Porsche is known for taking a softly-softly approach to change. Sure, the current 911 is bigger, faster and more comfortable than those before it, but it looks, well, like a 911. That same incremental approach to improving the breed has also applied to the interior.

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But for the next-generation 911, it looks like Porsche will make a big leap forward inside, with a new centre stack in keeping with the Panamera, Cayenne and Macan. Gone is the flat setup in the current car, with air vents sitting above a touchscreen and climate controls, and in its place will be an altogether more modern design. As you can see in these spy shots, the new car will have its air vents at the bottom of the dashboard, topped by five toggle switches. The gear selector is a compact robo-wand, with dedicated buttons for 'park' and 'manual' sitting behind it, while climate control is managed with a trio of toggle switches in front of the air vents. Surrounding the gear selector of this prototype appears to be space for new touch-capacitive buttons, which reduce the number of physical buttons, though are likely to be fingerprint magnets

The test mule snapped here also appears to have heated and ventilated seats, based on the buttons sitting ahead of the cupholder on the transmission tunnel. And sorry America, we can only see one cupholder... Much like the current Panamera, the instrument binnacle is now home to a (mostly) digital display, with two screens flanking an analogue rev counter. In keeping with Porsche tradition, the digi-dials are laid out like four analogue gauges. Some things never change, right? The steering wheel in the 911 test-mule appears to be new, with a fresh button layout compared to the current unit. The spindly metal paddles protruding from behind the wheel spokes don't appear to have changed, however.

Inset at the top of the dashboard is a Porsche Communication Management (PCM) touchscreen, likely a development of the current system. As for the outside? Well, the latest batch of photos doesn't really give all that much away. Beside bulkier front and rear bumpers, along with what appear to be minor modifications around the tail-lights, the test mule looks like any other 991.2-generation 911. When it arrives in 2019, the next-gen 911 is expected to be offered with massaged versions of the current turbocharged flat-six engines. Today's 911 Carrera produces 272kW of power and 450Nm of torque, while the Carrera S offers 300kW of power and 500Nm of torque from the same 3.0-litre six. Although it hasn't been confirmed, rumours suggest Porsche could be preparing a hybrid to join the core range, too.