2007 Porsche 911s on 2040-cars

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Automakers want to stop the EPA's fuel economy rules change, and why that's a shortsighted move

With a Trump Administration looming, the EPA moved quickly after the election to propose finalizing future fuel economy rules last week. The auto industry doesn't like that (surprise), and has started making moves to stop the EPA. Ford CEO Mark Fields said he wanted to lobby Trump to lower the standards, and now the Auto Alliance, a manufacturer group, is saying it will join the fight against cleaner cars. The Alliance represents 12 automakers: BMW, Fiat Chrysler, Ford, GM, Jaguar Land Rover, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi, Porsche, Toyota, VW, and Volvo. Gloria Bergquist, a spokesperson for the Alliance, told Automotive News that the "EPA's sudden and controversial move to propose auto regulations eight months early - even after Congress warned agencies about taking such steps while political appointees were packing their bags - calls out for congressional action to pause this rulemaking until a thoughtful policy review can occur." The EPA was going to consider public comments through April 2017, but then said it would move the deadline to the end of December. That means that it can finalize the rules before President Obama leaves office. The director of public affairs for the Consumer Federation of America, Jack Gillis, said on a conference call with reporters last week when the EPA originally announced its decision that it is unlikely that President Trump will be able to roll back these changes. Gillis also said on the same call that any attempt by the automakers to prevent these changes would be history repeating itself. "These are the same companies that fought airbags, and now promoting the fact that every car has multiple airbags," he said. "These are the same companies that fought the crash-test program, and now are promoting the crash-test ratings published by the government. So, it's clear that they're misperceiving the needs of the American consumer." There are more reasons the Allliance's pushback is flawed. Carol Lee Rawn, the transportation program director for Ceres, said on that call that the automotive industry is a global one, and many automakers are moving to global platforms to help them meet strict fuel economy rules around the world.

Porsche reportedly working on new turbocharged flat-four boxer engine?

These days, we've seen just about every automaker dropping cylinders in an effort to appease tightening fuel economy and emission standards - and Porsche is no exception. Nearly three years after introducing an all-new V6 powerplant under the front hood of its Panamera sedan (launched with a range of V8 engines) comes word that Porsche is working on an all-new turbocharged flat-four boxer to replace the flat-six engines mid-mounted in its Cayman and Boxster models.
Specifics have yet to be learned, but reports say the engine is a derivative of the current 3.8-liter six (shown above) found under the rear decklid of the Carrera S, yet with two fewer cylinders. Fitted with a turbocharger, direct-injection and the automaker's VarioCam Plus, the new all-aluminum 2.5-liter flat-four will likely develop upwards of 350 horsepower and 360 pound-feet of torque. Redline should be about 7,500 rpm. Initial indications say that Porsche will only offer the new engine with its seven-speed PDK dual-clutch automatic, tuned to take advantage of the low-end torque, but a traditional six-speed manual gearbox has not been ruled out. Despite the loss of two cylinders, enthusiasts will likely embrace the new engine as it promises to be lighter, more fuel efficient and more powerful than the 2.7-liter and 3.4-liter sixes in the Cayman/Boxster today.
Even though Porsche has been using Volkswagen Group engines for years (e.g., Cayenne V6, Cayenne Diesel and upcoming Macan), all indications are that the new flat-four will not be shared. Instead, it will be kept in-house for the automaker's sports cars and possible future fitment in an entry-level 911.

Porsche Cayman GT4 spotted at the N?rburgring

It was just the other day that we first caught wind of Porsche's plans to build a GT4 version of the Cayman, and now we're already looking at spy shots of the vehicle in question undergoing testing at - where else? - the Nürburgring.
With more aggressive front-end aero, a GT3-style air vent ahead of the front hood, a large wing at the back, and spindly alloys packed with over-sized brakes at each corner, this Cayman is clearly more extreme than even the range-topping GTS. The rear diffuser and central exhaust tips look about the same as those you'd find at the back of the Cayman GTS, though.
What we can't see, of course, is what Porsche has slotted in under the rear glass, how it's upgraded the interior and how much weight it's stripped out of the thing to get it down to fighting weight, but you can bet it'll come with a substantial power bump and a stripped-out interior with racing buckets and little else to open the gap between it and the GTS... and close the gap to the 911 GT3 which it will join as the baby brother in Porsche's performance-focused lineup. Click above to view the double-batch of spy shots.