Porsche unveils race-ready 911 hybrid

High-performance automaker Porsche said it plans to unveil a hybrid version of its 911 GT3 R race car at the Geneva Motor Show in March.

The company said it would also enter it in the 24 Hours of Nurburgring race, which this year runs from May 13 to 16.

Porsche says the configuration of the hybrid technology featured in the car has been developed specifically for racing.

In this case, electrical front axle drive with two electric motors developing 60 kW each supplements the 480-bhp four-litre flat-six at the rear of the 911 GT3 R Hybrid. A further significant point is that instead of the usual batteries in a hybrid road car, an electrical flywheel power generator fitted in the interior next to the driver delivers energy to the electric motors.

The flywheel generator is an electric motor with a rotor that spins at speeds of up to 40,000 rpm, storing energy mechanically as rotation energy. It's charged whenever the driver steps on the brakes, during which the two electric motors themselves act as generators.

As a result, the driver can summon an extra six- to eight-second boost of energy -- up to 120 kW -- from the charged flywheel generator on the fly.

The benefits of such a system: less fuel needed, which means a lighter vehicle with less frequent pitstops. That's vital for auto racing.

This post was originally published on Smartplanet.com