► Mission S design concept unveiled in New York
► New head of design’s first vision for a future Porsche supercar
► Will be built, will be petrol-powered

Porsche’s Mission S concept is just that for the time being but fear not, something like it will definitely get built. Boss Michael Leiters confirmed as much when talking to reporters at the brand’s recent Capital Markets Day.

The positioning is interesting. It’s a mid-engined concept with only vague technical spec. We know it’s not a completely all-new platform but instead pulls together various elements from others. The material mix isn’t confirmed for the production version but it’s unlikely to be a carbon tub like the 918. R&D boss Michael Steiner thinks it’ll more likely be mixed materials, so alloy and carbon.

We do know it uses a petrol engine, that it will sit above the 911 in the Porsche line-up and that it won’t be a limited-run hypercar but a production-series supercar. Think less Carrera GT/918 unobtanium, more 296 Speciale.

The concept runs an analogue rev counter – great news! – and it even shifts backwards and forwards depending on what drive mode you’re in. That’s not all, as the five dials also move behind one another or side-by-side, again depending on drive mode. The latter elements feels like a concept-only gimmick.

We don’t know what engine it will use. A flat-eight? The possibility is intriguing. Ruf is working on one and has a close relationship with Zuffenhausen, so the thought is not completely out there.

Porsche resisted flat-eights in the past, other than in race cars, because the compromise with the extra weight slung out behind the rear axle was felt to be too much. But the Mission S is mid-engined, negating that problem.

Will it be built? Yes. Unlike the Mission X, Porsche’s electric concept from 2023, this feels like a more attainable car and something that customers will actually buy. The X was impressive, but even just three years ago the hypercar EV market was sliding. You can’t say the same for petrol powered supercars right now.

When the car was unveiled, we sat down with newly installed lead designer Tobias Sühlmann as he outlined both his reasons for the Mission S and his vision for the wider brand.

The Mission S is his first statement. Quite the wow factor, blending nods to Porsche’s heritage (the roof scoop, the engine fan, the telephone dial wheels, an analogue central rev counter) with a clear view forward. ‘We should acknowledge the past but go into the future,’ he explains.

‘What I like is the softness of the surface. I like the sculptural surfaces – I don’t like hard lines on a Porsche. I like the soft shapes and then you have the contrast with that of the very precise architectural, almost Bauhaus, kind of graphics. It gives an amazing contrast and that makes the tension.’

In the flesh, the car looks low and long, but still compact. There’s an inherent Porsche-ness about the footprint, not trying to dominate. A light touch. Sühlmann deliberately wanted this: ‘It’s not just what kind of elements and what kind of shapes. For me, it’s also the size of it. I like to drive and drove the Monte Carlo rally roads together with Walter Röhrl. This is for me something where our cars are made for. The overall package [in terms of size] is also important.’

Clean lines will be the way forward, with everything having a function. ‘I think we are more than just stylists; we are car designers and every detail, every shut line, has a certain function … the fly line runs into the rear lights and is very precise. How the lines runs over that sculptural body and the contrast of both makes, for me, the tension.’

It’ll be interesting to see how this philosophy runs into the engineering realities. Sühlmann talks of a 911 being like a ‘good-fitting suit’ and something that doesn’t ‘shout at you’. He knows something like a GT3 RS needs wings and flicks and he’s ‘okay with that’, but ‘I strongly believe that a base car can be a beautiful sculpture’. Active aero will be ever more important.