2008 Porsche 911 on 2040-cars

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Porsche 911 GT2 RS vs. Mercedes SLS AMG Black in battle of who can shred more rubber

We might be looking at the end of an era in European performance models. Mercedes-Benz is doing away with the SLS in favor of a rumored smaller and cheaper SLC, and Porsche has said that a new 911 GT2 isn't necessarily a sure thing, which means another 911 GT2 RS is even farther away. In its latest video, Evo's Jethro Bovingdon pits the ultimate versions of these German sports coupes against each other and finds two of the fastest cars the magazine has ever lapped around its track.
In one corner, there is the Mercedes SLS AMG Black Series that sits as the pinnacle of the company's halo model. It relies on the classic setup of a V8 mounted in front powering the rear wheels. On the other side, there is the 911 GT2 RS with a turbocharged flat-six mounted at the back, spinning the rear wheels. It was conceived to be Porsche's ultimate expression of a turbocharged 911, and while it's a few years old, Bovingdon shows that it's up to the task of racing a more modern rival.
Both of these rear-wheel-drive monsters are more than capable of some fantastically smoky power-slides, but they also show how great the last generation of sports cars was. Scroll down to check out the video.

Volkswagen taps Porsche chief for board

Matthias Mueller was promoted to the top position at Porsche in 2010 after a successful stint of developing model lines during his 36 years with the company, mainly at Audi. Having shown the same prowess while overseeing Porsche for the past five years, German outlet Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports that Mueller will be promoted to the management board of the Volkswagen Group, according to a leaked copy of an agenda for the meeting. It's said that a new spot is being created for him, one that will put him in charge of "overseeing cooperation" among Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, and Porsche. While other group executives are known to hold positions on the board and with brands, or across brands, it isn't clear yet whether Mueller will keep his spot at the CEO of Porsche after the promotion. One thing that is certain is the 61-year-old Mueller doesn't see himself in line for Volkswagen Group CEO Martin Winterkorn's job in 2016, having told FAZ this month, "It's no solution to put a 63-year-old at the head of Volkswagen." News Source: Reuters, Automotive News - sub. req.Image Credit: Geoff Robins/AFP/Getty Images Hirings/Firings/Layoffs Porsche Volkswagen Performance volkswagen group matthias mueller promotion

Ford GT dominates Le Mans qualifying, gets slapped with performance adjustment

Fifty years after Bruce McLaren and Chris Amon drove the Ford GT40 to victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Ford is poised for a historic return to the Circuit de la Sarthe. The new Ford GT took the top two qualifying positions in the LMGTE Pro class, and four of the top five. Ferrari's 488 filled in the rest of the spots in the top seven, the first two from AF Corse. In other words, we're primed for a reboot of the classic Ford-Ferrari feud at this year's race. Or not, as the ACO, which organizes the 24 Hours of Le Mans, announced sweeping pre-race Balance of Performance (BOP) adjustments this morning that make this year's GT class anybody's race. In LMP1, last year's overall winner Porsche locked up the top two spots with the 919 Hybrid and will lead the entire field at race start. Toyota's two-car factory effort followed with qualifying times 1.004 and 2.170 seconds behind the pole lap. Audi rounds out the manufacturer-backed LMP1 class in fifth and sixth. Full qualifying results can be found here. The storyline for the GT cars is perfect - some say too perfect. Ford's class-leading times came after BOP adjustment to the Corvette Racing C7.R before qualifying. BOP is intended to level the playing field in the class by adjusting power, ballast, and fuel capacity. (Check out this explainer video for more, or even just if you love French accents.) But the process is riddled with unknowns and ripe for accusations of sandbagging. That is, if the Ford cars were intentionally slow in practice they could hope for BOP adjustment to improve their race chances. On the Corvette side, last year's GTE Pro winner went from the top of the field to the bottom, barely improving from practice to qualifying. If you think Le Mans is as rigged at the NBA Playoffs, well, it's not that simple. Because if Ford and Ferrari held back until qualifying - the eighth-place Porsche 911 RSR is three-and-a-half seconds off the class pole time - it was a pretty dumb strategy. This morning, the ACO tried to put things back in order by limiting the boost in the Ford GT's twin-turbo V6 and adding 11 pounds of ballast. Ferrari was also given extra weight but allowed more fuel capacity. The Corvette and Aston Martin teams were both given breaks on their air restrictors, which will allow their engines to make more power. Both Ford and Porsche also received extra fuel capacity.