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Porsche 911 2.7 RS values up by nearly 700% in the last 10 years [w/video]

These days if you have a wad of cash to invest in a classic car, Ferrari seems to be the best option. Hagerty's price index for the Italian supercars was up 43 percent in 2014, and Prancing Horses made up eight of the highest-selling vehicles at auction for the year. However, if you really want to watch your funds grow faster than practically any other legal investment, it might be worth setting your sights north of Maranello to Porsche in Germany. According to research from the Discovery Channel, the 1973 Porsche 911 Carrera 2.7 RS is the quickest-appreciating vehicle in the past decade, at least in the UK. In 2004, prices hovered around 65,000 pounds ($101,350 in current money), but buying one today would set you back over 500,000 pounds ($779,600). Rarer lightweight models go for even more. More than just a solid investment, buyers get what is considered to be the ultimate expression of the early 911. Built as a homologation special for racing, Porsche used the classic tactic of fitting a larger engine to boost power to about 210 horsepower while simultaneously cutting weight. A lower front air dam, extended fenders for wider wheels and ducktail spoiler at the back made sure the grip, aero and styling fit the motorsports attitude. You can get a brief taste of what it's like to drive one of these rare Porsches in the video from The Telegraph below. This one is even for sale, with an ambitious price of around 600,000 pounds ($935,000), and it also features legendary racer Derek Bell's autograph on the ashtray. Hopefully the car's eventual buyer remembers that the RS is a fantastic piece to drive, too, and stretches its legs every once in a while. News Source: The TelegraphImage Credit: The Telegraph Porsche Car Buying Ownership Coupe Performance Classics Videos porsche 911 carrera collector cars classic car values

Here are this year's top 5 automaker April Fools’ jokes

April 1 is the wonderful day when PR departments really push themselves to top the zany jokes they came up with the previous year. And it's not just fast-food chains competing with each other, or breweries announcing they have released stuff like a fermented herring flavored beer: carmakers' media teams rarely miss out on the opportunity to play a little joke on their audience. Here are a few of our favorites from this year:1) Porsche Porsche announced that it's launching a Mission E tractor, styled to resemble its 1950s tractor models. "With a power output in excess of 700hp, the Mission E Tractor will be the fastest accelerating agricultural vehicle in the world, enabling farmers to harvest crops in record time with the added environmental benefits of zero emissions at source and significantly reduced operating noise."2) Lexus Lexus actually jumped the gun, telling us on March 28 that it's combining cars and drivers using DNA matching. The kicker was that with DNA-matched cars, owners would be able to start their Lexuses by licking the steering wheel.3) McLaren Automotive McLaren said it's boosting efficiency by quite eccentric measures, such as measuring the technology center's lake and floor tiles daily, and by synchronizing the staff's tea breaks.4) BMW Motorrad BMW's motorcycle arm is solving parts availability issues in remote locations by offering a 3D printer mounted permanently on the bike's rack: If you need to replace a broken-off gear lever, you can just print one. "The new system will mean that even very rarely required parts not generally stocked by BMW Motorrad sales partners can be supplied on a just-in-time basis." BMW even went to the lengths of announcing that the "BMW Motorrad iPart 3D Mobile Printer" was tested on the Antarctic, by erecting a tent whose poles were produced onsite.5) Honda Last but not least, Honda UK purportedly cut the roof off a new CR-V, calling it the CR-V Roadster. Tellingly, no convertible top was even offered for the concept, "making it a no-top rather than a drop-top. This innovative design makes it a vehicle purely for sunnier climates and therefore completely useless for the two-day British summer which traditionally occurs in May."Related Video: Featured Gallery Top 5 April Fools 2018 Image Credit: Porsche Green Humor Weird Car News BMW Honda Lexus McLaren Porsche bmw motorrad mclaren automotive

Next Porsche Cayman and Boxster to be called 718?

Porsche has spent a few years sorting out its strategy away from the 911 and its crossovers, among the moving targets being the now-moribund Ferrari-fighting 960, the still-very-much-alive variant(s) coming with the next-generation Panamera, and what appears to be a puissant Cayman that could be called the GT4. Earlier this year there were rumors that a flat-four engine would join the Stuttgart maker's lineup, and that it could go into a roadster called the 718 that would undercut the current $51,400 price of the Boxster, and the Boxster would go upscale, leapfrogging the $52,600 price of the Cayman. Then Porsche turned out the lights on the 718 project, its R&D head telling Autocar, "We have a very good entry point to the range with the Boxster, and we see no reason to go below that." But Automobile reports that while the 718 roadster is dead, the 718 name will live: a la the 911, a new 718 range will encompass coupes and convertibles spanning a wide performance envelope. The suggestion is that the Boxster and Cayman names will be retired. According to Automobile, this will give Porsche a place to put its flat-four engine, into entry level models that – countering Porsche's earlier statement – "come in at a significantly lower price than" the present Boxster. Two displacements are expected, in three outputs: a 2.0-liter with 285 horsepower, a 2.5-liter with 360 hp and a turbocharged version with 400 hp. It's also been speculated that the engine could power an entry-level Macan. It's been reported before that Porsche wants to make use of the 718 name to promote its motorsport heritage, that model having carried Stirling Moss to victory among its many racing triumphs. If it happens, even though Automobile calls it part of "a slight perspective shift," we think it'll be a big shift for the two popular models, but it's not like we haven't had time to get ready. We're told the new moniker will be introduced in 2016 as a 2017 model. News Source: Automobile via World Car Fans Porsche Convertible Coupe porsche 718