The Porsche 911 ‘Slantnose’ could be making a comeback, these spy photos hint, but it will be missing its signature attribute.
Porsche could be about to revive an iconic design element of the 911 sports car's past – the 'slantnose' front end – spy photos suggest.
European photographers have snapped a prototype Porsche 911, based on a 991-generation GT2 RS, featuring new, more aerodynamic headlights flush with the front wheel arches.
However, Porsche AG registered the ‘Flachbau’ and ‘Flachbau RS’ trademarks back in May, hinting at a revival of the iconic design, which can trace its roots to the first decades of the 911's history.
In 1976, Porsche noticed an opportunity presented by the FIA Group 5 racing regulations, which said a car’s front fenders could be any shape as long as the wheel arch of the standard car was retained.
Applying this to the 930-series 911 Turbo-based 935 race car of the day, Porsche was able to do away with the 911’s signature upright headlamps and adopt a more aerodynamic ‘slant nose’, or ‘flachbau’, design.
It was a huge success on the race track, and the design eventually worked its way onto the option list for the road-going 930 Turbo.
Early cars mirrored the 935 and had the headlamps mounted in the bumper, but in the late 1980s, you could, for a significant cost (about 35 per cent above the standard car price) have a 930 Turbo ‘Slantnose’, complete with pop-up headlamps.
The Turbo SE went a step further and added straked rear fender vents for that full 1980s experience.
Of the approximately 21,600 930 Turbos built, only about 1000 were officially fitted with the Flachbau option – M505 or M506 depending on your market.
Porsche revisited the style again in 1994, and built about 76 examples of the 964-series 911 Turbo 3.6 with the X84 ‘Flachbau’ option (or X83 in Japan and X85 in the US). This time, the sloping fenders used the flip-forward lights from the Porsche 968.
Over the years, aftermarket tuners like Gemballa and Strosek also used the 930 and 964 as a base for slantnose conversions, with Japanese firm Old & New even creating a kit for the 996 and 997-generation cars.
In 2019, some 25 years after the 964 Turbo X84, Porsche itself revived the 935 model name and slantnose design with the limited edition 991-series, 911 GT2 RS-based 935 racer.
Just 77 examples of this track-only special were made, with forward lighting again relegated to the front airdam, just like the original 935.
Now, six years later, it looks like the Flachbau could be making another comeback for the road.
Sadly, due to modern safety requirements, the iconic pop-up headlamps of the original 911 Slantnose cannot be implemented.
Could we see a return to the M506 or X84 option as part of the Porsche Sonderwunsch (Special Request) program, and perhaps a reborn 911 Turbo SE? We can only hope.
With over 20 years of experience in digital publishing, James Ward has worked within the automotive landscape since 2007 and brings experience from the publishing, manufacturer and lifestyle side of the industry together to spearhead Drive's multi-media content direction.
