Flat nose, fried egg, will there be more Porsche 911s without round headlights?

When we think of the Porsche 911, whatever it may be, in 95% of the cases we will think of a rear-engine 2+2 with a fastback-shaped rear, a sporty silhouette and round, protruding front lights, which in a certain way another has been maintained from the original 901, which turns 60 in October, to the current generation, the 992 post restyling. All this has been maintained to a greater or lesser extent, but can you imagine a Porsche 911 without round headlights? It has happened in history on more than one occasion, in fact.

When Porsche customers wanted to emulate the 935 that raced at Le Mans

As we already mentioned in this article, back in the eighties the owner of TAG (partner, along with Porsche, of McLaren in Formula 1 in the mid-eighties) Mansour Ojjeh had the whim of having a Porsche 911 with the nose of the flat-nosed 935 (Slant nose or Flachbau. This concept of retractable headlights had an aerodynamic advantage, since during the day with the headlights folded it offered less air resistance, very important for the long straights of Le Mans (then the Hunaudieres chicanes were not yet there as well) .

On the other hand, the eighties were precisely the time when retractable headlights were in fashion, whether for aerodynamic reasons or for pure aesthetics. From general cars like the Honda Civic or Toyota Sprinter Trueno (or the Mazda MX-5, although this one arrived at the end of the eighties) to the Ferrari Testarossa or Chevrolet Corvette C4, including the Porsche 944 themselves. Porsche offered this kit to all those interested in having a 935 with retractable headlightswhether for all this or as a way to showcase his love for the brand and his successes at Le Mans and other endurance races.

997 and the arrival of the ‘fried egg’

The 996 generation of the Porsche 911 was groundbreaking in many ways: first, because a new car was being made instead of the 993 which, in large part, was based on the already old 964, in addition to the need to change to water cooling, instead of air cooling as had been maintained until the 993. But it was also groundbreaking because change the traditional round headlights for the so-called fried egg-shaped headlights. At the time it was vilified for it, but precisely now they are becoming famous and becoming interesting classics.

At a difficult time economically for Porsche, this particular front not only served to refresh the image of the 911, but also as a common front for a car that was born at that time and lasts to this day: the Boxster. This aesthetic would also be used for the birth of the brand’s first SUV.the original Cayenne that largely saved its accounts.

More 911s without round headlights in the future?

On the Internet you can find thousands, perhaps millions, of original designs, even if they are not real, from renders interesting even creations that fortunately remain designs. There are those who have dared to interpret the 911 with the nose of the Taycan – today, with advances in artificial intelligence, it is easier than ever to find these renders. For now, it does not seem that Porsche is going to take that path, although we will have to wait for the next generation of the icon..