Sports car maker set to become hybrid giant

(Porsche)

Porsche is planning to create a hybrid version of every model it sells, the luxury automaker has confirmed.

In a further signal that sports car manufacturers are getting serious about reducing their emissions, Porsche's Wolfgang Duerheimer told Automotive News that "in the future, we will have a hybrid drive in every model line."

The automaker already produces a hybrid version of the Cayenne, its large SUV, and its new CEO Matthias Muller revealed at the Paris Motor Show that the company has produced a plug-in version of its Panamera sedan.

Its GT Hybrid also took the title for the world's first hybrid GT racing car last month, and a new Panamera that shares the Cayenne's standard hybrid drivetrain is expected to go on sale in 2011.

Like all automakers, Porsche is under pressure to reduce the combined emissions of its luxury line-up, which features powerful but polluting engines.

In July, the company announced that it will develop its own high-performance all-electric sports cars to rival the likes of Tesla, with a release expected within the next four years or so.

Its hybrid announcement will pitch it head to head with Fisker, which unveiled the first production version of the Fisker Karma at the Paris Motor Show.

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