Porsche Straightline Archives

The latest installment in the never-ending story of the sportscar that will never die, the 2010 Porsche 911 Turbo S is exactly what you might expect. It's essentially a slightly higher spec version of the standard 911 Turbo for those buyers who think the "standard" Turbo just isn't enough.

This time around, the 911 Turbo S features a 530-horsepower version of Porsche's 3.8-liter flat six. Not impressed? Then consider that it also puts out 516 pound-feet of torque and does so without any decrease in mileage, or so says Porsche.

The Turbo S will come with Porsche's PDK dual clutch transmission only which shouldn't be a problem as Porsche says it's good for a 0-60mph sprint of 3.3 seconds so equipped. It also comes standard with carbon ceramic brake discs, so stopping should be much of a problem either. Top speed is 195mph if you're into that sort of thing.

Available in either coupe of convertible bodystyle, the 2010 Porsche 911 Turbo S goes on sale in May. If you have to ask the price, it's not for you.

2010 Geneva Auto Show

Categories: Convertibles,Coupes,Future Vehicles,Geneva Motor Show,Luxury Cars,Porsche,Sports Cars

His Excellency Sheik Jassim Bin Abdulaziz Bin Jassim Al-Thani, or Al to his friends, will be joining the supervisory board of Porsche Holdings SE.

Aged a mere 31 years, the Sheik should bring some exciting new blood to the seat formerly occupied by some guy name Porsche.

WSJ

Categories: Auto Industry,Porsche,Sports Cars

It's winter testing time and the 2011 Porsche 911 hasn't taken any time off lately. Our shooters caught this prototype cruising through some heavy snow still wearing much of its typical camouflage.

The only changes we can see on this test mule compared to previous prototypes are a few tweaks to the front air inlets and foglights. The pseudo-whale tail rear end continues to hide the styling changes in back, although you can see the bright LED taillights shining through.

Spy Video: 2011 Porsche 911 On the Nurburgring
  

Categories: Coupes,Future Vehicles,Porsche,Sports Cars,Spy Photos

It's well known that Porsche is working on a four-cylinder Porsche Boxster. Our spy shooters caught a turbo-four prototype testing on the Nurburgring this past October. We've speculated Porsche might be sourcing the engine from Volkswagen, possibly adopting the 265-horse version of the 2.0T powerplant used in Audi's TTS.

But a report on Autocar today suggests Porsche might go even smaller than that.

Smaller, as in a three-cylinder turbo.

"A Boxster with a four-cylinder engine, or maybe even a three-cylinder turbo, could produce between 180 and 200 horsepower and emit just 180 grams/kilometer of CO2," Hans-Jurgen Wohler, Boxster model line manager, said in an interview with the British magazine. "Given the Boxster's history -- that it started with a 200-horsepower, 2.5-liter engine -- I think this is possibly something that customers could accept."

We suspect a three-cylinder turbo Boxster is far, far off, whereas an official announcement on an entry-level four-cylinder turbo Boxster is expected sometime this year. But in a wildly hypothetical world, could you ever see yourself driving around in a three-cylinder Porsche Boxster?

Autocar via Green Car Advisor

Inside Line: 2011 Porsche Boxster Turbo Exclusive Spy Video and Photos

Categories: Convertibles,Future Vehicles,Green Tech,Porsche

Many adjective-rich stories have been written about the glorious sounds of a V10 engine. But some people just don't get it. And some of those people have the audacity to dine and walk in Beverly Hills where this Porsche Carrera GT makes its home.

Car Chat

Categories: Porsche,Sports Cars

Porsche has announced that its Nurburgring expert, Walter Rohrl, will contest the 2010 Nurburgring 24 Hours in a stock 2010 911 GT3 RS.

Rohrl, a famous rally driver in his former life, has tested every production Porsche on the Nordschleife since 1993, recently setting an unofficial lap record for sedans in the Panamera Turbo. So we doubt he'll care much that he'll be driving his 911 in a pack of full-on racecars.

Of course, he says as much in Porsche's press release: "Right from the word go, the new 911 GT3 RS reminded me of a race vehicle. No other road-going 911 has ever been as close to a racecar as this current GT3 RS. That's why I'm thrilled to be able to prove that this sports car is up to the challenge of the 24 hour race."

There's a video of Rohrl driving a 2007 911 GT3 on the 'Ring in the rain after the jump.

Continue reading Walter Rohrl to Drive Stock Porsche 911 GT3 RS in Nurburgring 24 Hours.

Categories: Motorsports,Porsche,Sports Cars

Inside Line tests hundreds of vehicles a year, but not every vehicle gets a full write-up. The numbers still tell a story, though, so we present "IL Track Tested." It's a quick rundown of all the data we collected at the track, along with comments direct from the test drivers. Enjoy.

We say it's official: The 2010 Porsche Panamera is the new badass of the executive sedan class. It accelerates and handles like no other four-door anything in existence, and we'd love to own one. To be sure, the rear-drive Panamera S and all-wheel-drive 4S are the sensible, maybe-I-could-afford-it-one-day-on-the-used-market options, but all the mystique surrounds the 500-horsepower 2010 Porsche Panamera Turbo.

We recently tested a Panamera Turbo. It costs $146,720, and you can see a breakdown of the options on our test car on the window sticker to the right. Just for fun, we've decided to compare it side by side with the last Mercedes-Benz S65 AMG we tested. That was all the way back in 2007, but aside from a face-lift for 2010, the king of the S-Class line hasn't changed a bit since then. The S65 brings 604 hp to the table but some 700 additional pounds as well.

Although the Porsche pulls away in a straight line, you'll be surprised by how well the big, expensive Benz keeps up in braking and handling tests.

Disclaimer: We've revised our acceleration testing protocol and correction factor since 2007, so this is not intended to be a hard-and-fast comparison between the two sedans.

Continue reading IL Track Tested: 2010 Porsche Panamera Turbo vs. Mercedes-Benz S65 AMG.

Categories: IL Track Tested,Luxury Cars,Mercedes-Benz,Porsche,Sedans

Every year Porsche gives the "Porsche Cup" award to a non-factory driver who has the greatest success racing privately-entered Porsches. Essentially, it's a thank-you-for-spending-money-with-us award, though anyone who gets to this level most assuredly has some skill. This year the 'Cup goes to Dirk Werner, and we're sure he'll take just as much satisfaction in the 911 GT3 road car that goes with it.

Over the course of 2009, Werner helped drive a 911 GT3 Cup to a class win the Grand Am Series; drove with Wolf Henzler, a Porsche factory driver, to 3rd place in a 911 GT3 RSR at the Petit Le Mans; and was part of Manthey Racing's 3rd-place 911 GT3 Cup S team (separate from the GT3 RSR team) at the Nurburgring 24 Hours.

Dr. Wolfgang Porsche (left) presented the award to Werner (center) at a "Night of Champions" celebration at the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart. Hartmut Kristen, the company's head of motorsports, is on the right.

Continue reading Porsche Gives Trophy, 911 GT3 to Top Privateer Driver.

Categories: Motorsports,Porsche

The first commercial for the 2010 Porsche Panamera, "Family Tree," emphasized all the wonderfully fun-to-drive cars that preceded the Panamera. This new promotional video, which is more of a slideshow, follows suit. It's just a chance to look at classic Porsches -- and to ruminate on the fact that the Panamera really does translate that heritage into a front-engine, V8-powered application more effectively than anyone thought possible.

And if you're really that much of a purist, you could always take advantage of the 1.9-percent financing the tough economy has forced Porsche to put on the 911 this month.

Full Test: 2010 Porsche Panamera

2010 Inside Line Editors' Most Wanted Awards

Categories: Luxury Cars,Porsche,Sedans

It's hard to believe, but the current Porsche Cayenne is entering its seventh year of production. Prototypes for Porsche's second-generation Cayenne have been seen countless times, but never with such minimal disguise as in these photos taken this week in Germany. Nearly every design nuance is visible on this nearly showroom-ready prototype. 

Only minor bits of tape covers the headlights, taillights, and frontal LED strips. Although this Cayenne will probably still offend Porsche purists, company designers appear to have addressed some of the first-gen Cayenne's more ungainly attributes.

While we don't have any specifics on the new Cayenne's dimensions, to the naked eye, the new model looks more compact and rakish than the current model. We can only hope these impressions translate into less curb weight when the SUV eventually goes into production.

Second photo after the jump.

Continue reading Spy Photos: Next-Generation Porsche Cayenne.

Categories: Porsche,SUVs,Spy Photos

No idea why Porsche chose the drum solo theme for this reveal. Car looked good, though.

-- Ed Hellwig, Lead Senior Editor, Inside Line

Categories: Convertibles,LA Auto Show,Porsche,Sports Cars

Porsche used its press conference at today's L.A. auto show to announce the upcoming 2010 Boxster Spyder along with a short speech on its rising fortunes. Yes, Porsche had a bad 2009 just like everyone else, but the executives on hand all predicted a better 2010.

They have good reason to expect better numbers next year, as several new models will join the lineup. The 911 Turbo arrives in January while the Boxster Spyder follows it this spring. Porsche also claimed that the mysterious Cayenne Hybrid would finally hit the market next year. Pretty sure they said that at last year's L.A. auto show. And the year before that. 

-- Ed Hellwig, Lead Senior Editor, Inside Line

IL News: 2010 Porsche Boxster Spyder

Continue reading 2010 Porsche Boxster Spyder Unveiled at the 2009 L.A. Auto Show.

Categories: Convertibles,LA Auto Show,Luxury Cars,Porsche,Sports Cars

Today Inside Line published the 2010 edition of our annual Editors' Most Wanted Awards. Unlike many of the other automotive awards bestowed on the latest models, ours are based solely on the cars we want to drive.

The voting process is simple: 11 editors in one room, no ad executives allowed. After two hours, we have our winners. If we wanted, all the awards could go to supercars. Of course, that's not exactly how we'd like it to come out, either, so in an effort to keep it real, we attempt to choose a vehicle for each of the following needs: speed, luxury, hauling, commuting and family.

Check the results and tell us what you think.

2010 Edmunds' Inside Line Editors' Most Wanted Awards

Categories: Audi,Auto Industry,Ford,Mazda,Porsche

How would a 1973 Porsche 911 2.7 RS Touring feel on the track today? Gordon Robertson, an instructor at Porsche's driving academy, gives you a taste of this classic 911 as he laps Silverstone. It's a promotional video for the Porsche Driving Experience, of course, but the footage of the car is lovely just the same.

Categories: Porsche,Sports Cars

Curious whether the new 2010 Honda Accord has an optional neck massager? How about the tow rating on the Ford F-150? And what about those European cars, they're always adding some new totally nonessential technological "feature."

Now there's an easy way to find out. Our 2010 Buyer's Guide lists every model change from every manufacturer. From colors to options to full redesigns, it's all there.

2010 Buyer's Guide 

Categories: Acura,Aston Martin,Audi,BMW,Bentley,Bugatti,Buick,Cadillac,Chevrolet,Chrysler,Dodge,Ferrari,Fiat,Ford,GMC,General Motors,HUMMER,Honda,Hyundai,Infiniti,Jaguar,Jeep,Kia,Lamborghini,Land Rover,Lexus,Lincoln,Lotus,MINI,Maserati,Maybach,Mazda,Mercedes-Benz,Mercury,Mitsubishi,Nissan,Pontiac,Porsche,Rolls-Royce,SMART,Saab,Saturn,Scion,Subaru,Suzuki,Tesla Motors,Toyota,Volkswagen,Volvo