Porsche 356 reborn as 1000bhp-plus electric speedster

Porsche has unveiled a Speedster version of its stunning Vision 357 concept, to mark both 75 years of the Stuttgart firm’s sports cars and 30 years of the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Whereas the Vision 357 coupé was based on the revered 718 Cayman GT4 RS, featuring the firm’s atmospheric 4.0-litre flat six, the Speedster takes on an electric powertrain – and  with it more than double the power. 

It borrows its underpinnings from the 718 GT4 e-Performance prototype, whose dual-motor set-up produces 1072bhp in qualifying mode. That’s enough for a 0-62mph time well below 3.0sec, even in the less track-focused 357.

The GT4 also features 900V fast charging, allowing the 82kWh battery – split into various packs under the ‘frunk’, through the transmission tunnel and behind the driver – to replenish 75% of its capacity in 15 minutes. This set-up is expected to have been mirrored for the 357.

The 357 is expected to tip the scales at slightly more than the circa 1600kg figure quoted for the GT4 e-Performance, given its mission is stylistic – to be a show car – and not sporting, as with the GT4.

Beyond the difference in powertrain, the Vision 357 Speedster is also shorter in height than its coupé sibling – owing to the chopped windscreen – and wears a more subtle blue-on-silver 75th anniversary livery.

Inside, carbonfibre-reinforced-plastic bucket seats are integrated into the monocoque, trimmed in Racetex microfibre and paired with six-point harnesses in Miami Blue. A transparent gauge cluster and racing wheel protrude from a dash finished entirely in exposed carbon weave. The charging port is integrated into the driver’s roll hoop.

The Vision 357 Speedster makes its debut on Porsche’s stand at this year’s Festival of Speed, at which the company is the ‘celebrated marque’. The Festival’s centrepiece sculpture – historically provided by its lead manufacturer in any given year – will mark Porsche’s 75th anniversary with a design by British artist Gerry Judah.

Also featured on the Porsche stand will be the first sports car ever made by the brand and the inspiration for the Vision 357 – 356 No.1 – as well as an extreme Cayenne Transsyberia and the millionth 911 produced. A selection of famous race cars will also be present, such as the Le Mans-winning 936/81 Spyder.