Marc Philipp Gemballa Marsien debuts – off-road ready supercar based on 992 Porsche 911 Turbo S, 40 units

Remember the famous tuning firm Gemballa? Well, the son of the late Uwe Gemballa, Marc Philipp Gemballa has just unveiled his first project vehicle, the Marsien. The new company is named after himself and is in no way affiliated with Gemballa GmbH. Prior to setting up his company, the 27-year-old had previously worked for Aston Martin, Mercedes-Benz, and of course, Porsche.

If you recognise the vehicle above, that’s because the Marsien is actually a converted 992 Porsche 911 Turbo S, and its design (penned by Porsche enthusiast Alan Derosier) is heavily inspired by the Paris Dakar rally-winning Porsche 959. It’s also off-road capable, but we’ll get to that in a bit. As for the name, well, it’s derived from the French word ‘Martian’ or ‘from Mars’.

The car sports a full carbon-fibre body that’s manufactured by an industry leading supplier based in Germany, complete with upgrades such as a completely bespoke LED light strip at the back, exposed carbon parts at the front, new side mirrors, and bespoke paint options. Customers can also choose to have a fully exposed carbon-fibre body if they so fancy.

There are two sets of staggered wheels on offer. The first is an on-road set, featuring 20-inch hoops up front and 21-inch units at the back. These are wrapped with Michelin UHP rubbers as standard. The off-road wheels are one inch smaller in diameter (19- and 20-inch wheels), and are wrapped with all-terrain tyres. Both wheels feature a centre locking design.

Inside, the conversion comes with a full leather or Alcantara interior, replete with a bespoke Carrera GT-inspired carbon-fibre centre console. There’s also GT style door lashes, carbon-fibre side sills and interior trimmings, a serialised plaque denoting its build number, and a special fire extinguisher.

For the powertrain, the company turned to legendary Porsche tuners, RUF Automobile. The 3.8 litre flat-six engine in the Turbo S has been uprated to produce 750 PS and 930 Nm of torque, which is an increase of 100 PS and 130 Nm from the factory tune. Customers wanting more power can opt for the 830 PS version as well, courtesy of larger VTG turbochargers and a remapped ECU.

Other upgrades include uprated transmission components, extended driveshafts with reinforced joints from the Cayenne, custom intake ducts, Akrapovic titanium exhaust system, and a bespoke suspension system developed by KW Automotive.

The Marsien sits on new double wishbone front suspension with solid piston dampers, and the suspension is adaptive and height adjustable. At the highest setting, the car boasts a ground clearance of 250 mm, maximising its off-road capabilities. The compression and rebound forces have been recalibrated as well, and there are new drive off-road drive modes – gravel, mud, sand and snow. A solid aluminium
underbody protects the underside of the vehicle from being damaged.

If for some reason these aren’t enough, then you can purchase the off-road package with rally-spec Reiger suspension, off-road dampers and a fixed ride height for off-roading. Only 40 units of the Marsien will be made, so if you happen to own a 992 Porsche 911 Turbo S and desperately want this conversion, prepare to fork out at least 495,000 euros (RM2.45 million).