Porsche may be bringing back the Targa style roof in the next few years for the next Porsche 911, according to sources at the German automaker. We last saw the Targa roof in 1996 when the lift-off roof panel was replaced with a sliding glass panel. The word on the street is that the current sliding-glass assembly on the 911 has become simply too expensive and too heavy, leading to a possible return to the original roof panel.

The Targa top was originally introduced by Porsche in 1966 due to fear of an impending government ban on convertibles. Citing 'safety concerns,' Porsche went in the direction of removable panels on the hood. Even after the fears of government interference abated, the panels stayed and became an integral part of the Porsche 911 lineup. We should get a glimpse of the next-gen Porsche 911 models this September, so we will hopefully know by then. There is an open chance in the next few years we could see the return of this open-top classic. Photos courtesy of Teamspeed.