Porsche 911 996 Cabriolet on 2040-cars

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Porsche prioritizes 200,000-unit sales target over exclusivity [w/poll]

Would a Porsche still be a Porsche if it weren't as exclusive? That's the question which industry pundits are asking - and customers may soon as well - as the German automaker emerges from the fringe in pursuit of larger volumes.
A dozen years ago Porsche was barely selling over 50,000 units per annum. In a sales surge that has gathered pace as fast as a 911 Turbo, however, it was already hovering around the 100,000-unit mark a few years later. Last year it sold over 160,000, and has targeted 200,000 units by 2018. But it may not even take that long.
Automotive News reports that Porsche has advanced its targets to reach for 200,000 units by the end of this year or the next. The bump in sales would be driven particularly by the introduction of the new Macan, of which it aims to sell 50,000 units annually, starting next year. The Cayenne currently stands far and away as its most successful model. The 911 and Panamera have swapped second place a few times over the past five years, followed by the Boxster and Cayman.

Porsche 911 GT3 RS looks wicked, this way comes

Those who didn't think Porsche went extreme enough with the latest 911 GT3 likely won't be disappointed when the more focused GT3 RS arrives. And as you can see from these latest spy shots, it looks like it's speeding right around the corner. Tipped to debut at the Geneva Motor Show this coming March, the new Porsche 911 GT3 RS is shaping up to be an enthusiast's dream - and with the prospect of a GT2 in doubt, could be the most hardcore Elfen in the range. Instead of the 3.8-liter flat-six in the current GT3, the new RS will pick up where the previous limited-edition GT3 RS 4.0 left off, with four naturally aspirated liters of unadulterated boxer power channeling a good 520 horses to the rear wheels. That will be a significant increase over the existing 475-hp GT3 and will match the 911 Turbo for output (if not the 560-hp Turbo S) and without any turbo lag to slow down the action, either. Whether it will keep the GT3's dual-clutch gearbox and four-wheel steering system, or ditch one or both for a more analog approach, remains to be seen, but we're holding out hope. Either way, the modifications to the bodywork ought to make the GT3 RS stand out even further and stay glued to the race track it will call home. Notice the deep front splitter scooping up snowflakes like a shovel, a massive rear wing (which may or may not be the final production version), the Turbo-spec rear end with air intakes ahead of the rear wheels, and a set of awesome-looking gills over the front wheels – all of which you can scope out in the gallery full of spy shots above.

Our love of SUVs is killing people in the streets

Americans are fond of supersized fast-food meals and colossal convenience-store fountain drinks, even though they're clearly bad for our health and U.S. adults keep getting fatter. We also like large vehicles, and our love affair with SUVs is killing people in the streets. According to a recent investigation by the Detroit Free Press/USA Today, the increase in SUV sales over the past several years coincides with a sharp rise in pedestrian deaths in the U.S. — up 46 percent since 2009, with nearly 6,000 people killed in 2016 alone. With SUV sales surpassing sedans in 2014 and pickups and SUVs currently accounting for 60 percent of new vehicle sales, it's no wonder Ford announced in April plans to cease U.S. sales of almost all passenger cars. And this followed Fiat Chrysler's move to virtually an all-truck, -SUV and -crossover lineup. While the Freep/USA Today investigation found that the simultaneous surge in SUV sales and pedestrian deaths comes down to vehicle size, it also points to a lack of action on the part of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), even though it knew of the dangers SUVs pose to pedestrians. Also blamed are automakers dragging their feet on implementing active safety features. Using federal accident data, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) determined that there was an 81 percent increase in single-vehicle pedestrian fatalities involving SUVs between 2009 and 2016. Freep/USA Today's analysis of the same data by counting vehicles that struck and killed pedestrians instead of the number of people killed showed a 69 percent increase in SUV involvement. As far back as 2001, researchers at Rowan University forecasted a rise in pedestrian deaths as Americans began switching to SUVs. "In the United States, passenger vehicles are shifting from a fleet populated primarily by cars to a fleet dominated by light trucks and vans," the researchers wrote, with light trucks comprising SUVs.