Porsche 718 EV Strategy Collapses: Automaker Now Reverse-Engineering Platform It Spent Billions Building

Porsche just confirmed the most expensive engineering admission of defeat in automotive history. The German automaker is now paying to reverse-engineer the PPE Sport platform it paid billions to develop as EV-only, adding combustion engine capability across the entire next-generation 718 Boxster and Cayman lineup. This isn’t just a product strategy pivot. This is a premium automaker publicly unraveling an electric vehicle bet that went catastrophically wrong.

根据 a new report from Autocar, senior sources at Porsche’s Weissach engineering center confirmed the company is working to add mid-engine combustion capability to a platform deliberately designed without space for a central tunnel, fuel tank, exhaust system, or fuel lines. The engineers must also rebuild structural rigidity after removing the floor-mounted battery that Porsche designed as a structural component for the electric 718s.

• What: Porsche is adapting its EV-only PPE Sport platform to accept combustion engines across the full 718 lineup
• Why it matters: The automaker spent billions designing OUT combustion capability and is now spending more to design it back IN
• Timeline: Electric 718 arrives 2027; combustion variants arrive “later this decade”
• Engine candidate: The 4.0-liter flat-six from the GT4 RS (up to 493 horsepower)

The Engineering Absurdity Porsche Created

Let me be direct about what Porsche is actually doing here. The company developed the PPE Sport platform specifically to be electric-only. Engineers deliberately eliminated everything needed for combustion propulsion: no central tunnel for drivetrain components, no space allocated for fuel tanks, no provisions for exhaust routing, no fuel line packaging. The floor-mounted battery wasn’t just a power source. It was a structural element providing chassis rigidity.

Now Porsche must undo all of that. According to Autocar’s sources, engineers are developing a new structural floor section that bolts into the platform’s existing hard points to restore rigidity. A redesigned rear bulkhead and subframe will support the engine and transmission. This isn’t a simple adaptation. This is fundamental re-engineering of a platform that cost billions to develop.

Porsche insiders told Autocar the combustion variants “must achieve dynamic parity with their electric siblings” given the EV’s ultra-low center of gravity. That’s a high bar when you’re retrofitting an engine, transmission, fuel system, and exhaust into a chassis designed to exclude them.

This Is What $1.1 Billion in Losses Looks Like

The 718 reversal doesn’t exist in isolation. It’s the latest evidence that Porsche’s EV strategy has failed comprehensively.

In October, Porsche posted the most humiliating quarter in its 77-year history: a $1.1 billion operating loss that marked the automaker’s first quarterly loss since going public in 2022. That quarter included a $3.1 billion writedown for what CFO Jochen Breckner called “extraordinary expenses” related to the company’s “strategic realignment.” Translation: admitting the premium EV playbook doesn’t work.

Porsche’s operating return on sales collapsed from a healthy 14.1% in 2024 to barely 2% for 2025. That’s not luxury car economics. That’s barely breaking even.

Back in July, CEO Oliver Blume delivered the admission we’ve been waiting for: “Our business model, which has served us well for many decades, no longer works in its current form.” At the time, Porsche backed away from its 80% EV sales target by 2030. The 718 reversal shows that retreat is accelerating.

The Timeline Creates More Problems

Here’s what prospective 718 buyers need to understand about the current timeline:

Production of the current internal-combustion 718 Boxster and Cayman ended in October 2025. That includes the RS and GT4 RS models. If you wanted a gas-powered mid-engine Porsche, the window closed two months ago.

The electric 718 successors were originally planned for 2025-2026 but got pushed to early 2027 after battery supplier Northvolt filed for bankruptcy. The new combustion variants built on the reverse-engineered PPE Sport platform won’t arrive until “later this decade” according to Autocar, meaning 2028 or 2029 at earliest.

Porsche is filling this multi-year gap with “top” variants of the current-generation platform. These continuation RS and GT4 RS models will slot above the 2027 EVs as a stopgap. But for buyers wanting a new combustion 718 under six figures, the wait could stretch to four years or more.

Porsche Isn’t Alone in Retreat

The 718 reversal is part of a broader recalibration across Porsche’s lineup. The Macan, which was also supposed to go EV-only, will now get a new combustion and hybrid version before the end of the decade. The Cayenne and Panamera will retain their combustion options. Only the Taycan remains as Porsche’s EV-exclusive offering.

This pattern extends beyond Porsche. We’ve documented the industry-wide retreat from EV commitments since the federal tax credit expired on September 30:

• GM laid off 3,300+ EV workers and idled billion-dollar battery plants
• Ford killed the F-150 Lightning’s future to focus on gas trucks
• Honda slashed its EV target from 30% to 20% by 2030
• Volkswagen posted its first quarterly loss since the pandemic
• The “Battery Belt” has become a ghost town of idled factories

What makes Porsche different is the premium positioning. If any automaker should be able to make luxury EVs work, it’s the brand charging $165,000 for a Cayenne Electric. Yet here we are, watching Porsche spend billions to undo billions.

EVXL’s Take

Here’s what I expect: the electric 718 will launch in 2027 to underwhelming sales, just like the Taycan’s 6% delivery decline this year. Porsche will point to the combustion variants “coming soon” to reassure traditional buyers while trying to convince EV skeptics that the electric version is worth considering. Neither audience will be satisfied.

The deeper issue is that Porsche bet its sports car future on a premise that turned out to be wrong: that premium buyers would pay significant premiums for electric versions of cars they loved. The Taycan proved that’s a hard sell. The 718 reversal proves Porsche has given up trying.

What Autocar called “one of the most radical drivetrain reversals in Porsche’s history” is actually something more significant. It’s validation that even the most prestigious automakers can’t make the luxury EV math work when customers have alternatives. That’s the story nobody else is telling.

We’ve been tracking Porsche’s EV struggles since CEO Blume admitted “our model no longer works” in July. The $1.1 billion quarterly loss in October confirmed it. The $165,000 Cayenne Electric launched anyway, because Porsche was already too committed to stop. And now the 718 reversal shows the company is finally facing reality.

For buyers who wanted an affordable gas-powered mid-engine Porsche, the message is clear: you’ll be waiting until the end of the decade. For those considering the electric 718, ask yourself whether Porsche’s heart is really in it when the company is simultaneously engineering combustion back into the platform.

Are you holding out for the combustion 718 or moving on to other options? Let us know in the comments.

FAQ

Will Porsche still sell an electric 718?

Yes. The electric 718 Boxster and Cayman are still planned for early 2027. The combustion variants will be sold alongside the EVs, not instead of them.

What engine will the combustion 718 use?

Porsche hasn’t confirmed, but the leading candidate is a development of the 4.0-liter naturally-aspirated flat-six from the current GT4 RS, which produces up to 493 horsepower. Changes to Euro 7 emissions regulations make continued development feasible.

When can I buy a new gas-powered 718?

The soonest option is the continuation RS and GT4 RS models Porsche announced in September, though timing and pricing haven’t been confirmed. The new PPE-based combustion 718s won’t arrive until late in the decade, likely 2028 or 2029.

Why did Porsche reverse its EV-only plan?

Declining EV demand, a $1.1 billion quarterly loss, and the broader collapse of the luxury EV pricing model forced Porsche to reconsider. CEO Oliver Blume admitted in July 2025 that Porsche’s business model “no longer works in its current form.”