Porsche 944 S2 Cabriolet on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Amelia Island 2013: Porsche 911 swarms the field marking 50 years of rear-engine goodness

Perhaps one of the most iconic sports cars in the world, it was no surprise that the Porsche 911 showed up in numbers to the 2013 Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance. Although the original 911 launched 50 years ago, the original and current models are instantly recognizable as 911s, and since the 911 has a storied racing background, there were probably just as many racing versions of the coupe as there were street-legal versions.
As the show's 2013 honoree, one of the prime racing examples was a 1970 Porsche 911 S raced by Sam Posey. There were so many cars in attendance, we didn't know where to look, but a 1985 911 Speedster concept and a Porsche-owned, rally-ready 911 Type 953 were definitely among the more impressive standouts. As an added bonus, Jacksonville-based Brumos Porsche had many of its classic racecars on display including a beautiful 959.

Porsche kicks off Macan production at revamped Leipzig plant

After over two years of construction and roughly 500 million euros ($684 million at current rates) invested, Porsche finally opened its Leipzig, Germany, factory expansion on February 11. The improvements to the plant are dedicated to building the Macan and include a new body shop, paint shop and assembly line that are advancing Porsche's goal to sell 50,000 Macan's per year. The company believes that the new model is going to push it to over 200,000 annual sales 3 years ahead of schedule, and the enlarged branch can support even more Macan production, if there is demand.
"We are totally convinced in the qualities of this location and that the Macan will be a marketing success," said Porsche Chairman Matthias Müller during the opening celebration. The company opened its Leipzig factory in 2002 to build the Cayenne and added Panamera production in 2009.
The Macan models are due to launch in the US this summer with prices starting at $49,900. Scroll down to learn all of the details about the Macan's Leipzig assembly plant.

Porsche hybrids come up short at Le Mans

Two cars, one finish, zero victories. That's a brief synopsis of Porsche's hybrid-vehicle performance in the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in France. There's always next year. Porsche entered two 919 Hybrid vehicles in the race. The No. 14 car essentially limped to the finish line after encountering drivetrain problems. The other Porsche hybrid, No. 20, was driven by Germany's Timo Bernhard, New Zealand's Brendon Hartley and Australia's Mark Webber. That car ran for more than 22 hours before its own powertrain issues did that racing team in for good. Both vehicles ran towards the front of the pack at times during the race, and the No. 20 car actually led the race after about 20 hours. Still, both teams said they were disappointed in the results. Porsche sister company Audi came up big for the 13th time in the race's long and storied history. One Audi R18 E-Tron Quattro won the race, while another finished second. The Toyota that had pole-position and was winning much of the race shut down after 15 hours of racing because of electrical issues and Nissan had trouble with is ZEOD RC. Check out Porsche's press release below, and read here for a more general race recap. STRONG PERFORMANCE BY PORSCHE 919 HYBRIDS BUT NO DREAM ENDING IN PROTOTYPE RETURN TO LE MANS Le Mans. After a strong performance by both Porsche 919 Hybrids, the Porsche Team was left empty-handed after a dramatic final stage of the race. Following more than 22 hours, car No. 20 driven by Timo Bernhard (Germany), Brendon Hartley (New Zealand) and Mark Webber (Australia) suffered a powertrain problem at the world's most famous endurance race, the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Earlier in the race the LMP1 class car was leading overall for a significant period of time. The second innovative and highly complex prototype – in the hands of Romain Dumas (France), Neel Jani (Switzerland) and Marc Lieb (Germany) – likewise proved to be very competitive, but was hampered by a drivetrain problem. However, their No. 14 car crossed the finish line under its own power. After a thrilling start to the race with changing weather conditions, numerous accidents and a relatively calm night, Bernhard took the overall lead in the No. 20. The longtime Porsche factory driver returned to the top spot after 20 of the 24 hours. At 12:36 (CET) on Sunday, he handed the leading car over to Webber. Less than 20 minutes later the Australian was forced to slow down and drove solely on electric power back to pit lane.