1987 Porsche 944 Coupe Runs Great on 2040-cars

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The Mercedes-Benz S-Class leads this month's list of discounts

Like last month, the biggest discounts car buyers will find on new vehicles are all applied to expensive luxury sedans. Unlike last month when there were two, there isn't a single Rolls-Royce to be found anywhere in the top five. Sorry, one-percenters. But just because the pinnacle of European luxury isn't represented doesn't mean there aren't big discounts to be found on lovely luxury sedans. In fact, this month's list is led by the 2020 Mercedes-Benz S-Class, a technological wonder that coddles its driver and passengers with all the bells and whistles the German brand has to offer. The Mercedes-Benz S-Class is offered in many shapes and sizes with several powertrain options. That means there will be a huge variance in prices across the model range, but on average, 2020 S-Class buyers are seeing $11,803 lopped off the car's $109,447 sticker price, leaving an average transaction price of $97,644. That's a savings of nearly 11%. It's worth noting that there's a new S-Class for 2021, but the 2020 edition is still a lovely machine. Up next is the Porsche Taycan, sitting in second place just like it did last month. Buyers are seeing average sticker prices of $125,736 but are paying $113,938. That's a savings of $11,798 — or about 9.4% — off the price on the window sticker. As was the case last month, we're not sure how many of the Taycan's buyers will be able to claim tax rebates due to the Taycan's status as an electric vehicle, but that could potentially represent a further cut off the car's sticker. Rounding out the top three for the month of July is the Maserati Ghibli. With an average discount of $10,161 that represents a whopping 14.3% of the car's sticker price, this Italian luxury sedan actually leads the list of vehicle discounts when ranked by percentage. And if you're a Maserati fan but the Ghibli isn't your cup of espresso, the Levante crossover and larger Quattroporte sedan are also seeing very large discounts. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. 2022 Mercedes-Benz EQS Edition One revealed

Porsche 911 Aerodynamic prototype cheated the wind ahead of its time

You might think that sports cars would have the lowest drag coefficient of all cars. And yes, they do tend to be more slippery than, say, SUVs or convertibles, but the sleekest vehicles on the road tend to be EVs, hybrids and luxury sedans. Sports cars, on the other hand, have aerodynamically detrimental needs for downforce and additional engine cooling. Still, the Porsche 911 is better than most, and has only gotten more so over the years. Its relatively narrow track and compact form mean it has a smaller frontal area than some other sports cars, and the gradual sweeping back of its headlights and windshield have only augmented its capacity for cheating the wind.
This 911 prototype, however, is even more aerodynamic than most. It's based on a "G model" 911 from 1984, but employed such features as covered wheels, a new rear spoiler and a reprofiled front end to drop its drag coefficient from 0.40 to 0.27, making it as slippery as a modern sedan and better at cheating the wind than just about anything built up to that point, save for maybe the Tatra 77, Citroën SM or Tucker Torpedo.
Elements of this prototype ended up gradually making it into production Porsches for years to come, and you can clearly see early influences on the second-generation 964 and even on the 959. It's featured here as the latest installment in a video series on rare historic Porsches unearthed from the company archives, following previous clips that featured a rare V8-powered 911 and a mid-engined 911 prototype. Scope out the latest episode in the video below.

Magnus Walker turbocharges his love for the Porsche 911

He's had his fill of early, long-hood Porsche 911s - he owns at least one from each model year, from 1964 to 1973 - so Magnus Walker, a fanatic of the Stuttgart, Germany-based automaker, recently set his sights on the early Porsche 930, as documented by this XCAR video called 'Turbo Fever.' Let us translate: pretty soon Walker will own all of the earliest, non-intercooled 911 Turbos - at least one from each model year, starting at 1975 and ending at 1977 (though the 1975 911 Turbo Carrera never officially was imported to the US by Porsche, so it'll be tougher to find one Stateside).
Any Porsche enthusiast can tell you why they love their car, and it often comes down to the small details that differentiate one model year from another. One of many examples is the mid-'80s 928. They look similar, but the basic difference between a 1984 Porsche 928 S and a 1985 928 S (US-spec) is two camshafts and 54 horsepower, though each car's V8 has its own pros and cons. We'll let Magnus Walker tell you all about the 930 and what makes the first three years special, as he's becoming quite the expert on early, air-cooled 911s. When the nearly 15-minute mini-documentary was filmed, which you can view below, he already had added four early 930s to his collection!