Porsche 919 Street (2017). The supercar never sold in Munich

The Mission R electric racing car concept isn’t the only Porsche to make its first public appearance at the 2021 Munich Auto Show. The 919 Street, a concept car dating from 2017 which was unveiled along with other secret prototypes in the book Porsche Unseen published at the end of 2020, can also be admired on the stand of the German manufacturer.

TO READ. Munich Motor Show (2021). All the stars in photos and videos

Porsche 919 Street foule — First walkabout for the concept car kept secret for three years.

The aborted heir to the 911 GT1

The Porsche 919 Hybrid is the LMP1 prototype with which Porsche won the 24 Hours of Le Mans three times in a row between 2015 and 2017. Riding on these successes, the Zuffenhausen firm had the idea of marketing a version in very small numbers. “Client” of the 919. Although named 919 Street, the car was not intended to be approved for road use. Not designed for running either, it was designed for the practice of the circuit as an amateur. Compared to the racing car, the 919 Street displays different lights, especially at the rear where the light strip evokes the other models in the range. Its longitudinal fin is shorter, and it does without a transverse fin, which gives it a look that is both slender and compact.

Dark Porsche 919 Street — The 919 Street was to be produced in a limited series.

Porsche 919 Street exterior — The Street version differs little from the 919 Hybrid of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

TO READ. Little-known Porsches. These concepts you have never seen before

An overly sharp supercar

The 919 Street differs from the 919 Hybrid by its looks, but very little by its technical characteristics. It was to receive the same engine as the LMP1, combining a 2.0 turbo V4 and an electric motor to send 900 hp to all four wheels. The endurance car’s carbon fiber monocoque chassis also had to be taken over. But this radicalism meant that a team of Porsche technicians would accompany each customer for each session on the circuit in order to manage this complex mechanism. Starting the car alone would have taken 45 minutes. It was this constraint that prompted Porsche to abandon the project. The parallel with the Mercedes-AMG One, whose V6 1.6 turbo plug-in hybrid of more than 1000 hp is taken from F1, is quickly made. Initially announced for 2019, the star hypercar continues to be postponed due to the difficulties of adapting its powertrain to road use appearing, in its case, in the specifications. A prototype close to the series is exhibited in Munich.