More Details of New Mid-Engine Baby Porsche from AutoBild Magazine
In the meantime I've been to the store and have had a chance to check out the article behind the cover story about that new mid-engine Porsche, which is being described as either a "Baby Porsche" or a reincarnated "356". The term "Volks-Porsche" only appears on the cover as an attention grabber. What was presented is indeed very encouraging news for many, though I can imagine that who are obsessive about Porsche exclusivity may not like it so much.
At the Geneva Motor Show earlier this month, plans for this developmental project were not being denied, but details purportedly still remain strictly secret -- at least until yesterday, though no doubt this scoop was coordinated with Porsche.
While earlier considerations for a lower priced Porsche with front wheel drive have been given the thumbs down (and won't be happening), the new Baby Porsche model will indeed proceed. In light of increasingly negative public associations with the Cayenne, Panamara, and other high-end Porsches in the current economic depression (i.e. environmentally wasteful cars and greedy people driving them -- for instance, in some neighborhoods in Berlin Porsches and other high end cars now get torched, hundreds in the past year already), introducing a more affordable low-end Porsche is now being viewed as a positive development from a marketing perspective.
The new Porsche will not replace the Cayman but will be a distinctly new vehicle, based on Volkswagen's new roadster platform. The current Auto Motor und Sport Magazine features drawing of four previously unreleased versions of these roadsters: the Audi (which looks hot, unlike previous drawings I've seen), the Volkswagen, a Czech Skoda, and a Spanish SEAT. The Audi is due to start production toward the end of 2012 and the new Porsche could theoretically also be ready by 2012. But since the new Cayman cars are due that year, a release of the new Porsche model in 2013 makes more sense.
The horsepower range being envisioned would not be less than 280, yet also not more than 300. Whereas Porsche will continue to insist on a horsepower gap between low end Carrera and Cayman brands, this strict differentiation will not be the case between Cayman and Baby Porsche. Indeed, overlap is practically guaranteed because the next entry level Cayman is supposed to come with a four cylinder engine. (This will inevitably "degrade" the overall mystique of the Cayman versus Carrera somewhat, though Cayman connoisseurs will know that the high-end Cayman is at least as good as the low end Carrera, at least for now.)
There are no sketches or photos of how the rear end of this new Porsche might look like. Developing this will probably take more time. Theoretically, at least, this leaves open the possibility of a fixed rear window with trunk. Though there's also the drawing of a Porsche Spyder, at this point it isn't certain whether this will be built. At least this smaller pictures (see below) provides a hint of what kind of rear light design is being put out as a possibility.
Now that it's clear that the new Baby Porsche will have a highly efficient and powerful four-cylinder turbo engine, it would at least make sense for such an engine to a boxer engine rather than an inline engine, not just for reasons of nostalgia and marketing (re-establishing the link back to the 356), but simply because it runs more smoothly. The article didn't really preclude this as a possibility.
As I had suspected, the new mid engine Baby Porsche (maybe they ought to give it the name "Butzi") will not exceed four meters, nor is it supposed to weigh more than 1200 kg (2645 lbs.). The frame won't be of aluminum but high tensile steel. Still, this necessarily means, as I had already suggested anyway, that the upcoming Baby Porsche will easily outperform the first generation Cayman S in overall handling and raw acceleration. (The price Porsche enthusiast pay for enjoying immediate gratification is thus ensured relative obsolescence just a few years down the road.)
From the PDF photo at the AutoBild link one can clearly see that the entire front top portion (hood and top fenders) is made of one piece. I think this is a very smart design, because this kind of incorporation makes the front side fender steel parts unnecessary. Since stamping these parts in a huge press require seven or eight intermediate mated die pairs before the final form is shaped, doing away with all these measures saves a considerable amout in design and manufacturing costs. Inasmuch as the surface skin connecting the bottom front of the door with the rear of the front wheel well isn't made of plastic, such a relatively flat metal piece would be rather easy to stamp.
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