Gullwinged Porsche Living Legend Design Registered—Is Production Next?

 The official move doesn’t necessarily mean the 2016 concept will be sold … but what if it does?

You know what would make the Porsche 718 Cayman a lot better? Gullwing doors and a V-8 engine, that's what. That's the promise of the Porsche Le Mans Living Legend concept, inspired by the company's 1953 Le Mans racer. A new filing at the European intellectual property registration office, uncovered at the TaycanEVForum, reveals that years after its 2016 creation, Porsche has finally registered the design. Could that mean a production model is incoming?

Unfortunately, it's not clear that a "registered community design" filing—essentially, a process that gives the company protection to sell or market the design without being copied, like a patent—means the company is going to do anything with it. Remember, this was one of the "secret" Porsche design concepts, never revealed to the outside world even though it was created in 2016. Just a few months ago, Porsche threw open this vault of projects. So, the move could be simply be Porsche protecting the design now that the car has seen the light of day.

Whatever the reason, Porsche isn't keen to explain any further. A representative told us, "As a matter of policy, we can't comment on or participate in speculation about potential future product. Thanks for your understanding. "

Fair, but we had to ask. It's not clear there's a place in the lineup for a V-8-powered, Cayman-based sports car with exotic doors, and surely such a model would threaten the 911's king-of-performance, top-rung position. And there's no indication the Le Mans Living Legend's design has been altered to accommodate, say, an EV or hybrid powertrain.

It's possible some wealthy benefactor saw the concept and asked Porsche to produce it in some limited amount—many automakers do such bespoke commissions, but Porsche hasn't. That said, the company has produced limited-run creations such as the retro-designed recent Porsche 935.

Judging by reader response to our coverage of Porsche's secret concepts, the one that really deserves to be built is the 904 Living Legend, a bantamweight sports car propelled by a powerful Ducati-derived engine and wrapped in styling that channels a bit of 918 Spyder and even Taycan. With lovely proportions and a back-to-basics mission, it also would have a more natural place in the lineup below the 718 twins. If the Le Mans Living Legend doesn't come to fruition, maybe the 904 will?