World Premiere of the GT4 ePerformance
The new Porsche GT4 ePerformance has demonstrated its power for the first time to the public at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. The show races on the 1.9-kilometre hill-climb track in the park owned by Lord March in the south England county of West Sussex also served as a launch for the GT4 ePerformance world tour. Over the next two years, the innovative test vehicle will travel to other places in Germany and beyond. The aim is to demonstrate the potential of the cutting-edge vehicle concept and the possibilities of racing formats associated with it to motorsport customer teams, partners and decision-makers in the motorsport scene.
The GT4 ePerformance features the technology components of the Mission R. At the 2021 IAA MOBILITY in Munich, the conceptual study outlined the vision of a fully-electric GT racing car for customer motorsport in the future. Both are based on the chassis of the proven 718 GT4 Clubsport model. The entire electric motor and battery technology also comes from the IAA conceptual study, which in qualification mode translates to a maximum output of up to 800 kW (1,088 PS).
In simulated racing, a steady 450 kW (612 PS) is available for 30 minutes, i.e. the duration of a Carrera Cup race. In terms of lap times and top speed, the GT4 ePerformance is on par with the performance of the current 992-generation 911 GT3 Cup. Thanks to 900-volt technology, the state of charge (SoC) of the battery at full charging capacity jumps from 5 to 80 per cent in about 15 minutes.
The all-electric Porsche GT4 ePerformance has begun its world tour at the internationally-renowned Goodwood Festival of Speed. The tour is intended to highlight the potential of the vehicle concept and the associated racing formats.
The new Porsche GT4 ePerformance has demonstrated its power for the first time to the public at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. The show races on the 1.9-kilometre hill-climb track in the park owned by Lord March in the south England county of West Sussex also served as a launch for the GT4 ePerformance world tour. Over the next two years, the innovative test vehicle will travel to other places in Germany and beyond. The aim is to demonstrate the potential of the cutting-edge vehicle concept and the possibilities of racing formats associated with it to motorsport customer teams, partners and decision-makers in the motorsport scene.
The GT4 ePerformance features the technology components of the Mission R. At the 2021 IAA MOBILITY in Munich, the conceptual study outlined the vision of a fully-electric GT racing car for customer motorsport in the future. Both are based on the chassis of the proven 718 GT4 Clubsport model. The entire electric motor and battery technology also comes from the IAA conceptual study, which in qualification mode translates to a maximum output of up to 800 kW (1,088 PS). In simulated racing, a steady 450 kW (612 PS) is available for 30 minutes, i.e. the duration of a Carrera Cup race. In terms of lap times and top speed, the GT4 ePerformance is on par with the performance of the current 992-generation 911 GT3 Cup. Thanks to 900-volt technology, the state of charge (SoC) of the battery at full charging capacity jumps from 5 to 80 per cent in about 15 minutes.
“The Festival of Speed is truly impressive. It’s a huge festival for car enthusiasts and a motorsport Mecca like no other in Europe,” states Porsche works driver Richard Lietz from Austria, who drove the all-electric prototype in Goodwood. “I was already familiar with the GT4 ePerformance from test drives. It’s extremely quick and loads of fun to drive – that’s exactly how I imagine the electrically-powered customer sport racing car of the future. Its aerodynamics is designed for efficiency because the car has to be able to last the full race distance. It’s more at home on circuits than at hill-climb events like here at Goodwood. So, a time of 45.50 seconds and second place in the overall rankings is in line with our expectations.”
Porsche redesigned about 6,000 parts for the Porsche for the GT4 ePerformance. Under the direction of designer Grant Larsson, a team from Porsche Style came up with the car’s shape. The body is made of natural fibre composite materials, among others, with production intended to generate fewer emissions than that of comparable synthetic materials. Recycled carbon fibres are also used for testing purposes. Thanks to its flared fenders, the racing car is 14 centimetres wider than a 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport. This allows more room for the wider 18-inch Michelin racing tyres, of which renewable materials make up a particularly high proportion.
“The GT4 ePerformance blazes a trail to Porsche customer racing with electrically-powered racing cars. As a first step, we will unveil this concept to our global partners,” says Oliver Schwab, Project Manager of the GT4 ePerformance. “With drivers, teams, organisers, authorities and other interested parties, we’re also gathering ideas for Porsche racing formats in the future.”
If you would like to know more about the new GT4 then contact the team at Porsche Centre Dublin ; info@porchedublin.ie
