(continued from above)
Porsche will enter the Nürburgring 24 Hours race in Germany this weekend
(June 25/26) with a further developed version of the 911 GT3 R Hybrid, following
a successful test in the Nürburgring Long Distance Championship (VLN) that saw
the car score the first race win for a Hybrid-Porsche in May.
Designed
and built by Porsche at its Research and Development department in Weissach,
Germany, the 911 GT3 R Hybrid led the gruelling 24 hour race for eight hours
last year. The performance of the innovative race car clearly proved that the
hybrid technology developed by Porsche is very competitive in racing while also
offering considerably lower fuel consumption.
For this year's Nürburgring
24 hour race, however, the 911 GT3 R Hybrid has been substantially reined in by
the organizers. After the latest re-classification, the combustion engine now
produces only 448 hp. Calculated over one lap, the 2011 edition of the car now
delivers a lower system output than last year's vehicle with a combustion
engine.
Sharing the cockpit of the 911 GT3 R Hybrid at the Nürburgring
are factory race drivers Jörg Bergmeister (Germany), Richard Lietz (Austria),
Patrick Long (USA) and Marco Holzer (Germany), who were all deeply involved in
the vehicle development.
911 GT3 R Hybrid 'Version 2.0'
Priority of the development for the 2011 'Version 2.0' was given to the further
improvement of efficiency through the targeted optimization of the hybrid
components, which also resulted in a 20 per cent reduction in overall weight. As
a consequence, the 911 GT3 R Hybrid is intended to achieve the same lap times as
its predecessor, but with less fuel consumption.
The general layout of
the 911 GT3 R Hybrid was adopted from the 2010 model. A portal axle with two
electric motors drives the front wheels and supplements the four-liter
six-cylinder 'boxer' engine at the rear, which now delivers 448 hp after its
re-classification by the race organizers.
Compared to the 2010 model, the
output of both electric motors has been increased from 60 to 75 kilowatts each.
For seconds at a time, the drivers have 201 additional horsepower driving the
front wheels. Depending on the programming, this power is automatically
activated through use of the throttle pedal. Moreover, drivers can manually call
up this extra power, for instance when overtaking.
Porsche 911 GT3 R Hybrid Race Car: Review (2/2)
