Original 914 1.7 Liter Targa With Factory A/c, 5 Speed Manual And No Reserve on 2040-cars

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Ferrari IPO may turn out to be good news for enthusiasts

Sergio Marchionne's strategy to spin off Ferrari from FCA and make the Italian automaker a publicly traded company has been met with ire from a vocal contingent of enthusiasts ever since rumors about the plan began to surface a few years ago. Some of these particularly pessimistic automotive pundits have voiced fears that with stockholders in the mix, it would not only spell the demise of the exclusive Italian supercar maker as we know it, but would in fact "ruin" the company. Call me dense, but I fail to see what the issue is. That isn't to say that I don't understand what's causing the fear. When profitability becomes a higher priority for a brand that's historically relied on exclusivity to keep its products in the highest echelons of desirability, there's a high potential for internal philosophical conflict. And then there are concerns about the sorts of products that Ferrari might develop that aren't the high-performance sports cars that the brand is known for. But individuals with those apprehensions seem to forget that Ferrari has already lent its name to a multitude of things that are not LaFerraris, 488 GTBs, or F12 Berlinettas, including clothing, headphones, and even laptops. But let's assume for a moment that the core anxiety is about future vehicles – including the unspeakable notion that Ferrari might develop an SUV. Why wouldn't Ferrari build an SUV, especially after seeing how incredibly successful that endeavor has been for Porsche? I think it's likely that Ferrari will put engineers to task creating some sort of crossover or high-rolling cruiser with room for the whole family at some point in the near future. And why wouldn't it, after seeing how incredibly successful that endeavor has been for Porsche? After all, the Cayenne accounted for more US sales in 2013 than the Boxster, Cayman, 911, and 918 combined, and it only gave up about a thousand units of sales last year to make room for the Macan crossover, the latter of which Porsche sold nearly as many of as it did Boxsters and Caymans. People want these vehicles, and they're willing to pay quite a bit of money for them. If we use Porsche's recent trajectory as a foreshadowing metric for what's in store for Ferrari, the future actually looks pretty good. After all, those SUV sales keep plenty of cash in Porsche's coffers for the low-volume projects that we enthusiasts love, like the 918 Spyder and the 911 GT3 RS.

2014 Porsche 911 Turbo and Turbo S debut [w/video]

The Turbo S will dispatch the Nürburgring in "well under seven and a half minutes."
Porsche is celebrating the 40th anniversary of its 911 Turbo in the best possible way: by announcing the next-generation of the rear-engined beast. The 2014 Porsche 911 Turbo and Turbo S are here, and man oh man, do they seem like the business.

Porsche announces plan to replace 911 GT3 engines

About a month back, we reported that Porsche was suspending delivery of its 911 GT3 due to reported incidents of the engine bursting into flames. A few days later, Porsche told owners of the new track-ready models not to drive their cars and had their local dealers pick up the cars in question. Just a couple of days ago, we reported that Porsche was working on a fix, and now we have the official details.
Following an internal investigation prompted by two such incidents, Porsche has confirmed that is has identified the problem as resulting "from a loosened screw joint on the connecting rod." The loose connecting rod, Porsche found, damaged the crankcase, which in turn resulted in oil leaking and then - in at least two cases - igniting.
Our source is unaware of Porsche being contacted by GT3 owners concerned about the impact of a replacement engine on their car's collectibility or resale value.