Have you heard about Porsche 717? Neither had we, until we read this report which claims Porsche is preparing a battery-powered rival to the successful Tesla Model S.
Provisionally called the Porsche 717, the car is being developed on VW Group’s latest MSB platform that is currently under development for the second-generation Panamera and the next Bentley Continental.
According to CAR Magazine, the 717 is a four-door, four-seater with a design inspired by the 911 but smaller than the Panamera.
This leads us to speculate that it’s the same car as the upcoming Pajun, which will also get conventional powetrains. Porsche is already offering two plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, one based on the Cayenne and the other on the Panamera. There’s also the 918 Hybrid, but that is not quite a mass-produced car.
So now Porsche is working on an all-electric car, which is expected to get four-wheel drive, four-wheel torque vectoring and four-wheel steering. It will have one electric motor per axle which will either have a conventional suspension or an electrically-controlled air suspension system.
According to an insider, the engineering concept is set to provide three different e-power stages, rated at 400, 500 and 600 hp – matching the power levels available in the Tesla Model S. Most importantly, the average driving range target is in excess of 300 miles (483 km). Porsche’s Tesla killer could arrive in early 2019.
Note: Porsche Panamera Sport Turismo Concept pictured
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