The 2021 Munich Motor Show has been a smorgasbord of four-wheeled delight thus far (well, if you don’t mind fully electric cars, that is), and overnight Porsche hopped aboard the bandwagon with a track weapon EV of its own.
The German marque has revealed the Mission R; a dual-motor all-wheel drive circuit killer with a carbon monocell structure, designed exclusively for track usage and potentially competition in motorsport series’ around the world.
This might be cause for some to tune out of this story, thinking ‘bah, it’s just another fictionese car with no bearing on Porsche’s actual line-up’. But hold your horses (and that’s not a Ferrari pun). Some are speculating that the Mission R’s styling is a taste of what the next Cayman and Boxster might look like.
Considered in this light, the Mission R’s styling makes quite a lot of sense. The headlights and tail lights are in the same visual family as those of the Taycan, new Macan, and others. The silhouette is unmistakably Cayman, too.
If you need more proof, check out this quote from Porsche design boss Michael Mauer. “Our customer [motor]sports vehicles are always based on production sports cars. What this means in the case of the Mission R is that the car is packed to the gills with signs that hint of a future production model.”
But the Mission R isn’t all about Cayman theories. It also features aero so aggressive that it would make a current 911 Cup Car blush. Huge wide arches are complimented by a massive, deep rear diffuser and a towering rear wing. We love how the arches leave a large portion of exposed tyre surface for those looking at the R from behind.
The Mission R’s two motors produce 800kW of power combined when the car’s in full qualifying mode, with 320kW coming from the front motor and 466kW coming from the rear. The sprint to 100km/h takes just 2.5 seconds according to Porsche, and top speed is rated at 300km/h.
It’s not just about flashing impressive times, though. Porsche has made efforts to ensure that the Mission R can function as a proper race car without the depletion in performance that EVs can sometimes suffer when asked to repeat feats over and over again.
Porsche has deployed oil-based cooling systems in the plumbing of both motors and around the battery, in the hopes of preventing severe power drop-off.
The environmental tilt of the Mission R isn’t limited to its electric powertrain. Porsche has deployed plastic bodywork that uses natural fibres in its construction, upholstery designed to limit fabric waste in its production, and other measures designed to make the project more sustainable at a production level.
