ALMS: Porsche confirms hybrid 911 for Petit

Porsche’s 911 GT3 R Hybrid will make its American Le Mans Series debut at Petit Le Mans this October.

The German manufacturer has already run the car at the Nurburgring 24 Hours where it led until the final two hours. Now it will make its North American debut at the ten-hour event which is also scheduled as an Intercontinental Le Mans Cup round.

With sportscar racing’s governing body the ACO yet to establish alternative energy regulations, the 911 will run unclassified at Road Atlanta.

Unlike other Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems like those seen in Formula 1, Porsche’s hybrid works using an electric flywheel power generator located in the cockpit which stores and delivers high amounts of recycled energy. 

“After the 911 GT3 R Hybrid’s fantastic performance at the Nürburgring 24 Hours, we are now eager to gain more experience with the hybrid technology on a variety of race tracks,” said Porsche Motorsport boss Hartmut Kristen. “At the same time, we would like to show fans and customers in our most important market how our ‘race lab’ performs under racing conditions.”

ALMS CEO Scott Atherton welcomed the arrival of Porsche’s viable hybrid technology.

“This is an outstanding opportunity to demonstrate the advances in automotive technologies and energy efficiencies that you won’t see in any other motorsports environment in the world,” he said.

“Porsche has always led by example throughout its motorsports history – transferring what they learn on the race track to their production cars. And I believe this becomes the modern-day benchmark of how a manufacturer uses the American Le Mans Series’ platform to develop and showcase new technology that is destined for road-car application. This car truly offers a glimpse into the future of high-performance road car technology.”

Catch ALMS coverage on Motors TV throughout 2010.

Tom Hornsby