- A new report claims Porsche is readying a flat-eight engine.
- Porsche is also preparing to cut thousands of jobs to slash costs.
- Just two months ago, RUF unveiled a twin-turbocharged eight-cylinder boxer.
Following Porsche’s disastrous over-commitment to electric vehicles and a downturn in China, the German brand is desperately looking for ways to bounce back. This may include releasing a range-topping supercar that doesn’t use one of the firm’s famed flat-six engines, but instead features eight cylinders.
Porsche chief executive Michael Leiters will reportedly announce plans for a new flagship model during the company’s capital markets day on October 7. Porsche will confirm their new strategic plan at the event, and the new model is part of Leiters’ agenda to double down on combustion and exclusivity.
Read: Porsche’s Boxster EV Is Almost Showroom-Ready, But Is The Showroom Ready For An Electric 718?
Handelsblatt reports this new model, internally referred to as the S1, will launch with an eight-cylinder boxer engine. Porsche has built eight-cylinder boxer engines in the past, but only for race cars, and has never fitted them to a road-going production car. Curiously, RUF unveiled a 4.8-liter, twin-turbocharged eight-cylinder boxer of its own just a couple of months ago, producing more than 1,000 hp and 738 lb-ft (1,000 Nm) of torque, although there’s no suggestion the two engines are related.
It’s speculated the new Porsche could share design similarities with the Porsche 911, although it’ll reportedly cost around €500,000 ($574,000), making it significantly more expensive.
More Job Cuts Are Coming
Porsche isn’t resting its fate solely on a new supercar. According to the same report, the German carmaker plans to cut an additional 4,100 jobs, in addition to the 9,000 it already committed to slashing. The additional job cuts, expected to be finalized by 2035, would be the equivalent of roughly one-fifth of the brand’s total workforce.
Leiters, who was chief executive of McLaren in his previous post, reportedly wants to reduce annual production to roughly 200,000 vehicles. Under the leadership of ex-CEO Oliver Blume, Porsche had been pushing to increase production to between 350,000 and 400,000 vehicles per year.
