2014 Porsche Cayenne on 2040-cars

Auto blog

VW Group plan puts Porsche in charge of a 'super-premium' division

An Automobile report looks into what's happening on the organizational and technical sides of the Volkswagen Group, and what those changes could mean for the premium brands. The wide-angle view is that Porsche appears to have been anointed to "coordinate the future activities" at Audi, Bentley, Bugatti and Lamborghini. Audi would cede Lamborghini guardianship to Stuttgart, and Ducati — via a new concern called Ducati Enterprises — would become the shepherd for VW's other Italian investments. Executives target Jan. 1, 2019, to complete the reshuffle. VW wants to save a boodle by tying up four of its five top-tier brands, and putting the one with the highest ROI in charge. Porsche, within its own house, wants to reduce expenditures by $2.3 billion per year over for four years, the savings already earmarked for improving internal processes like R&D and production. Having Porsche share those gains as well as lead development of platforms, components and future-tech strategies for the sister sports car brands could benefit everyone. In the near-term, the brands have their own plans: Bugatti CEO Stephan Winkelmann is said to want a Chiron Superleggera, a roofless and "completely reskinned" Chiron Aperta, and a track-only Chiron SS. The Superleggera could take the Chiron Sport's and Divo's Jenny Craig routines even further. The Aperta seems a natural successor to the Veyron Grand Sport, a natural evolution of the recently introduced Sky View roof, and a reskin might include numerous Divo cues. It's also said Bugatti's considering "an all-electric high-end model" in conjunction with Porsche, Rimac, and Dallara, but name one supercar or hypercar manufacturer that isn't considering a lightning-fast EV. Lamborghini, deep into work on follow-ups for the Huracan and Aventador, might get a bit of a bump with the new plan. The carbon "monofuselage" for the next V12 flagship is said to be too far developed and too complex to scrap. It puts two electric motors on the front axle, batteries in the middle, and a naturally aspirated V12 with around 770 horsepower plus another e-motor with 402 horsepower in back. The Huracan is said to get a version of the same carbon architecture at the moment, but the corporate reorganization might press pause on it. Automobile says options include continuing the Huracan/ Audi R8 twinning, but that depends on Audi saying "Ja" to a third-gen R8 with Lamborghini bones.

Porsche Cayman GT4 spotted at the N?rburgring

It was just the other day that we first caught wind of Porsche's plans to build a GT4 version of the Cayman, and now we're already looking at spy shots of the vehicle in question undergoing testing at - where else? - the Nürburgring.
With more aggressive front-end aero, a GT3-style air vent ahead of the front hood, a large wing at the back, and spindly alloys packed with over-sized brakes at each corner, this Cayman is clearly more extreme than even the range-topping GTS. The rear diffuser and central exhaust tips look about the same as those you'd find at the back of the Cayman GTS, though.
What we can't see, of course, is what Porsche has slotted in under the rear glass, how it's upgraded the interior and how much weight it's stripped out of the thing to get it down to fighting weight, but you can bet it'll come with a substantial power bump and a stripped-out interior with racing buckets and little else to open the gap between it and the GTS... and close the gap to the 911 GT3 which it will join as the baby brother in Porsche's performance-focused lineup. Click above to view the double-batch of spy shots.

2014 Porsche Panamera 4S Executive

If the idea of a Porsche sedan (or, long hatchback) is still off-putting to you, then you might want to look away now. For 2014, the polarizing Panamera has received a midcycle refresh bringing slightly different styling, as well as adding two new models to the lineup, the S E-Hybrid and the stretched-wheelbase Executive. Having focused most of my recent trip to Germany on a First Drive of the intriguing plug-in Panamera, I also got to spend some time with the roomier Executive model.
Offered in both 4S and Turbo guise, the Panamera Executive has been stretched by almost six inches for the sole purpose of improving rear passenger space. Although it's hard to imagine anyone would willingly buy a Porsche and opt to sit in the back seat, I'd have to say that if I'm going to be chauffeured around in a car, why not make it a Porsche? For the most part, though, I'm guessing that many Panamera Executive sedans will be owned by people who want to one-up their buddy driving a stretched BMW 7 Series or Mercedes-Benz S-Class.
Driving Notes: