Only 918
units and no more was the brief given to the production team at Stuttgart when
they were told to make the Porsche 918 Spyder hybrid hyper car and 918 is as
many as they made.
After a production tenure of 21 months, Porsche has
announced the final 918th 918 Spyder is rolling off the production
line in Stuttgart.
The Porsche
918 Sypder was a hyper car like never before from Porsche. The internal
combustion engine with the hybrid electric motor produced a total of 887bhp and
with its unique 4 wheel steering and 4 wheel drive system, managed a mind
boggling 6 minutes and 57 seconds of the Nordschleife, Nürburgring with production
road legal tyres setting a record.
Porsche say
that it’s not the end of the technology though. They say the legacy of the 918
will fuel the design and development of future cars that roll out from
Stuttgart.
A scuffle
around the attic of Porsche will reveal that their history is littered with
cars that created new ways of thinking and making cars. The 903 Carrera GTS for
example was the first car ever to be made of a steel and polymer body. Other
cars like the 959 GT1 from 1986, the 911 GT1 and the Carrera GT that followed
were all a part of Porsches greatest hits album. The Carrera GT in 2003, was
the first car to go into production with a carbon fibre reinforced polymer
monocoque and sub-frame. And then there was the 918.
Now for the
hardest part, it’s time to say good bye to the 918. It’s a car that shows how
far Porsche has come since the beginning and it also shows us where we, the
world, and quite importantly Porsche is headed. So if any of you filthy rich
people who live a life of aristocracy want to get a piece of Porsches great
918, chances are you already have one. But in case you missed out, tough luck.
Even the La Ferrari and McLaren P1 are all sold out. Why not buy a Koenigsegg
instead?