Back in June, Porsche celebrated 70 years since it unveiled its first production car with a Speedster concept based on the current 911. Come October, and the German firm introduced a new concept car of the same variety, also stating that a limited-edition production car will follow in 2019. The two concepts are very similar, which made us wonder whether Porsche is trying to milk the Speedster ahead of its introduction as a production model.

Is this new concept a more production-ready version of the first car, which was already pretty close to a standard 911? Let's find out by comparing the roadsters inside and out.

Continue reading for the full story.

Exterior

Just like the previous concept, the second Speedster is based on the 911 Carrera 4 Cabriolet and shares many features with its production sibling.

Front

Up front, we can see the same black-painted trim around the side vents, a black splitter, and a black-chrome fuel cap on the trunk lid. However, the second concept misses the quick-release pins on the hood, as well as the two-tone color. But we'll talk about this later.

Porsche also changed the headlamps. These have a red tint. The transparent surfaces that resemble the shape of an "X," a nod to the era when automakers used to tape up headlamps before races to protect them against stone chipping and from shattering, are also gone, unfortunately. Both the front fenders and the trunk lid are made from carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer in order to save weight, just like the previous concept.

Side

Moving onto the sides, we can notice the same main elements that turn the 911 into an authentic speedster. The windshield is shorter, and it's angled heavier toward the seats. Obviously, the side windows are also shorter, while the deck lid features two flying buttresses. The hoops and the seats are separated by a carbon-fiber. The Talbot-shape side mirrors also harken back to Porsche models from the past. However, Porsche replaced the Fuchs-style rims with more modern looking cross-spoke wheels. Measuring 21 inches, they're similar to those seen on the 911 RSR and GT3 R race cars.

Both the "Porsche" lettering above the side sills and the "70" on the doors are gone, as the second concept doesn't feature a race-inspired livery.

Rear

They're just painted in different colors. Other than that, we can see the same transparent plexiglass wind deflector between the rollover hoops and the revised decklid that no longer features the usual grille above the engine. There’s also "Speedster" lettering on the rear fascia, this time around in silver instead of gold, and a pair of center-mounted exhaust pipes made from titanium. Porsche continues to use the lightweight tonneau cover that protects the interior from bad weather while the car is parked.

One of the very few features that set the new concept apart is the paint. While the previous show car had a two-tone, race-inspired livery, the new concept is finished in the familiar Guards Red paint. Porsche says this is a reference to the 1988 911 Speedster.

Interior

Just like before, Porsche didn’t have much to say about the interior, but it appears to be identical to the previous concept, which in turn was based on the standard 911 Carrera with minor modifications.

To add sportiness but also cut down even more weight, Porsche replaced the standard seats with full buckets made from carbon-fiber.

But here is where things start to differ. The red hide can be seen on almost all of the surfaces that were brown in the first car, like the center sections of the seats and armrests. However, the side bolstering of the seats, the lower dashboard, and some elements from the door panels are black.

In addition, while the first car had matching stitching for both the black and brown panels, the new one features a lot of red stitching and piping on the black surfaces. There's plenty of it on the seat bolsters and headrests, the upper door panels, the steering wheel, and the upper dashboard. In addition, Porsche replaced the aluminum trim atop the glove box and the one on the center console with gloss-finished carbon-fiber. Finally, the black leather is partly perforated.

Drivetrain

So power comes from a 4.0-liter flat-six that cranks out "more than 500 horsepower." Official figures aren't yet available, but we do know that the 911 GT3 cranks out exactly 500 horsepower and 339 pound-feet of torque, while the GT3 RS generates 520 horses. Based on the "more than 500 horsepower" claim, the Speedster should have the same power rating as the GT3 RS.

Things are a bit different in the transmission department though. While the GT3 RS is equipped with a PDK transmission for fast sprints, the Speedster is fitted with the six-speed manual transmission.

Performance-wise, it should be able to hit 60 mph in 3.5 seconds, to go with a top speed of around 185 mph.

The fact that the drivetrains in the two concepts are identical confirms that Porsche wants to build the production Speedster on 911 GT3 RS underpinnings. And this is great news!

Final Words

To answer the first question, Porsche actually made some changes and isn't just trying to fool us with the same concept in a different color. The Speedster has definitely moved closer to production. Actually, it seems 100-percent ready to hit the assembly line, which makes it somewhat weird that Porsche called this second vehicle a "concept study." By eliminating the race-inspired livery and some minor changes, Porsche basically turned the first concept into a full-blown production. The reason why it wants this new vehicle to be a concept too remains a mystery. It's probably a marketing thing...

Further Reading

Read our full review on the 2018 Porsche Speedster Concept II.

Read our full review on the 2018 Porsche Speedster Concept I.

Read our full speculative review on the 2018 Porsche 911 Speedster