Porsche has unveiled the Porsche 918 RSR which is racecar concept based on the Porsche 918 Spyder concept first seen at the Geneva Motor Show last year.
The Porsche 918 RSR mid-engine coupe that uses a direct-injection V8 borrowed from the RS Spyder which generates 564 HP @ 10.300 rpm and two electric motors on the two front wheels, each providing an additional 75 kW which are backed by a flywheel accumulator that recharges upon braking.
This whole hybrid powering system used by the Porsche 918 RSR packs 767 HP, and according to Porsche, the two electric motors on the front axle, are also enabling torque vectoring distribution, which means increase agility and improved steering response.
The interior of the Porsche 918 RSR can looks like luxury mixed with racing, with the driver seat on the left, and the flywheel accumulator on the right, which rotates with up to 36,000 revolutions per minute and which provides a bust by the push of a button during acceleration or overtaking.
Porsche did not specify any performance details, as this is a concept car (which we all know will make it into production). However the German automaker did release a stunning set of photos with the Porsche 918 RSR plus a video.
Porsche press release:
Porsche 918 RSR – racing laboratory with even higher-performance hybrid drive
Stuttgart. Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG,
Stuttgart, is continuing to extend its performance and high efficiency
competence via intensive development work in the field of hybrid
technology. With the Porsche 918 RSR, the manufacturer of sporty premium
vehicles is presenting a high-end synthesis of 2010’s successful hybrid
concepts. The two-seater mid-engine coupé 918 RSR clearly reveals what
happens when the technology fitted in the 911 GT3 R hybrid and the
design of the 918 Spyder are transferred to a modern, innovative super
sports car.
With its highly-efficient flywheel accumulator, the
911 GT3 R hybrid racing car proved to be an attention magnet during
competition racing on the Nürburgring Nordschleife circuit, during the
American Le Mans Series races (ALMS) in Road Atlanta/USA and the ILMC
run in China’s Zhuhai. It demonstrated its massive performance potential
under realistic motor racing conditions against top competitors. The
911 GT3 R Hybrid, referred to internally as the “Race Lab” actually
surpassed the high expectations of Porsche Motorsport. Competitiveness,
high reliability and exemplary fuel efficiency combined with top
performance underscored the Porsche technicians’ basic idea of
generating additional power in an intelligent manner. The 911 GT3 R
Hybrid obtains its additional power from its own vehicle dynamics when
braking. Porsche is now transplanting this technology into the
mid-engine coupé 918 RSR, the motor sports version of the 918 Spyder
concept car.
From the tradition established by classic Porsche
long-distance race cars such as the 908 long-tale coupé (1969) and the
917 short-tail coupé (1971), the Porsche designers created a link to the
postmodernism of the “form follows function” philosophy. In the 918
RSR, the lines’ elegant flow is dominated by muscular wheel arches,
dynamic air intakes and a pulpit-like cockpit. A visible fan wheel
between the ram air intake tubes and a rear spoiler with RS Spyder
dimensions additionally emphasise the racing laboratory function. The
new “liquid metal chrome blue” colour which has been created underscores
the sculptured curves of the forms, whilst the typical Porsche hybrid
orange colour on brake calipers and the body’s longitudinal stripes
lends remarkable touches.
Motor racing technology also dominates
within the particularly light, torsionally stiff carbon fibre-reinforced
plastic (CFRP) monocoque. The V8 engine is a further development of the
direct injection engine from the successful RS Spyder race car and now
offers an output of precisely 563 hp at 10,300/rpm in the 918 RSR. The
electric motors on the two front wheels each contribute 75 kW, i.e. a
total of 150 kW, to the peak drive power of exactly 767 hp. This
additional power, which is generated during braking, is stored in an
optimised flywheel accumulator.
In the 918 RSR, the two electric
motors offer a torque vectoring function with variable torque
distribution to the front axle. This additionally increases agility and
improves steering response. Mounted upstream of the rear axle, the
mid-engine is integrated with a racing transmission also based on the RS
Spyder race car. This further developed six-speed constant-mesh
transmission with longitudinally mounted shafts and straight-toothed
spur gears is operated using two shift paddles behind the racing
steering wheel.
The vehicle’s functional equipment underscores
its puristic motor racing character. Whether it be the characteristic
doors which open obliquely upwards, the air intake in the roof between
the wing doors, the quick-action locks on the front and rear CFRP lids,
the two roof-mounted aerials for pit radio and telemetry, the RS
Spyder-like small, lateral front flics or the air splitters beneath the
front lip or no-profile racing slicks on 19″ wheels with central
locking, the vehicle can be clearly recognised as an experimental racing
laboratory.
In contrast to the 918 Spyder concept car, unadorned
racing atmosphere predominates in the interior of the 918 RSR. The
figure-hugging bucket seat’s brown leather covering cites the history of
the gentleman driver; the gear flashes on the racing steering wheel and
a recuperation display on the steering column in front of the display
screen supply the pilot with information. Instead of the futuristic,
ergonomically avant-garde centre console with touch-sensitive user
interface from the 918 Spyder concept car, the 918 RSR’s cockpit is
split by a minimalistic console with rocker switches. Instead of a
second seat, the flywheel accumulator is positioned to the right of the
console.
This flywheel accumulator is an electric motor whose
rotor rotates at up to 36,000 rpm to store rotation energy. Charging
occurs when the two electric motors on the front axle reverse their
function during braking processes and operate as generators. At the push
of a button, the pilot is able to call up the energy stored in the
charged flywheel accumulator and use it during acceleration or
overtaking manoeuvres. The flywheel is braked electromagnetically in
this case in order to additionally supply up to 2 x 75 kW, i.e. a total
of 150 kW, from its kinetic energy to the two electric motors on the
front axle.
This additional power is available for around eight
seconds when the system is fully charged. In the successful 911 GT3 R
Hybrid, this additional power can also be used as a consumption aid
depending on the racing situation, e.g. to delay pit stops or reduce the
fuel tank volume and therefore the weight of the vehicle.
With the new 918 RSR racing laboratory, Porsche is now elevating this motor
racing hybrid concept to an experimental level. In the 918 RSR, “Porsche
Intelligent Performance” equates to research into methods for further
sustainable efficiency improvement under the intensified conditions of
the race track, lap times, pit stops and reliability – a metier in which
Porsche has been demonstrating its success for over 60 years.
Finally, the starting number, 22, pays homage to the anniversary of a further
triumph. Back in the days when overall victories in Le Mans were not yet
an entirely routine matter within the Porsche racing department, the
pilots Dr. Helmut Marko and Gijs van Lennep were the first to cross the
finishing line in 1971’s 24-hour classic. The distance record set by
their Porsche 917 short-tail coupé – 5335.313 kilometres (3315.21 miles)
at an average speed of 222.304 km/h (138.13 mph) – did not remain
unbeaten for an eternity, but for exactly 39 years until 2010. At the
time, the 917 in the Martini colours was also an experiment and far
ahead of its time: a magnesium space frame set new standards in
Porsche’s lightweight construction domain.
Porsche 918 RSR video :
