Porsche R&D Boss Drifted A 911 With The First Tank Of eFuel

Porsche has openly admitted that it took only five seconds before R&D boss Michael Steiner decided to drift the Gentian Blue Porsche 911 fueled by eFuel on the day the company opened its first synthetic fuel production facility in Chile.

The facility, which is a pilot plant and is therefore relatively small, was to form the center around which Steiner was to drive a couple of celebratory laps in the 911 fueled by carbon-neutral, guilt-free go-juice. However, Steiner could not resist the opportunity to go a little sideways on the loose surface and became the first person to drift using eFuel from the Haru Oni facility.

According to a Porsche press release, "Steiner did what came naturally and gave the 911 a little gas, executing a neat drift round the back of the turbine. The revs of the engine rose, a little dust was kicked up, and a bit more history had been made..."

Porsche claims that moment summed up the excitement of the new pilot project, and we can't help but agree.

While governments around the world insist on legislation to make future cars electric, Porsche is seeking to rather find a way of making sure all existing and future combustion-powered cars burn in a carbon-neutral fashion today. The company likens the pilot project to the very first car Ferry Porsche produced - the 356. Porsche had said that he couldn't find the sports car he dreamed of, so he decided to build it himself in the same vein, Porsche couldn't find a synthetic fuel it liked, so it decided to develop its own.

For now, the fuel will be used in the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup and at all Porsche Experience Centers globally, but by 2026, you may be able to fill up your own 911 with the stuff.

The basis behind the synthetic fuel is that it uses green hydrogen and carbon already present in the atmosphere and synthesizes it into hydrocarbons from which eFuel can be refined. Chile was selected as the home of the pilot plant due to its high winds all year round, providing a near-endless source of green energy.

Fuel produced at the facility is so green that even if the eFuel were to be shipped to Europe on an industrial scale, it would still be vastly more efficient than refining traditional gasoline elsewhere.

Porsche's investment in eFuel doesn't mean it won't pursue electromobility, however, and it is still planning an 80:20 split of BEVs to gas-powered cars by 2030. But, the new tech means that the 1.3 billion gas-powered vehicles on the roads today, including many classic and contemporary Porsches, will be safe - and crucially, eco-friendly - for decades to come.