Porsche’s Altitude Record Setting Portal Axle-Equipped 911 Is Even More Insane In Person

In December, Porsche teamed up with legendary racing driver Romain Dumas to take a specially modified 911 Carrera 4S higher than any car’s been driven before — 4.184 miles above sea level, all the way up the west ridge of the Ojos del Salado volcano in Chile. The car to achieve this astonishing altitude record was named Edith, and we got an up-close look at it during this year’s Toronto Auto Show.

By now, you’ve probably heard the headlines that this manual, portal axle-equipped, massively lifted 911 has set a world record, but getting up close lets us bring you beyond the boilerplate and into some of the details you just won’t find in a press release. Of course, it also helps that Porsche positioned this thing way up in the air.

Intriguingly, this car’s tailpipe emissions while setting the altitude record were effectively carbon-neutral, as Edith was powered by synthetically generated, scrubbed carbon-based e-fuel. While e-fuels probably won’t take the wind out of battery-powered vehicles due to scalability limitations, it’s nice to know that Porsche is working on scaling a fuel that should keep the combustion-powered cars we love on the road for years to come.

While a standard 992 Porsche 911 Carrera 4S uses MacPherson Strut front suspension, the altitude record-setting car definitely does not. Check out those immensely beefy billet upper and lower wishbones, along with the heim-jointed tie rod. On one end, that tie rod is attached to a Schaeffler Group Space Drive steer-by-wire rack. On the other? A massive knuckle attached to a portal axle.

Portal axles are sweet because they’re reduction gearboxes that position the wheel hub lower than the differential output flange centerline. Not only does the gear reduction aid in torque multiplication for low-speed off-road crawling, the geometry of each portal axle increases ground clearance while moving the differential further away from the ground. In a live axle application, like on a Mercedes-Benz G 550 4×4 squared, this adds running clearance. On an independent suspension setup like this 911 Carrera 4S, such an arrangement adds clearance and prevents CV shafts from running at excessive angles that would compromise their longevity. Edith the 911 uses them to great effect, boasting a remarkable 13.7 inches of ground clearance. That’s 2.2 inches more than you get with an air-sprung Land Rover Defender in its highest suspension mode.

For all my tire nerds out there, the record-setting 911 rolls on BFGoodrich Mud Terrain T/A KM3s, which you can totally pick up for your Jeep or truck. No spikes or special rally compound here, just a good ol’ yee-yee mud terrain. If it’s good enough for Porsche to set an altitude record on, it’s good enough for bogging deep in your Duramax.

While we’re underneath the record-setting 911, let’s take a quick look at armoring and recovery. Not only is there a winch up front, the entire underbody has been fortified with a variety of protection measures. An enormous metal plate protects the front end from small boulders, but under the midsection of the unibody, things get more advanced thanks to Aramid fiber composite skid plates. Not only is the weave cool, the material is light and incredibly abrasion-resistant, making it perfect for guarding the passenger cell in a rear-engined vehicle.

Beyond the astonishing engineering of this car and the legendary feat it accomplished, Edith is a reminder that jaw-dropping cars definitely don’t have to be perfect. The glitzy red chrome wrap looks almost as haggard as Balenciaga’s line of distressed footwear, with parts of it being wrinkled enough to the point where I could’ve done a similar application job after six or seven tequila shots, and some of the custom panels feature Tesla-grade fitment that you just wouldn’t accept on a production car. Hell, there are even self-tapping screws driven straight through body panels in the spirit of git-r-dun.

Around back, a cursory glance reveals a gashed bumper and a cracked taillight, stuff that normally wouldn’t fly on a show car but totally works here because of this 911’s story. Any car that’s done something awesome is a show car, whether that’s racing, setting a world record, or just being an important moment in history. It elevates these balls of metal, glass and rubber that we love from transportation devices to something greater. Maybe the New Radicals were right. You do get what you give.

(Photo credits: Thomas Hundal)

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