Porsche Never Sold 911s With 8-Cylinder Engines, But One Factory Prototype Exists

Ardent fans of the brand may have already heard of the 965 name — perhaps as lettering stamped on the 964 Turbo 3.6's many parts, or as something that was supposed to sit above the 930 Turbo (aka the Widowmaker) and below the mighty Porsche 959. The plan was, according to YouTube's 9WERKS TV, to create a sort of 911 "Super Turbo" based on a 964 platform, featuring some of the 959's running gear – namely the self-leveling suspension and trick all-wheel drive system — all while keeping its price tag much more palatable, at least when compared to the scarily expensive 959.

Development of what was supposed to be called the Porsche 969 (in production form) started in 1984 with a release date scheduled for 1990. The history of this cocktail of a Porsche gets interesting as you closely inspect its derriere. As you may know, Porsche never really sold 911s with anything other than a flat-6, albeit in naturally aspirated or forced-induction forms.

According to Stuttcars, Porsche had a lofty 365-horsepower initial target for the "Junior 959," which engineers could've easily met had they used the 959's twin-turbo flat-six motor. As budgetary constraints decreed otherwise, the team had to get creative, toying with the idea of a turbocharged V6 and even an in-house-developed V8. In the end, however, an Audi-sourced water-cooled V8 proved cost-effective while meeting the project's many demands. Apparently, Porsche was struggling at the time, and the financial crash of '87 also didn't help much in keeping the project alive. And so, there sits a "Black Bomber" somewhere in the Porsche Museum that is the only surviving prototype of a 911 with a V8 hanging behind its rear axle.

The "Black Bomber," or Prototype L7, to be more specific, was primarily used for radiator testing and, according to CarThrottle, played its part in helping the 911 go water-cooled many years later with the 996 generation. Worth pointing out is that if it weren't for the financial woes at the time, the 965 would've gone on to become the first fully water-cooled Porsche 911 (the 959 had water-cooled heads). In fact, during the development phase, water-cooling the entire flat-six was a proposed solution to Project 965's power problems.

As for the paint, Porsche chose to "matte black" the test mule because fancy camos weren't necessarily all that common back in the day, and moreover, this was a test car that drove on public roads. As you can see with the hidden NACA ducts, Porsche was being incredibly secretive. In terms of the protype itself, what you will find is a bit of G-series, a bit of 964, and a lot of 959. Specifically, while the test mule's profile looks very 959-esque, if you inspect closely, the front bumper has an uncanny resemblance to that of a 928, while the mirrors and the overall mid-section look very much like the G-series. The rear, however, has 959 written all over it, with the integrated spoiler being, unmistakably, the standout item.

Not only was air suspension a proposed option for the 965, but Porsche also had plans to incorporate the dual-clutch transmission from its 956 and 962 racecars. A total of circa 2,500 cars were planned, each priced at 180,000 Deutsche Mark. For context, that was less than half of what a 959 cost at the time.