Porsche will reveal a new incarnation of the iconic 911 at next year’s Frankfurt motor show. The company is hoping to win back traditional customers in the face of tough supercar competition and reaffirm its future under the guise of parent company Volkswagen.
The new 911 will head further upmarket from its current positioning and allow Porsche to reshuffle its model line-up in readiness for the introduction of a new entry-level mode, to be developed in partnership with VW.
Codenamed 991, the heavily re-engineered coupé and cabriolet are set to go on sale in the UK in October 2011. They will get freshened exterior styling, a higher-quality interior, more powerful yet highly fuel-efficient six-cylinder boxer engines, sharpened dynamics and a greater list of high-end options.
Porsche has traditionally made big changes to the 911 every second generation, so while today’s 997 is regarded as a heavily facelifted version of its predecessor, the new 991 has been developed from a clean sheet of paper.
Weissach engineers are hopeful that its features will allow it to continue through to the next model, due in 2017, without any significant or costly modifications.
