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MONTEREY, Calif. — Porsche is changing everything everyone thinks about hybrids by proving gas-electric technology can haul ass and save gas.

The Germans rolled into the ModSpace American Le Mans Monterey race with the 911 GT3 R Hybrid and delivered a beating to every car in the GT class as drivers Romain Dumas and Richard Lietz finished 10th overall. Not only did Porsche’s gas-electric wunderkind post the fastest lap, it made just three pit stops during the six-hour event, compared to the five everyone else made.

“The start phase was huge fun, because it was relatively easy to overtake the slower competitors,” Dumas said after the race. “But it’s even more fun because we can apply superior tactics thanks to the lower fuel consumption. We are much more flexible and we made the most of this today.”

It was the car’s first appearance on the West Coast (and only its second in North America since its debut last year), so we made it a point to stop by the paddock and check it out.


The car, based on the wickedly quick 911 GT3 R, isn’t a hybrid in the traditional sense. It uses a kinetic energy recovery system, and instead of a battery, the energy is stored in a flywheel. The system stores 0.2 kilowatt-hour of energy, which is enough to provide an additional 150 kilowatts (203 horsepower) for an eight-second burst.

“That doesn’t sound like much, but the system recharges very quickly,” said Dieter Steinhauser, head of motorsports R