Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Automotive News
  • Automobilwoche
  • Automotive News Canada
  • Automotive News China
Subscribe
  • Subscribe
  • Newsletters
  • Login
  • HOME
    • Latest news
    • Automakers
    • Suppliers
    • New Product
    • Environment/Emissions
    • Sales By Market
    • On The Move
    • Auto Shows
    • Munich Auto Show
    • Geneva Auto Show
    • Paris Auto Show
    • Beijing Auto Show
    • Shanghai Auto Show
  • Features
    • Long Read
    • Interview of the Month
    • Focus on Electrification
    • Focus on Technology
    • Segment Analysis
    • Cars & Concepts
    • Supplier Spotlight
    • Europe By The Numbers
  • Opinion
    • Blogs
    • Commentary
    • Guest columnists
  • Photos
    • Photo Galleries
    • Geneva Photo Gallery
    • Beijing Photo Gallery
    • Frankfurt Photo Gallery
    • Paris Photo Gallery
    • Shanghai Photo Gallery
  • Podcasts
  • Car Cutaways
  • EVENTS
    • ANE Congress
    • ANE Rising Stars
    • ANE Eurostars
    • Browse photos from the 2021 awards ceremony
  • More
    • Publishing Partners
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
    • Media Kit
    • About Us
    • Capgemini: Securing the industry's future through a radical rethink
    • Capgemini: Succeeding with the automated driving journey through AI
    • HEXAGON: Plugging into data is the only way to make winning EVs
    • TUV Rheinland: Battery testing center for large battery packs and more
    • TUV Rheinland: Ideas, services and certifications for smart mobility
    • TUV Rheinland: Testing of automated and autonomous vehicles on test tracks
    • Toyota Europe
    • UFI Filters
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Automakers
November 09, 2020 06:17 AM

Porsche 911 will not go electric soon, CEO says

Bloomberg
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print
    Porsche

    The 911, currently in its eighth generation, is Porsche's most iconic model.

    If you have been eagerly anticipating a full-electric version of the Porsche 911 sports car, you may want to exhale. It's going to be a while.

    On a call Nov. 5, Porsche CEO Oliver Blume indicated in no uncertain terms that a 100 percent battery-powered 911 is a long way off--if ever.

    "Let me be clear, our icon, the 911, will have a combustion engine for a long time to come," Blume said. "The 911 is a concept of the car that is prepared for the combustion engine. It's not useful to combine it with pure electric mobility. We believe in purpose-designed cars for electric mobility."

    The news could signal a change of heart at the automaker. At a Bloomberg conference last year, Klaus Zellmer, president and CEO of the brand's North American division indicated otherwise.

    The decision to keep the two-door sports car powered by internal combustion comes as an outlier to the company's plan, according to Blume, that by 2025, half of all Porsche vehicles sold will be electrified--either fully battery electric or plug-in hybrid. It is also likely to hearten the legions of Porsche faithful who drive the 56-year-old model exactly because it retains the character and sound of a combustion-driven car rather than the immediate but silent, gear-less power found in electric cars.

    The Porsche Taycan sedan is currently the only all-electric vehicle Porsche sells.

    The Taycan is Porsche's only full-electric model.

    New technology, new car

    Introduced in 1964, the 911 has undergone eight generations and myriad variants including targa, convertible and turbo models. More than 1.1 million 911s have been sold to date.

    But for all the talk of the most recognizable and possibly beloved Porsche on the road, the 911 is far from the most popular. The Macan and Cayenne SUVs were Porsche's best-selling models in the United States during the third quarter, followed by the full-electric Taycan sedan.

    America is Porsche's second-largest market behind China; this year the automaker is celebrating 70 years since the first Porsche cars (a model known as the 356) reached U.S. shores.

    Were Porsche to make an all-electric sports car, Blume says, it would likely be a new model altogether.

    "I think for the future there is also space for very sporty pure electric sports car to add to those [other] sports cars," he said. "There are big opportunities."

    Hybrid 911?

    Meanwhile, the old-fashioned 911 enthusiasts opposed to any tinkering with their favorite car should not get too comfortable. The specter of a rumored 911 hybrid, if definitively unconfirmed by Blume, seems clear.

    "In the future for the 911, there are good ideas for a special kind of hybrid, a very performance-oriented hybrid, where we use, for example, a 400-volt system for our electric engine," Blume says. "That's more or less our idea of how to continue with the 911."

    Porsche has committed to investing 15 billion euros ($17.7 billion) in electric mobility, sustainable production, and digitalization over the next five years, according to Blume.

    The brand is also scouting partners to develop synthetic "e-fuels" using 100 percent renewable power sources to comply with increasingly stringent emissions regulations that would eventually prohibit internal combustion engines from the road altogether.

    That development would help sustain the 70 percent of Porsche cars made that are still on the road today--the vast majority of which use fossil fuels--as well as the millions that will remain in the next 10 to 15 years.

    "To stop combustion engines isn't the right discussion," Blume says. "We come from both sides [electric mobility and e-fuels] to reduce CO2."

    DAILY NEWSLETTER: Sign up and get the top news of the day in Europe every business weekday.
    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    Mercedes denies report that it has discussed sale of van business
    Recommended for You
    Mercedes Citan
    Mercedes denies report that it has discussed sale of van business
    Fiat New 500 red front 2022
    Stellantis takes $52 million stake in sustainable lithium miner Vulcan Energy
    Jeep Compass Melfi
    Stellantis to halt Melfi plant again due to chip shortage
    Sign up for free newsletters
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    Get Free Newsletters

    Sign up and get the best of Automotive News Europe delivered straight to your email inbox, free of charge. Choose your news – we will deliver.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    SUBSCRIBE TODAY

    Get 24/7 access to in-depth, authoritative coverage of the auto industry from a global team of reporters and editors covering the news that’s vital to your business.

    SUBSCRIBE NOW
    Connect with Us
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • LinkedIn
    • Instagram

    Founded in 1996, Automotive News Europe is the preferred information source for decision-makers and opinion leaders operating in Europe.

    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI  48207-2997
    Tel: +1 877-812-1584

    Email Us

    ISSN 2643-6590 (print)
    ISSN 2643-6604 (online)

     

    Resources
    • About us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise with us
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Awards
    • Rising Stars
    • Eurostars
    • Leading Women
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Automotive News Europe
    Copyright © 1996-2022. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • HOME
      • Latest news
      • Automakers
      • Suppliers
      • New Product
      • Environment/Emissions
      • Sales By Market
      • On The Move
      • Auto Shows
        • Munich Auto Show
        • Geneva Auto Show
        • Paris Auto Show
        • Beijing Auto Show
        • Shanghai Auto Show
    • Features
      • Long Read
      • Interview of the Month
      • Focus on Electrification
      • Focus on Technology
      • Segment Analysis
      • Cars & Concepts
      • Supplier Spotlight
      • Europe By The Numbers
    • Opinion
      • Blogs
      • Commentary
      • Guest columnists
    • Photos
      • Photo Galleries
      • Geneva Photo Gallery
      • Beijing Photo Gallery
      • Frankfurt Photo Gallery
      • Paris Photo Gallery
      • Shanghai Photo Gallery
    • Podcasts
    • Car Cutaways
    • EVENTS
      • ANE Congress
      • ANE Rising Stars
      • ANE Eurostars
        • Browse photos from the 2021 awards ceremony
    • More
      • Publishing Partners
        • Capgemini: Securing the industry's future through a radical rethink
        • Capgemini: Succeeding with the automated driving journey through AI
        • HEXAGON: Plugging into data is the only way to make winning EVs
        • TUV Rheinland: Battery testing center for large battery packs and more
        • TUV Rheinland: Ideas, services and certifications for smart mobility
        • TUV Rheinland: Testing of automated and autonomous vehicles on test tracks
        • Toyota Europe
        • UFI Filters
      • Social Media
        • Facebook
        • Instagram
        • LinkedIn
        • Twitter
      • Contact Us
      • Media Kit
      • About Us