Kalmar's 9X9 Test Drives in the Ring

Shortly after its debut at the 2024 Monterey Car Week in August, the Kalmar 9X9 supercar was spotted testing on the Nürburgring race track in Germany ahead of its scheduled mid-2025 delivery start date.

Kalmar Automotive is a Danish company specializing in restoration modeling of Porsche 911s, especially the 993 generation. The new 9X9 is the brand's flagship, based on the 993 but influenced by the iconic Porsche 959.

Kalmar is developing three versions of the 9X9: Standard, Sport, and Leichtbau, but it is not clear which version is being tested here. The car in our spy shots appears to be the same car shown at Monterey, but this is not a customer example. Our spy shots reveal that many makeshift elements are still attached to the car, especially in the cabin.

The standard 9X9 is the most comfortable and most powerful. Designed for grand touring, it is powered by a 3.8-liter flat-six turbo that produces 930 hp. It also features a dual-clutch automatic transmission and all-wheel drive.

The Sport is designed to provide a more focused experience and features a turbocharged 3.0-liter flat-six tuned to deliver 650 hp. This version also has all-wheel drive, but skips the dual-clutch automatic and uses a seven-speed manual transmission. The Sport is lighter than the standard 9X9, and its suspension is tuned more for circuit driving than grand touring.

The Leichtbau, German for “lightweight construction,” is an option for purists. It consists simply of a naturally aspirated 4.0-liter flat-six with a maximum output of 530 hp, a six-speed manual, and rear-wheel drive. Airbags are also omitted to save weight. This special version costs only 2,810 pounds, compared to 2,866 pounds for the Sport and about 3,030 pounds for the standard model.

According to Kalmar, despite being the heaviest, the standard 9X9 accelerates the fastest, taking only about 2 seconds to 60 mph from a standstill; the Sport takes 3.7 seconds and the Leichtbau 3.5 seconds. Top speed is limited to 211 mph for all three versions, and Kalmar says that in simulations, Nürburgring lap times of less than 7 minutes are possible.

Each 9X9 will start as a 993-generation 911. The car will be disassembled, fitted with a roll cage (not shown here) and various chassis modifications, including a custom suspension developed by Danisi Engineering of Italy. The brakes are also a custom setup developed by CarboBrake and include 3D printed titanium calipers.

Only nine 9X9s will be built. This is not a large number, but Kalmar only builds a handful of cars each year, and each is built to the individual specifications of the customer, so each Kalmar is truly a one-off design.

Kalmar in the U.S. is represented by Canepa, the company of former racing driver Bruce Canepa, which specializes in the sale, restoration, and customization of Porsche 959s and other cars.