Ever get an idea in your head that starts small and then kind of snowballs into something well beyond what you intended? That happened to me this morning. I was looking at a picture of a car, focused on a detail, then that reminded me of another unrelated car, and that led to some quick Photoshopping and then that lead to Photoshopping another car, just because conceptually the first demanded a counterpart, and next thing you know I’m making a freaking front-engined Porsche 911 and a rear-engined Ford Mustang. The hell is wrong with me? Anyway, let’s go on a little journey into what could have been, but wasn’t.
The car I was looking at was a 1965 Porsche 911, specifically the little horn grilles on the sides, under the headlamps. I started to imagine what a 911 might look like if those grilles went straight across the front, ahead of the hood’s front edge. And that weirdly reminded me of an AMC Pacer, of all cars, and then that reminded me of the Pacer’s other grille, and then I realized, holy crap, I bet a front-engined 911 might have a grille like that.
That’s when I made this:
A front-engined 1965 Porsche 911. Once I got started playing with this idea, I couldn’t stop because, somehow, I liked where it was going! It makes no sense, I know – the 911’s entire character and identity are all bound up with the fact that it’s got an engine hanging off its ass–is the vehicle above even a 911 anymore?
What if the engine were still a flat-six, still air-cooled, just jammed under that front hood? It’d probably need a bit more height, so we’ll kick up the middle of the grille and let the two creases already in the 911 hood define where those raised corners go. Shit, I like it. The grille changes the look of the 911 much more than I’d have guessed, too. It almost feels British now?
Well, may as well do the rear:
The 911’s fastback shape already lends itself to a big hatch, so that’s what it’s got. That’d be pretty practical! You could jam a lot of stuff in a hatch like that — especially if you fold the seats down. I bet you could haul a lawnmower in there with the seats down and the hatch open.
In fact, let’s look at what the layout of everything could have been like in a front-engined 911:
I’m thinking Porsche would have stuck with a transaxle (combined transmission and differential in one unit, remember) design for the rear, since they’re used to making those, only this time there’s a driveshaft involved. The gas tank would be somewhat saddle-shaped to clear the central tunnel and driveshaft, the spare would move under the hatch floor, which, as you can see, would be very roomy.
That engine should have no problem getting plenty of air, too! Honestly, this isn’t the worst layout for a 911, as perverse as that is to say.
But now I’m conflicted, because I adore rear engines. I can’t convince myself one of the most iconic rear-engined cars could have worked well with the opposite layout! So, to be fair, I better do the same thing to some iconic front-engine car of the same era, and maybe I can balance the Universal Scales by convincing myself it’d be better rear-engined.
Let’s do a ’65 Ford Mustang.
In a strange way, the Mustang actually kind of lends itself to a non-front-engined design. Remember, the original Mustang concept had a mid-engined setup, and gave the Mustang its trademark (but fake) side air intake scoops, so this general idea isn’t as foreign as it may seem at first glance.
So, if we’re going to shove all of the hot, oily bits of the Mustang at the back, I think the early fastback design is the best candidate, for reasons you’ll see soon. To make this work, the Mustang’s grille will go, though we can keep the general brightwork and central horse badge, because Ford loves that kind of thing, and I’m pretty sure they’d want that on there, grille or no.
Then, we’ll make the fake side air intakes real, and use those to feed air into a pair of small radiators, one on each side.
Around the rear, we’ll put a full-width grille between the taillights for hot air from the engine to escape from, and we’re going to re-purpose those B-pillar vents on the fastback roof to feed air into the engine’s carb.
Layout wise, I think it could all look something like this. I’m using a transaxle design here, too, since those just make sense for rear-engine designs. With no driveshaft needed, we could lose the central tunnel, if we wanted to, for more interior room. I’m thinking the V8 would be the preferable engine here, since a straight-6 would be longer and hang out even further rearward, which isn’t great for handling.
The fuel tank I think could be sort of L-shaped, under and behind the front trunk, which looks like it’d be a pretty good size. This layout would also give much better traction than the actual-world front-engine Mustang, but would have made handling potentially squirlier.
Of course, maybe the oversteering handling would have been a plus for a car like this? Think of the donuts you could do with all that weight at the rear!
Dammit, I like the rear-engined Mustang, too! Look what I’ve done to myself: I’ve made myself interested in versions of two of the most iconic cars ever, changes that are likely anathema to true devotees of both cars, and which, of course, don’t exist.
Don’t say I don’t know how to have a good time.
This has been bothering me, I could not for the life of me remember what the Porsche in the lead image reminded me of. After a sleepless night, whisky for breakfast and a lot of head scratching (the cat quite likes having her head scratched, the postman, not so much) a dim bulb stated to glow.
Jason, you have, with the help of Porsche and Photoshop, designed………. (drum roll) …(fanfare)
The Fairthorpe Electron!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Would have been cool to see what the Mustang would’ve looked like with the greenhouse moved slightly forward, so it has less of a ‘front-engined look’ to it.
Is the Porsche a 119 now?
Finally, a Porsche that looks like Joseph Stalin.
Nice artwork. The Pacer grill actually works well on it.
Love the Porsche, meh on the ‘stang fiero!
That 911, you know how the actors in cats make you feel vaguely uncomfortable… that’s how that 911 makes me feel. Oddly the Mustang just looks to me from the front like someone made it electric.
If the 911 had been British, it would have only had two seats, and the boot would have been huge.
Ok, just got the the first Porsche pic, and, I gotta say, that grill really, really looks like the car’s name is Smedley. Just sayin.
As my grandpa used to say: “Just ’cause you can, don’t mean you should”.
yea, well, this would make a Mustang that can easily do wheelies. I like it.
I love how your mind works, Torch. This is some shit my mind would come up with but I would never follow through with it beyond thinking about it. This and many other reasons is why I’ll keep coming back here.
“Porsche would have stuck with a transaxle (combined transmission and differential in one unit, remember) design for the rear, since they’re used to making those, only this time there’s a driveshaft involved” – As in exactly how the 924 / 928 / 944 are laid out.
Somehow, I actually like that Mustang? Not sure why exactly
It has definite late 70s V8 Vantage vibes with the blanked out grille
Had never seen the older vantage before but oh my god that looks like a mustang
Finally, the solution to the problem plaguing 911 owners all these years–how to haul a lawnmower! Ruf needs to get on this immediately.
The “Porsche” works quite well. Sort of a retro BRZ/86, and of course the front engine/rear transaxle has future Porsche heritage in the 944. I’d call it surprisingly plausible.
The “Ford” is not bad from the back, but I think just blanking off the grill doesn’t really work. And having the gas tank way up in the nose like that would do weird things to the handling.
I was thinking much the same thing. I think the tunnel could be used for the gas tank and it would be safer in a crash, not that Mustangs ever crash.
B is for Butchery…er…B is for build on the youtubes is doing a mid/rear-engine ’67 or ’68 Mustang. Basically a Mustang body on a kit car.
Its far from finished (and wtf is up w/that firewall…) and I’m not exactly a fan of the look they’re going for, but… at least an actual Mustang didn’t sacrifice itself for this like the two S30 Datsuns which died to create the V10/M5 240z SEMA car from a few years ago.
The 911 actually does work, if you ask me. I mean, it’s not exactly a 911 anymore, but it’s a good-looking car in its own right and who doesn’t love a fastback?
The Mustang, I don’t think so. The proportions of that car just look so inherently front-engined that I can’t see it any other way, even after the modifications. You had to replace the grille with a big blanking plate, and put a big grille on the rear of the car… it just doesn’t look like it was supposed to be that way.
The ’60s were all about the drag strip, I imagine having all that weight on the rear tires would improve traction on those bias ply tires. Plus, imagine the frunk storage!
Would have been a great competitor to the Hemi Under Glass Barracuda wheel-stander. Just don’t let Leno drive it:
https://www.motorauthority.com/news/1104695_jay-leno-crashes-in-the-hemi-under-glass
FYI, some rendered a modern Dodge Demon version of Hemi Under Glass:
https://www.dragzine.com/news/throwback-thursday-with-a-twist-demon-dressed-as-hemi-under-glass/
These are both great! That V8 hanging out that far behind the rear axle would certainly make that Mustang a handful.
Basing anything on the Pacer (especially the “refreshed”) is the kiss of death in my book.
Killing it with fire isn’t enough, I say we nuke it from orbit.
Porsche already done:
https://www.autoevolution.com/news/front-engined-porsche-911-looks-brutal-with-a-hemi-in-its-nose-133949.html
With that Mustang you’d never have the I6. As someone with three of them, that makes me sad.
Edit: You’d actually have to look at the Falcon before the Mustang for rear engine, yeah? Or would the Falcon end up morphing into something else?
This would have inevitably led to a Corvair-based Camaro. Maybe a Trans Am with ram air scoops on the roof?
Had you put a transverse inline-4 driving the front wheels of that Porsche, I think we would have been able to hear the purists scream in pain from our desks.
No.