Porsche built a modern-day 917 in celebration of 50 years!

[Luccia at Pelican Parts]

And it's spectacular, well at least I think so. They have it on display as part of a new Porsche Museum exhibit celebrating 50 years of the 917. They unfortunately never ran it at the track, but this modern twist beauty will be on display at their museum from May 14th to September 15th. This is the first time it'll be on display to the public.

Sources are not sure exactly when they built it and it could be a few years old, but it has very similar characteristics to the 918 Spyder hybrid hypercar.

"The red-and-white show car was designed by a small team of designers and engineers, though with the entry of Porsche into the LMP1 category of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC), this model remained as purely a concept study."

How do you think Porsche did with this modern day twist?


Source here

[svandamme]

meh, 918 coupe.
not nearly radical enough to be a 917.

Not that they could ever design one radical enough because it would conflict with every bit of common sense for safety this day and age.

[sammyg2]

Just one please.

[manbridge 74]

Needs 15 inch wheels!

[onewhippedpuppy]

Looks like a restyled 918 Hybrid, and nothing like a 917. Besides, the 917 is a legend because of racetrack success, not because of styling. If the 917 wasn't a winner it would have been forgotten by now.

I can't say I get why they are trying so hard to whore out their history with all of these modern replicas. It's not as if their sales are slumping. Maybe an attempt to remind everyone of their heritage as they simultaneously ignore it with their new products?

[scottmandue]

Okay it is not a 917... but I still love it for what it is.

But yeah, a 917 tribute should at leas have a flat 12

[rattlsnak]

That is BADA$$!

[Arizona_928]

[Shaun @ Tru6]

just because you can doesn't mean you should

[Captain Ahab Jr]

For me the 909 Bergspyder used in European hill climbs is still the best race car Porsche ever built

I have a 1 43 model on my desk in front of my CAD screen as a constant reminder of what the ultimate reflection of lightweight racing car design looks like

[Tobra]

Originally Posted by Shaun @ Tru6

just because you can doesn't mean you should

this
917 was built to crush all opponents, a tool uniquely suited to the task.

Originally Posted by Captain Ahab Jr

For me the 909 Bergspyder used in European hill climbs is still the best race car Porsche ever built

also this

908 is a very close second

[URY914]

[astrochex]

Originally Posted by Captain Ahab Jr

For me the 909 Bergspyder used in European hill climbs is still the best race car Porsche ever built

I have a 1 43 model on my desk in front of my CAD screen as a constant reminder of what the ultimate reflection of lightweight racing car design looks like

What an amazing car. Was it reliability issues that kept it from more success?

[Luccia at Pelican Parts]

Welp! Porsche released more images of this concept. Check them out below. Porsche design boss Michael Mauer said:

If you launch a new hypercar ,then you can go extremely modern in your thinking or maybe just go back to our sports car roots and take inspiration from some of the many icons in our history. When you look at the 917 Concept then, personally, I love it. You look at it, and you immediately make the connections. But as a designer who believes that the next hypercar should point to the future, I'm not so sure. There is always the option to look into history, but sometimes you can also take the option to create some history.

From this we can say Porsche is still unsure of what direction it wants to take with its 918 successor. Where do you think they will go?

[Clint Lando]

[maxnine11]

^^ LOL

....took me a few seconds.........

[svandamme]

With all the push for E everything, i just hope they don't come out with some BS about it being the future of everything with a 12 cell battery pack instead of a Flat 12 banger.
Concept is nice, but it's meaningless if it's not a runner that makes the right kind of noise

[GH85Carrera]

I seriously doubt I will ever drive one, but it looks to have horrible forward vision over the oversize tires.

I would bet they make another hyper car successor to the 918. They sold 918 of them and I presume they made a profit, and they sure created a lot of buzz.

The ironic thing is right now a street-able version of a 911 is beating all the lap records of the 918. I love the fact that my old 911 evolved over 34 years has morphed into the GT2RS. And to that mostly I say up yours Ernst Fuhrmann, the man that tried to kill the 911 when he was chairman at Porsche AG. Thank you Peter Schutz for saving the 911!

[masraum]

Originally Posted by URY914

Yep, I wouldn't kick either out of the garage for leaking a little oil.