After some days a batch of official images of the pre- production 918 Porsche Spyder, new images of the plug- in hybrid supercar was caught did testing by spy photographer without any camouflage.
Now some first details on the vehicle have been announced by the company. A little surprising indeed. The Porsche 918 Spyder brings a targa top solution along with a couple of detachable carbon fiber roof panels which can be stored in the front luggage compartment and a small windowpane placed between the flying buttresses. In addition, the vehicle’s body is also built in carbon fiber reinforced plastic of CFRP.
The 918 Spyder is distinguished from other Porsches from its plug- in hybrid driveline that mated with a mid- mounted 4.6 liter V8 engine that is good for 570 PS of power or more than 562 horses. The unit then coupled with a seven- speed dual clutch transmission which moves the rear wheels to the electric motors.
One of the electric motors churns 107 horses and drives the front wheels, while the other one that drives the rear wheels, returning an output of 121 ponies. With those additional power, the total output is delivered at nearly 726 horses.
Those electric motors that are sported by alithium- ion hybrid battery can be recharged in around two hours via a compact rapid- charger that is available as standard. The company had also equipped the vehicle with an energy recuperation system which changes the kinetic energy of the vehicle into electric current while braking.
It is said that the 918 Spyder will be faster compared to the Carrera GT. It is able to sprint from standstill to 100 km/ h or 62 mph in no more than three seconds sprint time, while the Carrera needs 3.9 seconds to accelerate. When laping the Nurburgring Nordschleife track, the Carrera GT needs 7:32 minutes, while the 918 Spyder is faster by ten seconds.
For the fuel economy, when the 918 Spyder is using the batteries, it returns an average fuel consumption of about 3.0 lt/100km or around 78.4 mpg. The use of batteries also allow the car for a pure electric range in more than 25 kilometers or nearly 16 miles, while reaching a top speed of 150 km/h or 94 mph. On the other hand, when using the internal combustion engine the vehicle is able to hit a top speed of 325 km/h.
The buyers will be able to opt a choice of five driving modes, including E-Power, Hybrid, Sport Hybrid, Race Hybrid and Hot-Lap completed with an adaptive shock-absorber system PASM and rear-axle steering.
Except the change of the headlamp fixtures, different wheels, the addition of full size exterior mirrors, the sligtly redesigned rear end and the replacement of the exhaust pipes, no other parts of the 918 Spyder styling is changed.
The company is planning to build the 918 Spyder in limited run only with a price tag of €645,000 excluding tax and country- specific fee. The production of the 918 Spyder will be kicked off on September 18th next year with its first deliveries will be begun at November.
