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Porsche's former CEO Wiedeking to stand trial over VW-share manipulation

Former Porsche CEO Wendelin Wiedeking (left in the above photo) could potentially be facing some time in the slammer after all. The last we had heard, he and former Chief Financial Officer Holger Haerter (right) had avoided a trial in April due to a lack of evidence. However, an appeals court in Stuttgart has looked at the case again and overruled the earlier decision, finding that the executives should be tried for share manipulation during Porsche's failed attempt to take over Volkswagen in 2008, Bloomberg reports.
The judges in the appeal "list numerous indications that could suggest that there was a hidden decision to increase the stake as they could suggest the opposite evaluation by the lower court," said Stefan Schueler, a spokesperson for the court, in a statement cited by Bloomberg. Wiedeking and Haerter put out their own releases saying that there was no merit to the charges.
The prosecutors allege that Wiedeking and Haerter had a plan to buy up VW stock options in 2008 to take the automotive giant over but hid it from investors. The whole thing was a massive failure and eventually allowed VW the chance to acquire Porsche and forced the two execs to step down. In addition to the criminal investigation, hedge funds have attempted to sue the company multiple times in civil court for the same reason, but they have repeatedly failed.

Porsche revisits the 911's dirty side with rally history film

It might not be a coincidence that there are rumors of Porsche revealing a safari version of the 911 at April's Beijing Motor Show, just as the Dakar Rally is about to begin. Adding fuel to the dusty desert fire is a just-released official video of Jeff Zwart driving the Porsche 953 that Jacky Ickx drove to victory in the 1984 edition of the race.
In the video, the seven-time Pikes Peak International Hill Climb winner talks about how he grew up with the 911; it wasn't only the car he learned to drive in, it was his choice of racecar no matter whether the course was tarmac or the dirty stuff.
You can decide for yourself if these recent events are mere coincidence while you enjoy the 953's exhaust note in the video below. If you've got the time to see the 953 during its race-conquering drive and find out what the ersatz Paris-Dakar Rally used to be, we've also included a broadcast of that 1984 race below as well. Fast-forward to 19:44 to see the Porsches cross the open dessert and 29:09 to watch one of them tackle the dunes.

Recharge Wrap-up: Porsche Mission E charging for Tesla, net zero energy Toyota dealership

Porsche has confirmed that its Mission E charging infrastructure will also work with Tesla vehicles. The ultra-fast, 800-volt charging system will recharge the Mission E to 80 percent in about 15 minutes, and will also service new EVs from Volkswagen and Audi. Porsche CEO Oliver Blume told Top Gear that development of the charging infrastructure "sounds easy but getting the details agreed is hard. We already have the clear technical concept. It can even work with Teslas, with an adapter." Dieter Zetsche, Head of Mercedes-Benz, also tells Top Gear that they are "in talks" with Porsche regarding charging infrastructure. Read more at Top Gear, or from Electrek. An Oregon Toyota dealership is set to be the world's first net zero energy automotive dealership. The newly constructed, LEED Platinum certified Toyota of Corvallis produces more energy than it consumes, for which it is expected to receive Net Zero Energy certification. The 34,800-square-foot building is equipped with enough solar panels to produce as much energy that the dealership will use, with excess being put back into the grid, which will help during hours of peak demand. Toyota Motor Sales regional manager Steve Haag calls Toyota of Corvallis, "a first-of-its-kind template for the auto dealership of the future." Read more from Toyota. Valeo has introduced a new 48-volt hybrid system. The 48V e4Sport, as it is called, uses a 48-volt battery, electric starter-generator, electric supercharger, and eRAD electric rear axle drive for all-wheel drive. It maximizes regenerative braking and stores that energy for increasing torque with the starter-generator, and increasing acceleration with the electric supercharger. The system also supports all-electric driving modes. Valeo says the system is applicable across all vehicle segments, and works with both gasoline and diesel engines. Read more at Green Car Congress. PSA Group has created its own mobility solutions brand, called Free2Move. Free2Move will handle programs like car sharing, connected services, corporate fleet services, and affordable leasing programs for Peugeot, Citroen, DS, and other PSA partners. "For the PSA Group, mobility means not only making and selling excellent cars, but also offering a full range of mobility solutions," says PSA Group VP of Mobility Services Gregoire Olivier.