it will provide insight for subsequent road-going porsche sports cars

Hybrid Porsche 911. Got that? Good, now ignore it. The announcement that Porsche is unveiling this, the 911 GT3 R Hybrid, at the 2010 Geneva motor show does not mean a road-going electric 911 is just around the corner. But it does mean Porsche doesn’t consider the 911 sacrosanct and is actively looking at alternative propulsion systems for the future.

At present, the GT3 R is solely a motorsports project, and the technology it uses has been developed specifically for racing – in fact it’s basically the KERS system from last year’s Williams F1 car.

This uses neither batteries nor capacitors, but a spinning flywheel that stores the kinetic energy recovered from braking. Mounted inside the cabin next to the driver, the flywheel generator is linked to a pair of electric motors connected to the front wheels. So while the conventional 473bhp 4-litre flat-six drives the rear wheels, each front generator can add another 80bhp to the mix, making the GT3 R a 4wd racer with 633bhp potential.

As with KERS, electric power will only be available to the driver in short, 6-8 second bursts, after which it is topped up under braking (the two electric motors reverse their function) and stored as mechanical, rotational energy by the flywheel. This weighs about 25kg and spins in a vacuum at 40,000rpm on ceramic bearings.

Despite the traction advantages of driven front wheels and the extra power, Porsche isn’t planning on winning any races, claiming the project is only a ‘racing laboratory’. Try telling that to the drivers. Especially when there are notable advantages to racing a hybrid – not just because of the extra power it supplies, but because of the efficiencies it promotes: fewer pit stops, lighter fuel loads, etc.

For these reasons the technology is particularly applicable to endurance racing, so it should come as no surprise that the highlight of Porsche’s planned race programme is the Nürburgring 24hrs on May 15-16. Two months ago we found out that Porsche had approached the Ring organisers to see if they could run a hybrid in the Experimental class. What’s more, the firm has also been in talks with the ACO (l’Automobile Club de l’Ouest) at Le Mans. As we understand it, the GT3 R is unlikely to appear at the legendary French 24-hour race until 2012, but if all goes well this year, by then it could well be fighting for class honours.

There’s still a long way to go. The extra weight should be manageable, but ensuring the system is reliable and makes effective use of the 4wd will be key. For the time being, Porsche is playing the competitive possibilities down, but does admit that the GT3 R ‘will provide invaluable knowledge and insight on the subsequent use of hybrid technology in road-going Porsche sports cars’.

There’s an old motorsport maxim: racing improves the breed. We can’t wait to find out if it still holds true.