1983 Porsche 944 Silver & Black Original California Car Rust Free Back Yard Find on 2040-cars

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Recharge Wrap-up: Tesla Model X towing drag race, Porsche 918 salvage auction

Watch an Alfa Romeo 4C drag race against a Tesla Model X towing an Alfa Romeo 4C. The ridiculous (or, perhaps more appropriately, ludicrous) race appeared in MotorTrend's Instagram, which was then shared on Facebook by Tesla Motors Autopilot Program Director Sterling Anderson, along with the comment, "Fun fact: many high-performance cars cross the quarter mile line faster when towed by a Model X than they do on their own four wheels." While we can't quite see the actual results of the drag race in the video, it appears to be a close one. Check it out in the video above, and read more from Electrek. A Porsche 918 Spyder has gone up for auction. Unfortunately, it's a salvage auction, and said performance plug-in hybrid is totally mangled. The gut-wrenching photos reveal an even sadder detail, as the car's odometer shows it only logged 92 miles before being involved in what appears to have been a terrible wreck (though the listing describes the miles as "not actual"). The current bid on the Copart auction site is up to $106,000, and the listing shows a $600,000 repair estimate. The very expensive hunk of metal and carbon fiber is located in Long Island. Check out the listing for yourself, or read more at MotorAuthority. GKN Driveline says that German drivers are more interested in plug-in hybrids (especially with all-wheel drive) than conventional hybrid cars. In a poll of more than 1,000 drivers commissioned by GKN, 75 percent preferred PHEVs to standard hybrids, while 61.2 percent said that 50 kilometers (31 miles) of electric range is enough for their daily driving duties. About 81 percent are "wary of hybrids," most believing them to be a poor value. 52 percent said their ideal car would combine a plug and all-wheel drive. "We believe that plug-in hybrids with all-wheel drive make sense," says GKN Automotive President of Engineering Peter Moelgg, "and the public's positive response to vehicle programmes that offer this combination – like the Volvo XC90 T8 Twin Engine, BMW i8, and Porsche 918 Spyder – can only continue to grow." Read more in the press release below. NEW RESEARCH REVEALS GERMAN DRIVERS PREFER PLUG-IN HYBRIDS Lohmar, Germany, 22 March 2016: Drivers now consider plug-in hybrid vehicles to be more attractive and practical than conventional hybrids, a survey commissioned by GKN Driveline has revealed.

Porsche unlocks secrets of its mid-engine 911

Porsche is beginning to realize that it's sitting on a goldmine of automotive history with its secret vault full of rare cars. Autoblog toured it a few months ago, and we were amazed at all of the curiosities hidden inside. Now, it's starting to let more folks in thanks to a new series of YouTube videos. The first covered the 965 prototype that shoved a water-cooled, Audi V8 into one of its cars. Next up, a mid-engine 911 that acted as the powertrain test mule for the Boxster.
The Porsche 911 is inextricably linked to its rear-engine layout. They go together like peanut butter and jelly. However, at the time Porsche was developing the Boxster, the company didn't want to lay all of its cards out of the table during testing. As opposed to using camouflage, it put a whole different car on top. The prototype looked just like any other 911 Targa of the day, but the biggest giveaway that something was amiss was the heavily tinted rear window. By obscuring it, inquisitive journalists couldn't peak at the new engine that replaced the backseat.
It might not look like anything too important on the outside, but this is a major piece of Porsche Boxster history underneath. Scroll down to watch the video about this fascinating prototype.

Jaguar F-Type squares off against Porsche 911, Aston V8 Vantage with Chris Harris

Chris Harris is back on the job, taking on really really difficult car questions like: Which enormously sexy and good-to-drive, high-performance convertible is the top of the heap? As one of the hottest cars in the luxury space right now, the Jaguar F-Type S is, of course, in on the action. Competition comes in the form of the Aston Martin V8 Vantage Roadster and the Porsche 911 Carrera S Cabriolet. Sun-loving CEOs who despise test-driving need look no further.
Scroll on below for a fully featured (with a running time of more than 20 minutes) comparison video. Harris does his best to entertain - in a typically nitpicky and made-up-British-words fashion - and the moving pictures are lovely to look at. Kick back, pour a pint and get your weekend started off right.