- Porsche hasn’t confirmed yet whether it will build the Mission X, but chances are it will as a successor to the 918 Spyder.
- While it hasn’t released output or performance figures, it aims for a one-to-one power-to-weight ratio.
- The concept might have been two-wheel drive, but a production version would be all-wheel drive because it’s crucial for energy recuperation.
A production iteration of the all-electric Porsche Mission X concept is expected to be exclusively offered in left-hand drive configuration and feature all-wheel drive as it aims to establish a new production car lap record at the Nurburgring Nordschleife.
While Porsche has not officially confirmed the production of the Mission X, it’s widely understood that the model is designed as a successor to the 918 Spyder. Should there be sufficient customer demand, Porsche is likely to greenlight its production. Though specifics about its powertrain have not been disclosed, Porsche is targeting a one-to-one power-to-weight ratio, intending to produce 1 horsepower for every 1 kilogram of weight.
Read: Porsche To Decide This Year If It Will Build The Mission X Electric Hypercar
The concept was initially designed as rear-wheel drive, but akin to the 918, any production version of the Mission X will feature all-wheel drive. During an interview with Which Car? at the recent Australian Grand Prix, Porsche project manager Michael Behr explained that while there isn’t a significant performance gap between two- and four-wheel drive setups, the latter is crucial for energy recuperation purposes.
“This car is two-wheel-driven and we did a lot of simulation beginning in 2016 for the future sports car, electric sports car, and DNA of Nordschleife [hypercar] again,” he said. “And there is not really a difference between two and four wheel driven, just one [key reason]. 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.”
If the Mission X does spawn a production model, the car’s overall shape will not be changed. One important of the car’s design is the large windshield which stretches into the roof, allowing Porsche to maximize headroom so the car can be driven with a helmet.
“If you’ve ever driven a 918, with a helmet, it’s very tight in there,” Behr said. “So one of the goals that we have for this car is to say, ‘Okay, this car is going to be fully drivable with full comfort with a helmet on.’ And so this is really the only way that we could do it while also reducing the frontal area to the minimum.”
As Porsche has not confirmed the car for production, there has been no discussion about the potential volume of units to be manufactured. However, Behr suggests that only a left-hand drive model is probable, citing the complexity and costs involved in developing a right-hand drive variant.
“It’s more complicated to have two versions,” he said. “If you’re doing just the right-hand version, that’s okay because you have a limited number of cars [for a smaller number of markets] … [but] then if there are two versions it’s much more complicated.”
