2011 Porsche Turbo S Cabriolet, One Owner, Florida Car, Certified, 4750 Miles on 2040-cars

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2015 Porsche Panamera S First Drive

Porsche brought the Panamera in for its garage makeover and drove it out looking almost exactly the same. Turns out it was one of those fancy German refreshes where everything happens in places you can't immediately see, as we found recently on the 2015 Volkswagen Jetta TDI. The marquee revision across the lineup is under the hood, where every engine gets, at the very least, more power. Such is the case for the naturally aspirated V6 in the entry models, fitted with an increase of 10 horsepower for a total of 310. The same goes for the naturally-aspirated 4.8-liter V8, which lives only in the Panamera GTS now, and gets 10 more hp for a total of 430. That same V8, twin-turbocharged in the Turbo model, is graced with 20 more ponies for 520 hp. The mightiest marquee revision is saved for the S models, which surrender their use of the 4.8-liter V8 and get a 3.0-liter, all-aluminum, twin-turbocharged V6 in its place. It's a brand-new engine designed in-house and related to the 3.6-liter V6 in the base models, but with new features like a magnesium timing chain cover, variable camshaft timing for the intake and the exhaust valves, and a new fuel- injection system. Putting out 420 hp and 384 pound-feet of torque, it's got 20 more hp and 15 more lb-ft than the V8 it replaces. What's more, torque used to peak from 3,500 to 5,000 rpm, but the new torque curve maintains maximum twist from 1,750 to 5,000 rpm. It is less thirsty as well, posting an estimated fuel economy of 17/27 miles per gallon city/highway, besting the 16/24 city/highway of before. An improved stop-start mechanism contributes to this, as it cuts the engine earlier, and the coasting function benefits from a new disc clutch that can decouple the seven-speed PDK dual-clutch transmission from the driveline. As we wrote in our Panamera S E-Hybrid review, you'd need to be obsessed with the Panamera to notice the sheet metal changes around that engine. It's the perfect car to ask, oh so coyly, "Notice anything different about me?" while you stand there dumbfounded, silently thinking, "No." Here is your cheat sheet: the front and back ends are "tighter," meaning faintly more squared off, the front intakes are larger, the tailgate gets wider rear glass over the same-sized opening, the rear spoiler is wider, and the rear license plate bracket has been mounted lower. But even now that you know what the changes are, odds are still 200-to-1 against you actually noticing.

Porsche 960 could come with quad-turbo flat-eight engine

Getting a bead on the target that is the so-called Porsche 960 is not easy, as the target keeps moving. First labeled the 960, then the 961, and now back to being called the 960, it is Porsche's take on a supercar specifically aimed at Ferrari - the latest report in Automobile says that Porsche's internal moniker for it is "FeFi," which stands for "Ferrari Fighter." Because it is expected to cost as much as the top-tier V12 Ferrari, Porsche wants the engine solution to justify the price tag. That means, according to author Georg Kacher, a 3.9-liter, quad-turbo flat-eight engine with 650 horsepower.
Last summer, the engine was mooted to be a twin-turbo flat six. A few months later, the rumor was that it would use the 4.6-liter V8 from the 918 and have about 570 horsepower. This new mid-engine configuration would be quite the leap, giving the 960 more power than the 918 Spyder (pictured) and 911 GT2 RS, and utilize other tech features like four adjustable camshafts and "a complex multistage intake manifold." In this scenario, power would be run through a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission and all-wheel drive.
Build materials are still slated to be a hodgepodge of materials including aluminum, steel, carbon fiber, titanium and magnesium. The boosted flat-eight, all-wheel drive and a 3,000-pound weight could get the 960 from zero to 60 miles per hour in just 2.5 seconds. Since it is looking squarely at Ferrari, the idea that the 960 will be a "four-door coupe" can probably be put to rest. For now.

Here's the stunning Porsche Vision GT car we can't have

By now you've seen plenty of the Vision Gran Turismo cars featured in Gran Turismo 6. These are radical designs from real car designers at major automakers – some exist purely digitally for gameplay, while others have been rendered as show cars as well. Participating companies range from Hyundai to Aston Martin, but one notable exception is Porsche. All of Porsche's cars have been absent from Gran Turismo ever since the first game due to licensing issues, some of which have also plagued other game developers. However, a small, independent team of designers decided that wouldn't stop them from coming up with their own concept of a Porsche concept for the game. The team consisted of six people from around the globe – five automotive designers and one expert photo retoucher. They say their inspiration was the 1969 Porsche 908 LH race car, and this 908-04 certainly shares the classic racer's lengthy tail. The design also borrows from some current Porsche designs, including the 918 Spyder, the 919 Hybrid racecar, and the Mission E electric concept that has been greenlit for production. Creating a raw, visceral, simple machine seems to be the goal of their design, as they say it is "a purely manual car" and that they want it to "give you goose bumps just by imagining yourself driving it." It's not meant to be a fantastical concept either, as the designers state they aimed to make it so someone could realistically fit inside and drive. Which is more than can be said for the laser-propelled Chevrolet Chaparral 2X Vision Gran Turismo. We'll only be able to imagine ourselves driving it, though, as this is not an official concept from Porsche. And even if it was, it's highly unlikely Polyphony Digital would go through the necessary hoops to get Porsche in the game. Instead, we can just drool. To see more of this stylish hypothetical Porsche and read more of the backstory, check out the designers' website at www.porschevisiongt.com. Related Video: Featured Gallery Porsche 908-04 Concept View 11 Photos Image Credit: PorscheVisionGT.com Auto News Porsche Gran Turismo polyphony digital vision gran turismo race car