Use the AMG ONE as the benchmark and develop something equally amazing (hybrid like the 918) and then use it as a POC for synthetic fuels? Just a thought.

 

Would be interesting to see the notes from that focus group. Pure EV is not attractive isn't driven by changing political climate or state of battery technology, they just deliver absolutely no emotion, and. Nothing like the feel of a pure ICE or even hybrid. I don't at any moment in time there were 1,000 takers of a $2m all electric hyper car. Brand or not, wasn't going to happen. I get that they were forced to try EV based on direction of regs, would they would have better served to just sit it out.

 

From Porsche's POV, the Mission X is a street legal track toy, owners would take that to a track, do a session, charge up, do another, rinse and repeat. Maybe head out for occasional dinner/function.

Unfortunately for them, their target audience have a completely different usage scenario. and the Mission X as it stands, will be completely useless. It depends on availability of fast chargers, it has zero luggage space, even a CGT can carry more stuff, let alone the 918. Owners WANT to take their cars doing stuff, going somewhere. One can't do road trips in the Mission X, 'refuelling' and luggage capacity is road block.

The emotional part isn't too big a hurdle. Look at the Hyundai 5N, they program in a virtual gearbox that will bounce off redline and have exhaust pop, something like that can be easily done on an EV, but something Porsche have yet to do.

Problem right is is that they need to find a suitable engine. The hybrid side is easy. The old V4 from the 919 would have been a perfect candidate, compact, light and powerful, but now that they they have moved on and race with a 963, it might be a tad too late to go back to that V4. Re-using the 918's V8 with turbos like the 963 isn't out of the question, but that means re-doing all the packaging of all the systems in the car, basically design another from scratch.

 

Glad to hear the response from those that would (potentially) write the check for one of these

The only thing more ridiculous than a fully EV Porsche hyper car would be fully EV Boxster/Cayman; as I stated elsewhere, pure corporate suicide

 

I think it's an attractive car, but the full EV makes it completely uninteresting to me. Hopefully they will figure out how, and do the work, to package it with a motorsports derived hybrid drivetrain.

 

So from the perspective of the target audience of this car, and all Porsche hypercars (of which I am not, but aspire to?), what exactly are the detracting elements of its current design that make you confidently say that the Mission X in its current form would struggle to sell as even a fraction of its produced units?

Personally, I'm of the same mind - if I was a potential buyer of a 1.5mill+ hypercar, I would want to some element of ICE, even if hybrid, because that level of money for something that is the technological equivalent of an advanced consumer EV is an unappealing proposition, to say the least.

But what is the consensus from people who actually would be lining up to buy the car?

 

Cars are essentially defined by three variables. 1. Aesthetics 2. Powertrain 3. handling/dynamics

EV only cars remove one of these variables as there is no difference between the feel of a Hyundai or Tesla battery to a Porsche or Ferrari battery, any more than there is a difference between an Energizer or Duracell battery, they’re just batteries. The power in this Mission X in straight line is going to feel no different, better, or much faster than in my $90k MS Plaid.

So car companies are going to be reduced to differentiating themselves via handling/dynamics engineering (part hardware, mostly coding), and interior/exterior design.

For enthusiasts, especially ones that you’re asking millions from, you have removed something special from the equation when you completely remove ICE. Ironically when you add hybridization to the powertrain you’ve increased the number of engine permutations and differentiation between cars and brands. Before that all you had to play with was cylinder count/geometry/displacement/etc and types of forced induction, so the addition of electrics can make the whole ecosystem more interesting which is in fact where we are today. You have epic permutations like in the TT V6 PEHV 296, what corvette and Lambo are doing with TT V8s, what McLaren is doing, still NA V12 available with Ferrari, etc. There’s also mild hybrids to reduce parasitic loss in other cars thus increasing the available power without increasing hp … just so many ways to skin the performance cat. Once you go electric only it all goes away.

Not a problem in a cheap point a to point b daily, huge problem if you’re Porsche or other brands selling passion and upselling brand prestige when you share the same battery as the aforementioned Hyundai. It’s going to take a loooooooot of marketing to talk people into it, and there’s probably not enough marketing in the world to convince most of us to spend $2m or a fancier Duracell … not whilst there are other epic choices available. Honestly I’m not convinced it’s going to work for them on an EV Cayman, much less a hypercar.

 

Well said @soulsea

Within Porsche's own customer base that can afford a Mission X, for those that have a CGT, the exhaust noise is the biggest draw bar none, the manual comes in 2nd. For those that have the 918, the engine noise also comes in first, the performance and the Jekyll and Hyde attitude of the car on and off electric are what comes after. For those that has the GT1, well that car speaks for itself. All these cars evolved around emotions delivered to the driver.

The Mission X failed to deliver any emotions to the driver, it is fast, it is quick, but same can be said of a Model S.

The Mission X was supposed to be a test bed for new technology for the rest of the lineup also, like how the 918 was. As it stands, only the e-motor an electronics have the break through, the battery tech is still not there yet. Interior and exterior design cues will also be used for other cars, but those are minor and the car is still a 'design study' so things will still change.

At Weissach, the project manager went to great length to explain the whole design process, interior, exterior, mechanical, for his sales pitch. They even when as far as designing beautiful hinges. Fluff, however.

My exact words to him was, "We car guys treat cars as humans, what differentiate humans from robots is the soul, or lack of. A car's engine is the soul of the car, without the soul, a car is just a robot, a mechanical device that do stuff for us humans. The Mission X, no matter how capable, is still a soul-less robot, not a proper car"

 

^ at this price level, for engineers to EXPLAIN the car I find interesting.
I really just want to sit in it, drive it. and let my butt tell me buy or not bay.
if it can't get under my skin in 10 min. it would be a NO.

all the details, trim, technology, power output...
thats for THEM to figure out I need not know and bores me to death.
just like I don't care how my TV or streaming works, as long is turn on Netflix and K drama is on. I will pay

 

What was it like when you first sat in a Carrera GT for the first time? Was it in an instant "YES" the minute your butt hit the seat? Or did it take a bit of time in the car before you knew you wanted one?

 

Porsche is axing this program. info will emerge shortly. Key people in program job hunting.

 

I never like how it looked and int was cheap
jsut did not care
then very good friend bought one. to hide from wife, or wives.... I don't ask many questions. he had it delivered to my cave.. I hide stuff for friends for a very high fee.
I drove it 7 miles called owner told him he as an a$$ then called the connections I had and took devilry of mine CGT 5 days later.

 

Good call I guess.

Anything replacing it?

 

Seems like an extension of the e-hybrid 918 Spyder concept is probably what would make the most sense, or alternately Porsche making a new 911-based 'GT1' (probably also hybrid) which seems long overdue with how successful the GT cars program has been.

 

Oh no! How will Porsche compete with the Rimac Nevara now?