1989 Porsche 911 Speedster Convertible 2-door 3.2l on 2040-cars

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Vintage 911 sacrificed in the name of fashion

People routinely suffer in the name of looking good, whether through a pair of uncomfortable, stylish shoes or a nice shirt that doesn't breathe in the summer heat. Rarely is a vintage sports car the recipient of this sartorial pain, though. In a bizarre, short video from the fashion label Rag & Bone, an old Porsche 911 is the one taking all of the damage in the name of being chic. And it's really painful to watch. Give this video a few seconds to get going because it starts very weird (fashion!). Black smoke billows up through a hole in a harshly lit white room, and a woman keeps switching outfits. If the attempt at being artsy isn't painful enough, things get really traumatic for Porsche fans once the 911 appears on screen. Seeing a classic car get destroyed hasn't been this harrowing since the government publicly destroyed an illegally imported, classic Mini last winter. Thankfully, this 911 was reportedly just a shell, according to Jalopnik. Although even if that's the case, the body looks to be in great shape, and from the tiny glimpse through the windows, the interior even looks largely intact. This coupe might have been a pretty good restoration candidate if not for the massive hunk of concrete crashing through the roof to make a fashion video.

The Volkswagen Group switches official language to English

The Volkswagen Group can't be fairly thought of as entirely German anymore, so the news that the company is switching its official language to English to help attract managers and executives is a rational, if surprising, decision. While many VW Group companies are still staidly German in character and culture, consider the other companies that it controls: Bentley (British), Bugatti (French), Ducati and Lamborghini (Italian), Skoda (Czech), Scania trucks (Swedish), and SEAT (Spanish). Not to mention the large Volkswagen Group of America operation, which constructs cars in Chattanooga, TN. Volkswagen's explicit motivation is to improve management recruitment – making sure the company isn't losing out on candidates for important positions because they can't speak German – and that's inherently sensible in a globalized economy. Particularly considering, like it or lump it, that English is the lingua franca of said global economy. It also should make it inherently easier to communicate between its world-wide subsidiaries and coordinate operations. It's hard to say for sure if this will have any impact on the consumer, although it's easy to see the benefits if, say, VW Group hires some American product planners or engineers and they push for features and designs that more closely suit American needs. After all, the US is a hugely important market for any manufacturer, and so the switch to English almost certainly has something to do with the outsized influence of the US in the global economy. And there doesn't seem to be a downside from a purely rational perspective, although it could mean that the Group's corporate culture becomes less German. Whether that's a good or a bad thing depends on your perspective. Related Video: Image Credit: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg via Getty Images Plants/Manufacturing Audi Bentley Bugatti Porsche Volkswagen SEAT Skoda

Porsche 911 GTS Targa spied at the 'Ring | Autoblog Minute

Spy shots of a lightly camouflaged 911 GTS Targa at the Nurburgring have us musing about what we might get from this upcoming Porsche. Eddie Sabatini reports on this edition of Autoblog Minute. Show full video transcript text [00:00:00] Spy shots of a lightly camouflaged 911 GTS Targa have us musing about what we might get from this upcoming Porsche. The photos were grabbed at the Nurburgring and show a different exhaust system than is on the current car. Like the updated 991 Carrera and Carrera S, this GTS will get a 3-liter turbocharged engine in place of the current 3.8-liter naturally aspirated six-cylinder. And we expect it will make more than the 430 horsepower of the pre-facelift GTS engine. The shots also show off center-locking wheels, [00:00:30] which are likely to make production, and a blacked-out Targa roof bar. We'll have to wait and see if the dark roof bar is camo or an actual production option. The GTS should again be available with two or four-wheel drive and in coupe, convertible, and Targa body styles. For Autoblog I'm Eddie Sabatini. Autoblog Minute is a short-form video news series reporting on all things automotive. Each segment offers a quick and clear picture of what's happening in the automotive industry from the perspective of Autoblog's expert editorial staff, auto executives, and industry professionals. Image Credit: CarPix Spy Photos Porsche Autoblog Minute Videos Original Video porsche 911 gts