Porsche 963 RSP, a road version of the Le Mans Hypercar
A week before the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the German manufacturer caused a sensation by presenting a road version of its racing prototype, which should remain a unique work.
Officially, the 963 RSP unveiled alongside the opening of the weighing process for the 2025 edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans is just a one-off exercise intended to pay homage to the 1970 Le Mans 917 that Count Rossi had modified for road use. Behind the scenes, a few collectors and fans of the brand are already working to get Porsche to produce a few examples of this road-going UFO derived from the 963 Hypercar, which will aim for victory—it would be the German manufacturer's twentieth—on the Le Mans circuit in a week. The 963 is part of the line of racing cars dressed up for the road. It will be recalled that the artisan Dauer had modified a few examples of the sports prototype competing in the Group C category at the turn of the 1980s. One of them even won the two-hour race at Le Mans in 1994.
The 963 RSP is nothing more and nothing less than a 963 LMDh racing in the World Endurance Championship (WEC) and IMSA, painted gray. A nod to Count Martini's 917, which was silver gray. The 963 RSP is the result of joint work between the Porsche AG team, the Porsche Penske Motorsport team, which races the official 963s, and Porsche's American subsidiary. It was the latter's boss, Timo Resch, who came up with this original idea.
Starting with the racing 963, a number of modifications were made to allow road use. This included raising the ride height, softening the shock absorbers, and reprogramming the control unit so that the lights on this 963, which resembles a prototype escaped from the circuit, could comply with the requirements of road use and meet road legislation. In addition to the adoption of Michelin road tires specifically for rain, the 963 RSP received a horn. Incidentally, the bodywork was slightly modified, with the wheel arches now being covered. The most observant will note some differences in the treatment of aerodynamic elements between the Hypercar and its civilian derivative. Another important detail: the integration of mounting points for the front and rear license plates.
The differences are most significant in the cramped cabin. The interior of Count Rossi's 917 inspired the design of the 963 RSP. The driver's carbon fiber seat is trimmed in tan leather with a soft cushion in the center and a fixed headrest mounted on the carbon fiber bulkhead. The seats are air-conditioned, like those of the racing version. As for the footwells, headliner, and pillars, they are upholstered in suede. Porsche has even thought about driver comfort: a removable 3D-printed cup holder has been added.
Under the hood, the engineers and engine designers have changed little or nothing. The V8 hybrid powertrain with lithium-ion battery—capable of running solely on electric power—remains in standard racing configuration in the 963 RSP, but the power delivery from the MGU has been reshaped to ensure smooth distribution more suited to road use than racing competition. The engine is a 4.6-liter twin-turbo V8 delivering around 680 hp and derived from the unit that powered the winning RS Spyders in the LMP2 class of the American Le Mans Series from 2006 to 2008, as well as that of the 918 Spyder. Porsche boasts that it uses around 80% of the engine components from the plug-in hybrid supercar.
For Timo Bernhard, double winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2010 and 2017, who had the honor of completing the first kilometers at the wheel of the 963 RSP through the Sarthe countryside, the experience will remain memorable. "Driving on a public road with a 917 at my side was surreal. The car handled perfectly—it was a little friendlier and more forgiving than the normal 963—and I felt much more comfortable, especially since I didn't need all my safety equipment," the German driver emphasized.
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