Porsche forum claims eco-friendly 911 Blu coming to Frankfurt

Thu, 01 Aug 2013

The fiftieth anniversary of the Porsche 911 has been a nearly year-long affair, with unique tributes and even a special anniversary edition with plenty of retro throwbacks. The party is expected to continue through the end of 2013, and if one 911 enthusiast forum is right, we'll see yet another special edition model near the anniversary of the original car's September 1963 debut, when it arrives at next month's Frankfurt Auto Show.

It's called the 911 Blu, and where the 911 50 Years Edition was more expensive than a 911 Carrera S hardtop, the Blu would be an entry level special edition. That's right, a limited run car that actually slots in at the very bottom of the 911 range. According to Porsche forum 911UK.com, the new car would be priced at 74,600 euros ($98,718 at today's rates) or 64,750 pounds. That undercuts the price of a base 911 in Germany by nearly 16,000 euros and in the UK by nearly 8700 pounds (although to be fair, it's roughly identical to the price of a base 911 C2S in the US).

This 911 will reportedly feature a detuned flat-six with 300 horsepower and 211 pound-feet of torque.

This 911 will reportedly feature a detuned flat-six with 300 horsepower and 211 pound-feet of torque, while cylinder deactivation and active grille shutters should help with economy. Stop-start technology will be standard, along with Porsche's new Regeneration System. (There's no explanation of what this system is, by the way.) The wheels will be 18-inchers, and will use hollow spokes for less weight. Porsche's Active Suspension Management will be an optional item rather than standard. Finally, the Blu is reportedly a hardtop convertible.

If you're like us, you're mainlining salt by this point. There are so many things about this proposed special edition that don't make sense that it's difficult to cover them all here. And that's without us even mentioning the woeful Riviera Blue/Guards Red exterior seen above. (No, we aren't kidding.)

First and foremost, there's been nothing from Porsche about this car. Not a peep, not a spy shot, not so much as a hint that something special was coming to Frankfurt. The oft-rumored budget 911 is already available – it's called the Cayman S. There's even a convertible version called the Boxster S. The reported run to 62 takes 5.4 seconds in the PDK-only car, meaning you will get trampled by most other sports cars that cost half as much as this 911. Who, but the most diehard 911 fanatic, is going to spend this kind of money on a car that will be slower and more expensive than a Cayman S? Also, if Porsche had developed some kind of "revolutionary" hardtop for the 911, why not show it on one of the more robust Carrera models? We could go on.

According to the forum, the 911 Blu will be limited to 911 units (cute), with 300 earmarked for the US market. We'll see if any of this is true when we attend the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show next month.

By Brandon Turkus