This Wild Porsche Supercar Had A 750-HP Eight-Cylinder Engine

The engine was meant to find its way to a larger car that would eventually serve as the replacement for the Carrera GT and the 918 Spyder, with a prototype undergoing road testing for more than a year. Even a quad-turbo variant was reportedly under consideration, but with the Dieselgate scandal dominating headlines at the time, Porsche astutely hid its crazy engine from public view and canned the project.

While we’ll probably never see the flat-eight in production, Porsche did eventually produce a modern homage to the 550 Coupe, although instead of referencing Le Mans, this special edition – called the GT4 RS Tag Heuer x Porsche – Legends of Panamericana – tips its hat to the 1953 Carrera Panamericana race across Mexico. Sadly, rather than a wild engine or bespoke bodywork, this homage is little more than an appearance package.

Porsche has always innovated with engines. Now, Stuttgart aims to do the same with electricity, and once again, a wild concept is a great place to start.