Porsche Design director, Michael Mauer shared a rather peculiar insight into the next generation of Porsche flagship hypercar. In an interview with British Autocar, Mauer noted:

“There is always the option to look into history, but sometimes you can also take the option to create some history.”

In short, this means that the Porsche 918 Spyder successor's design could take a retro-inspired style, or it could look far into the future in a courageous step of progressivism. This got me thinking about the Porsche 918 Spyder's successor which is slated to appear in 2025 at the earliest. In Stuttgart, Porsche engineers and designers had been tasked to envision the new hypercar. The first request:

- it has to be able to lap the Nurburgring in less than 6 minutes and 30 seconds.

Well, I am not entirely sure that this is the first request, but you get the point. Frank-Steffen Walliser, the head of Porsche Motorsport, said that this is one focal point for the company and one of the primary intentions behind the 918 Spyder successor.

Let me say that 6:30 around the 'Ring is not an easy task to accomplish for a road-legal car. Or for any car for that matter.

What do We Know About The Porsche 918 Spyder Successor?

There are two main paths Porsche engineers could take with the development of the new Porsche hypercar. Electric or hybrid!

At the unveiling of the Cayenne Coupe, Oliver Blume, Porsche CEO, shared a thought about the 918 Spyder's successor to TopGear journalists. He said:

“It has to be the best in the market, the highest performing… right now we haven’t got a concept for that car. But might it be a pure-electric car? Yes.”

On the other note, his further responses on the matter can suggest that the 918 Spyder's successor could be a hybrid as well.

2025 Porsche Electric Hypercar

This is why I am not exactly sure that Porsche will make such a move. To make it applicable for production, the electric Porsche 918 Spyder's successor will have to have solid-state batteries, some new type of road-legal tires, and even better aero solution compared to any hypercar on the market or road today.

“In the future, I see a possibility for a hypercar with the next generation of the batteries,” said Blume in Geneva during the Motor Show earlier this year. “It should be a very high-performing car. We haven’t decided yet, it’s more in the direction of 2025 or later. That’s what we do in our product strategy.”

2018 Porsche 918 Spyder drivetrain specifications

With a $76 million investment, Volkswagen partnered with QuantumScape Corporation. It is a company working on the development of the solid-state batteries following the research made at Stanford University in California, USA.

Blume doesn't exactly bluff about the solid-state batteries. The all-electric Porsche hypercar could be feasible with the tech (new batteries are 30 percent lighter compared with lithium-ion batteries).

After all, Porsche did buy 10 percent of Rimac.

Blume said that "Partnering will be much more important in the future. For me, it’s important that we have a challenging partner, with the knowledge, the experience, and that works on the same level – or one that pushes us. Mate Rimac is an expert, very ambitious, and the perfect partner to do prototypes and small, clever solutions."

Lately, we have linked Rimac with Pininfarina. The Croatian company supplies the EV technology for its Battista EV hypercar. That one was the best-looking thing in Geneva this year.

Further facts that support the case for the electric Porsche hypercar include:

-* Porsche decision to enter the Formula E competition

-* Development of the all-electric Taycan and the all-electric CrossTurismo

-* Development of the all-electric nex-generation Macan

If it comes and has solid-state batteries, it could have a range of 1,000 kilometers.

2025 Porsche Hybrid Hypercar

In my mind, I can see reasons for the development of the Porsche hypercar hybrid as well. First of all, Porsche officials did say that its engineers did not decide on the preferred propulsion system.

The second reason is the fact that Porsche intends to introduce the 911 hybrid around this time (2024, 2025). It will be the most powerful 911 on the market, and the hybrid hypercar should be the extreme representation of what's possible with the technology.

Sure, the Nio EP9 and anything Rimac is plenty fast and quick, but the thing is that these cars are prototypes and concept cars that showcase the technology of their prospect developers. Even the Nio, who sent its insane EP9 to lap the 'Ring (it did it in electric car record-breaking 6 minutes and 45.9 seconds) had to integrate unique gearbox next to each wheel to limit applied torque. I believe that part of the reason is to keep the tires in one piece when the driver presses the acceleration pedal.

With the hybrids, where the ICE provides power at the lower end, and electric motors engage fully later, the tires and the motor power could be used more effectively. Nevertheless the technology, the new Porsche hypercar will be extremely quick.

What Will the New Porsche Hypercar Look Like?

As I was saying, there are two possibilities - to be inspired by some retro racers or to be wholly futuristic and novel. I am sure that even the Porsche designers don't have a clue yet. Nevertheless, this rendering provides one possibility that I like it a lot.

Further reading

Read our full review on the 2014 Porsche 918 Spyder.