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The iconic shape and design of the 911 is dictated by its engine placement. I feel with an electric drivetrain, a new design would be needed. A design copy of t

The iconic shape and design of the 911 is dictated by its engine placement. I feel with an electric drivetrain, a new design would be needed. A design copy of the 911 would be lazy and regressive. The abilities and packaging of electrics are amazing. Too amazing to sacrifice for looks. And I say that still perfering petrol cars.

tyingq 8y ago
It might still sell well. Drive a new Camaro or Challenger, and you'll see they heavily sacrificed driver visibility for the sake of better emulating the old look.
- ghaff 8y ago
  So many vehicles these days have really lousy sightlines. I rented some Dodge sporty car a few months back and I almost felt unsafe driving because I didn't have a good view when changing lanes.
  - rad_gruchalski 8y ago
    These "sporty" muscle cars are designed for drag racing. No need to change lanes there! Just look up the marketing for Charger Demon. It's not a bug, it's a feature ;)
- benj111 8y ago
  What are you referring to here? Modern cars have bigger pillars so they can roll over, at the expense of massive blind spots, you seem to be talking about something else?
  - tyingq 8y ago
    Those two cars happen to have really terrible visibility for the driver. It's not just the safety aspect or just the pillars. It's the rake of the windshield, low seating position, and body shape all together. I imagine it's because the designers wanted a shape that emulated the old cars, and everything else had to work around that.
    - benj111 8y ago
      Ok thanks, I wasn't sure if was a trend I had missed or what.
lazyjones 8y ago
> The iconic shape and design of the 911 is dictated by its engine placement. The engine placement only made some characteristics possible (e.g. the low bonnet). If the shape and design were "dictated" by the engine placement, surely other cars with rear engine would have to look similar? > I feel with an electric drivetrain, a new design would be needed. Why change something that clearly works? Experiments like the i3 can go very wrong.
robohoe 8y ago
What if the battery pack was placed where the engine is in the 911? I do admit the frame would have to be strengthened even more to protect the battery pack, but that's no different than an engine. I would presumably think that rear-placed battery pack and drivetrain would keep the typical 911 handling characteristics.
- drawnwren 8y ago
  1. I don't know if there is enough volume there. 2. If there is, the weight balance of the car would be fucked.
  - robohoe 8y ago
    Good point. 997 and 991 generation 911 weight distribution is around 38%-62% split (front vs rear). I'm not too sure on weight numbers of battery packs these days, but perhaps these could be split between front and rear of the car to get to those distribution numbers as close as possible. Otherwise yeah, you end up with 930 Widowmaker 2.0 and cars spinning rear-first into a tree.
_ph_ 8y ago
Actually I think, the 911 shape is a great shape for an electric sports car, and that it is not a coincidence, that the Model 3 has some very remote similarities. The 911 is designed as a very aerodynamic car, enabled by the rear engine. As there is no engine in the front, the front part is very low and without a large cooler, consequently without the dominating grille. For good aerodynamics you want low fronts and a very smooth shape. The rear part of the 911 is constantly declining with basically no vertical section at the end, also great for aerodynamics. Picking up these aerodynamic features would completely make sense for an electric car - the rear won't be completely filled by the engine but allow for a trunk.

tyingq 8y ago

It might still sell well. Drive a new Camaro or Challenger, and you'll see they heavily sacrificed driver visibility for the sake of better emulating the old look.

ghaff 8y ago
So many vehicles these days have really lousy sightlines. I rented some Dodge sporty car a few months back and I almost felt unsafe driving because I didn't have a good view when changing lanes.
- rad_gruchalski 8y ago
  These "sporty" muscle cars are designed for drag racing. No need to change lanes there! Just look up the marketing for Charger Demon. It's not a bug, it's a feature ;)
benj111 8y ago
What are you referring to here? Modern cars have bigger pillars so they can roll over, at the expense of massive blind spots, you seem to be talking about something else?
- tyingq 8y ago
  Those two cars happen to have really terrible visibility for the driver. It's not just the safety aspect or just the pillars. It's the rake of the windshield, low seating position, and body shape all together. I imagine it's because the designers wanted a shape that emulated the old cars, and everything else had to work around that.
  - benj111 8y ago
    Ok thanks, I wasn't sure if was a trend I had missed or what.

lazyjones 8y ago

> The iconic shape and design of the 911 is dictated by its engine placement. The engine placement only made some characteristics possible (e.g. the low bonnet). If the shape and design were "dictated" by the engine placement, surely other cars with rear engine would have to look similar? > I feel with an electric drivetrain, a new design would be needed. Why change something that clearly works? Experiments like the i3 can go very wrong.

robohoe 8y ago

What if the battery pack was placed where the engine is in the 911? I do admit the frame would have to be strengthened even more to protect the battery pack, but that's no different than an engine. I would presumably think that rear-placed battery pack and drivetrain would keep the typical 911 handling characteristics.

drawnwren 8y ago
1. I don't know if there is enough volume there. 2. If there is, the weight balance of the car would be fucked.
- robohoe 8y ago
  Good point. 997 and 991 generation 911 weight distribution is around 38%-62% split (front vs rear). I'm not too sure on weight numbers of battery packs these days, but perhaps these could be split between front and rear of the car to get to those distribution numbers as close as possible. Otherwise yeah, you end up with 930 Widowmaker 2.0 and cars spinning rear-first into a tree.

_ph_ 8y ago

Actually I think, the 911 shape is a great shape for an electric sports car, and that it is not a coincidence, that the Model 3 has some very remote similarities. The 911 is designed as a very aerodynamic car, enabled by the rear engine. As there is no engine in the front, the front part is very low and without a large cooler, consequently without the dominating grille. For good aerodynamics you want low fronts and a very smooth shape. The rear part of the 911 is constantly declining with basically no vertical section at the end, also great for aerodynamics. Picking up these aerodynamic features would completely make sense for an electric car - the rear won't be completely filled by the engine but allow for a trunk.