Secret Porsche 911 Concepts Have Scaled World’s Highest Volcano In Chile

• The Porsche 911 project cars scaled the dormant volcano Ojos del Salado in Chile. 

• Both concepts were modified 992 911 Carrerra 4S sportscars with 443PS engines. 

• They each get a Porsche Warp-Connecter device for proper four-wheel drive. 

• Ojos del Salado presented extreme testing conditions for the cars as well as the team. 

Porsche has successfully completed a tough, dangerous endeavour to scale the highest volcano in the world. A team of engineers specially modified a pair of 911 sportscars, and led by endurance racer Romain Dumas, managed to reach the summit of Ojos del Salado in Chile, a place without any roads that’s severely lacking in oxygen. 

Porsche 911s were modified for purpose

The team chose 992-generation 911 Carrera 4S sportscars as the base for modifications. Built for on-road performance, the 911s did have all-wheel drive, but the engineers put in a ‘Porsche Warp-Connecter’ device, previously created for motorsport applications, to give the sportscars proper four-wheel drive. 

Roll-cages were put in for safety and the team switched to lower gear ratios for better control in off-road conditions. The cars were raised with Portal axles, a modified suspension and off-roading tyres, increasing the sportscars’ ground clearance to a whopping 350mm. For comparison, a stock Mahindra Thar offers up to 226mm of clearance. 

Other mods include manual differential locks, a front winch, a modified cooling system and Aramid fiber underbody protection. 

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Future projects coming up 

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It seems that the volcano-scaling 911 sportscars are just a start. Walliser says, “Projects like this one are vital to who we are at Porsche. As they began their journey, the team literally aimed sky high. The first of what I hope will be many adventures.”