Nearly three years after the current Porsche 911 Carrera debuted at the 2018 LA Auto Show, the 992-generation 911 family is still expanding. Last month saw the debut of the new 911 GT3 Touring aimed at purists and the new hardcore 911 GT3 RS is just around the corner. Looking ahead, Porsche is also preparing to unleash the first-ever 911 hybrid, which has been spied tearing up the Nurburgring. This prototype appears to be an ordinary 911 Turbo, but a closer inspection reveals a round yellow sticker on the rear window used to indicate if a prototype has an electrified powertrain.

Curiously, the rear windows are blacked-out and a section of the side profile above the rear fenders is taped up.

This could be to hide the sensors and battery pack in the rear compartment of this early prototype. Of course, Porsche isn't electrifying the 911 Turbo to save fuel, but to extract even more power. Porsche CEO Oliver Blume promises the hybrid 911 will be "the highest performance 911 of all." For reference, the current Porsche 911 Turbo S generates 640 hp and 590 lb-ft of torque from a 3.8-liter twin-turbo boxer-six, enabling the German sports car to sprint from 0-60 mph in 2.6 seconds, but the electrified version will be even quicker.

Adding electrical assistance could increase the output to around 690 horsepower and 641 lb-ft of torque, matching the output of the Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid. However, there are concerns that the weight of the electric powertrain will ruin the 911's driving dynamics. To overcome this, Porsche will reportedly use a front-mounted battery pack to improve the weight distribution. Also expect to pay a price premium over the regular 911 Turbo S, which already starts at $207,000.

The first-ever hybrid Porsche 911 is expected to debut as part of the upcoming mid-cycle facelift, so it should arrive next year. In the meantime, we should start to see Porsche testing production-ready prototypes based on the new facelift model later this year.