Fifty-Fifty!

Fifty years ago, Ferdinand Porsche created the iconic Porsche 911.  Last year, he died of undisclosed causes at age 76.  In commemoration of the 911’s 50th birthday, you can buy two new Porsche 911’s after their debut at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show.

What we know about the new 911’s debuting is minimal:  We know that one debut will be the 911 GT3 Cup race car.  This car will replace the Flying Lizard Motorsports 911 hybrid in the IMSA, ALMS, and GT3 races around the world.  The 911 GT3 Cup features a more powerful version of the 3.8 liter flat-six cylinder engine common in the 911, Boxster, and Cayman lineup.  This engine will make a hearty 460 horsepower, which is routed to the wheels through a sequentially shifted 6-speed transmission.  You’d better be on the waiting list, or have a lot of money because only 2400 units will be made worldwide!

We don’t know what the other 911 debut will be, but Porsche tells Motor Trend and the world that the new 911 variant will be a true “world premiere” of a new 991-series based 911.  If I had to take a hypothesis, I would have to guess that it would be a 911 Turbo or GT3.  Motor Trend snapped photos of both:  While on an Epic Drives episode, Senior Features Editor, Jonny Lieberman caught some photos of a 911 Turbo prototype filling up  at a gas station in Sweden.  Another staffer got a picture of the 911 GT3 prototype lapping the Nurburgring with the iconic “whale tale.”  What I can guess for the 911 Turbo is that it will have a twin-turbocharged  flat-six cylinder engine making somewhere in the neighborhood of 550 horsepower.  It is likely that it will also have all-wheel-drive, and Porsche’s PDK seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.  The 911 GT3 will likely have rear-wheel-drive, Porsche’s new seven-speed manual, and a naturally aspirated flat-six cylinder engine making about 450 horsepower.

I can’t wait to see the world premiere of whatever new 911 variant debuts at Geneva 2013.  See you there!