an EV supercar above the 911?

Since the 911 won't become an EV until at last 2030, it might make sense.
 
EVs are fundamentally challenged when it comes to achieving good lap times.

I disagree, when it comes to single lap pace. Given the innate ability to control/apportion traction across all contact patches magnitudes better than an ICE can, gives EVs a fundamental advantage.

Everything you see with current EVs is just a byproduct of incompetence and/or lack of trying. And if anyone can address that, it is Porsche. I mean, just look at Tesla, a company with no racing pedigree, a 3 person part time performance team, and a 10 year old sedan that was probably never meant to go around a track when it was originally designed, now holds the record for the fastest sedan around the ring! I can only imagine what a company with Porsche's experience, means, and dedication to ring times can do with a dedicated sports car that from the very outset has the goal to set fast lap times.

Where BEVs fundamentally struggles is endurance (at a fast pace) because the energy density of current batteries is only a fraction of gasoline and it will be sometime before it catches up.

Even if they do achieve GT3RS beating downforce levels, that's gonna be at the cost of increased drag (the GT3RS has something like 0.50 drag coefficient with the wing up) and that's gonna play havoc with the range.

Just from the visuals, I am guessing most of the downforce comes from the massive diffuser vs the wing for GT3RS. And if so, the downforce should not come without the same drag penalty.

Having said a lot of the numbers thrown around sound like goals we think we can get by 2027 cause it far away, than definitive specs we know we can hit cause we already have the tech.
 
Be the fastest road legal car around the Nürburgring - Yeah, I don't know. Even though it's Porsche - in which I have more confidence in than almost any other brand - it's gonna be a struggle to pull that off. EVs are fundamentally challenged when it comes to achieving good lap times. Even if they do achieve GT3RS beating downforce levels, that's gonna be at the cost of increased drag (the GT3RS has something like 0.50 drag coefficient with the wing up) and that's gonna play havoc with the range. The only way the car could be competitive around a track would be if it had a relatively small battery - but then with the increased drag the range would be unusably small (way under 200 miles). And if it needed to produce 1500PS+, then you can't run a very small or light battery anyway.

Not all downforce is created equal. Downforce generated from a diffuser is significantly more efficient than downforce from a wing, aka it generates less drag for an equivalent amount downforce.

EV's are not fundamentally challenged when it comes to achieving good lap times. Who owns the Pikes Peak hill climb record? an EV. EV's allow for better packaging, especially with respect to aero efficiency. Compared to a mid engine ICE car, there is no gearbox or engine sitting in the middle of the car, so the diffuser have greater expansion for more performance.

Having more downforce than the GT3 RS is actually not as hard as you'd think. The 911's rear engine layout means there is little room for a diffuser so the massive wing is necessary to generate downforce. Porsche's 991 RSR went mid engined so they could run a diffuser as the rear engine setup severely handicapped the car's aero efficiency.
 
I disagree, when it comes to single lap pace. Given the innate ability to control/apportion traction across all contact patches magnitudes better than an ICE can, gives EVs a fundamental advantage.

Everything you see with current EVs is just a byproduct of incompetence and/or lack of trying. And if anyone can address that, it is Porsche. I mean, just look at Tesla, a company with no racing pedigree, a 3 person part time performance team, and a 10 year old sedan that was probably never meant to go around a track when it was originally designed, now holds the record for the fastest sedan around the ring! I can only imagine what a company with Porsche's experience, means, and dedication to ring times can do with a dedicated sports car that from the very outset has the goal to set fast lap times.

Where BEVs fundamentally struggles is endurance (at a fast pace) because the energy density of current batteries is only a fraction of gasoline and it will be sometime before it catches up.



Just from the visuals, I am guessing most of the downforce comes from the massive diffuser vs the wing for GT3RS. And if so, the downforce should not come without the same drag penalty.

Having said a lot of the numbers thrown around sound like goals we think we can get by 2027 cause it far away, than definitive specs we know we can hit cause we already have the tech.
Do you actually disagree? That's quite surprising if you thought it through. I don't see there even being a seriously debatable argument to begin with.

First off, concerning the torque vectoring/traction control, if hybrids are included, then this is something that many ICE cars enjoy as well. But even for cars that don't have any e-motors, what is that worth anyway?

Either way, there are much more fundamental issues at play. One is that at the top end downforce is becoming increasingly mandatory to compete. Even Ferrari are now putting a fixed wing on the SF90LM and on their next hypercar. Porsche might try to get as much or more downforce than the GT3RS, but there are two problems with that. One is that even if they develop a tire to handle that downforce, because of how heavy EVs are, it just means it leaves a much bigger margin for a lighter ICE car. The second is that because of how heavy EVs are, that downforce is gonna be much less effective. So let's say you have a tire capable of handling 2500kg. With a 2000kg EV, you can only add 500kg of downforce. On a 1500kg car, you can add 1000kg. If the cars can corner at 1G without downforce, that means the EV can now corner at 1.25G, but the ICE car can corner at 1.66G.

The additional issue with a lot of downforce, as I mentioned, is that your drag coefficient becomes quite bad and that really kills EVs range because the majority of the losses come from drag. This is especially an issue for a sedan like the Plaid (and hence probably why even the track pack has no added aero), but it's not brilliant even in a hypercar. Big, wide tires also increase the frontal area and hence drag as well and track rubber is not good for rolling resistance. The Rimac Nevera, for example - even though it has barely any downforce and uses active aerodynamics for a "streamline" mode - still has a drag coefficient of 0.3 (50% higher than the best in class sedans) and an EPA range of just 205 miles even with 120kWh battery! Now imagine an EV with actually downforce that has a Cd pushing 0.4 and with <100kWh battery to save weight. You would be lucky to get 150 miles. Even on a hypercar that's not acceptable.

So what do you do? Do you forget the aero, or do you go with a bigger battery? Either way it's gonna be hugely detrimental to your lap time. Weight of course means less mechanical grip in the corners, it means less acceleration and it means the tires degrade faster - even on a single N-ring lap. The biggest advantage EVs have, obviously, is power and resulting acceleration, but that, again, doesn't come free because you need a lot more cooling - and that again increases drag. So really the whole package is compromised no matter what you do.

If there is a huge sudden step up in energy density, then I can see EVs compete - as that will solve the issue with range and will allow you to get more downforce at the same time by freeing up the tire. Until that time I don't see how anyone can claim that EVs are not disadvantaged. As the Rimac Nevera might soon prove by not getting anywhere close to the AMG One (which, honestly, could have been a lot lighter, faster and more powerful if they used an engine fit for purpose at that).
 
EV's are not fundamentally challenged when it comes to achieving good lap times. Who owns the Pikes Peak hill climb record? an EV. EV's allow for better packaging, especially with respect to aero efficiency. Compared to a mid engine ICE car, there is no gearbox or engine sitting in the middle of the car, so the diffuser have greater expansion for more performance.

Having more downforce than the GT3 RS is actually not as hard as you'd think. The 911's rear engine layout means there is little room for a diffuser so the massive wing is necessary to generate downforce. Porsche's 991 RSR went mid engined so they could run a diffuser as the rear engine setup severely handicapped the car's aero efficiency.
Time attack events are not a great analogy. The main disadvantage for EVs is weight and lack of range, both of which are irrelevant in short sprint events like that which can be run with a small, light battery. Pikes Peak additionally is a special case that favors EVs because of the altitude. And even so, it's mostly the matter of which manufacturer can spend the most money to develop the right car. The ID.R is basically an LMP car with e-motors. Send the 919 Evo around Pikes Peak and it would probably go even faster.

As for the packaging, EVs do have some advantages in general, but if we are talking diffusers in particular, it's actually the ICE cars that have the advantage there. That's because a gearbox can be made a lot thinner than two e-motors side by side and probably even than one big one (if such an extreme case really decided things in road cars)
 
Totally by surprise...
Possible successor to the Carrera GT / 918 or just a design/concept car exercise?
 
Do you actually disagree? That's quite surprising if you thought it through. I don't see there even being a seriously debatable argument to begin with.
Yes I do.

First off, concerning the torque vectoring/traction control, if hybrids are included, then this is something that many ICE cars enjoy as well. But even for cars that don't have any e-motors, what is that worth anyway?
Not even close. Electric motors allow infineemally quicker/finer feedback and control compared to ICE. Same reason a BEV has far better traction off ICE vehicles. I wish I had the source (I think it was a now Lucid/Rvian but ex Jag eng), who was commenting how the traction control in EV could control torque 1000x (or some ridiculous multiple) more times in the same time compared to ICE.

Wish I had time to debate more, but unfortunately don't, so I will leave it to time to sort it. I could very well be wrong. But I do distinctly remember you being skeptical of Tesla's acceleration claims before Plaid was launched cause you were using your mental model of what 1000HP ICE car could do. You were proven wrong then.
 

Porsche

Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, is a German automobile manufacturer specializing in high-performance sports cars, SUVs, and sedans, headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Owned by Volkswagen AG, it was founded in 1931 by Ferdinand Porsche. In its early days, Porsche was contracted by the German government to create a vehicle for the masses, which later became the Volkswagen Beetle. In the late 1940s, Ferdinand's son Ferry Porsche began building his car, which would result in the Porsche 356.
Official website: Porsche

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