Porsche is weighing up a new mid-engined "super-sports car" that would sit above the 911 in its lineup, with the model set to be offered exclusively with combustion engines. A concept version, dubbed Mission S, is scheduled to be unveiled on 15 October, giving the clearest hint yet of what form this new flagship might take.

The potential supercar is one piece of a sweeping new strategy called Sportwagenschmiede 35 — a name blending the German words for "sports car" and "forge" — unveiled by chief executive Michael Leiters, who joined Porsche from McLaren last year. The plan comes after a rough 2025 for the German brand, which saw both revenue and profit decline sharply, pushing Leiters to pursue a major overhaul.

Leiters confirmed Porsche is "developing a super-sports car platform" for the new model, stressing it won't be a rebadged mid-engined car from sister brands Lamborghini or Bugatti-Rimac, though some components could be shared through group synergies. He said the broader goal of the strategy is to "reinforce Porsche as one of the world's most desirable sports car manufacturers" by doubling down on its sports-car heritage.

As part of the shake-up, Porsche is rebalancing its powertrain strategy toward roughly a 2:1 split between combustion and electric models. The firm will trim its model variants by about 20% while expanding high-margin segments covering larger sports cars and SUVs, aiming for these to eventually make up 45% of its range. A new combustion SUV will join the electric Macan from 2028, built on a VW Group platform and related to the next Audi Q5, while a larger combustion SUV above the Cayenne is also planned for the US market. The next-generation 718 Boxster and Cayman, due in 2027, will go fully electric, with plans to adapt their platform for combustion engines now scrapped. Leiters was firm that "the 911 will never be electric," and said new high-end 911 derivatives are in the works, alongside expanded Heritage Design, Manufaktur and Sonderwunsch bespoke programmes — the latter having produced a car costing over €13 million.

To fund this shift, Porsche plans to cut development costs by up to 20% through simulation tools, AI and modular engineering, while reducing management roles by 40% and overall headcount by 30%, including 9,000 jobs under a plan agreed with unions. The company has also exited stakes in Bugatti-Rimac, MHP and its e-bike business, and says it will no longer chase lost sales in China, instead targeting a more even global spread led by Europe and the Americas.

Source: Autocar

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