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Porsche 911 hybrid could get green light after all

The prospect of producing a hybrid version of the Porsche 911 has been on and off the table more times than we'd care to count. But before the year is up, the German automaker will make up its mind whether or not it will put the idea in motion. Porsche currently offers more plug-in hybrids than any other automaker. And according to Porsche CEO Matthias Muller in speaking with Automotive News, the opportunity exists to expand the powertrain technology to every model in the company's lineup, including the 911. The sports car would likely be the next in line for hybridization, said Muller, giving Porsche a direct competitor to the BMW i8. It wouldn't be the first time Zuffenhausen would slot a hybrid powertrain into the iconic rear-engined coupe, having previously raced the 911 GT3 R Hybrid (pictured above), but it would be the first road-going version available to customers. "That is a technique which we at Porsche are very familiar with," Muller told AN, "so we can suppose that we could have plug-ins all over the model range, not only to save fuel but also to boost the performance of these cars." Currently the E-Hybrid versions of the Cayenne and Panamera which Porsche offers account for roughly 15 and 11 percent of their respective model lines' sales in the US, while the 918 Spyder, of course, is offered only as a hybrid. If the 911 hybrid gets the green light, that would leave only the Macan, Boxster and Cayman without the option of electric assist. Related Video:

6 car mashups that God never intended

In the 2000s, the musical mashup genre saw a peak of popularity with releases like The Grey Album from Danger Mouse that mixed The Beatles and Jay-Z. UK artist James Pursey from Carwow decided to take the same concept of shoehorning two disparate things together but applied the concept to cars. Your opinion on the results will vary with your sense of humor. These creations are either some funny pieces of abstract art or absolute monstrosities that prove good design should be left alone. Likely the best of the bunch is the Lambotomic (pictured above), which combines a Lamborghini Miura and an Ariel Atom. Granted, the Ariel is little more than a skeleton to begin with, and the outcome looks like a slightly stretched Atom with the new nose and tail from one of the most beautiful vehicles ever. This could actually work. Though, not all of the mashups are quite so pleasant. The Porschiac WW RS (pictured right) is absolutely disgusting. It combines a Pontiac Aztek, which isn't a beauty queen to start with, and a Porsche 911 GT3 RS. Obviously, the 911 is an iconic shape in autonobolia, but that can't save it from the horror of the Aztek. Pursey fits the its nose, wheel, wing, roll cage and stripes onto the Pontiac. The outcome: A design that will show up in your nightmares. Check out the gallery for the rest of the mashups, including the Humi (a Humvee and a Mini), Aston Smartin (Aston Martin and Smart), Rangerini (Range Rover and Lamborghini Aventador) and the Mazdafenda (Mazda MX-5 Miata and Land Rover Defender). They might not all be beautiful (or even pretty), but it's fun to imagine these oddball creations actually driving down the road. Featured Gallery Car Mashups News Source: CarwowImage Credit: James Pursey Design/Style Humor Lamborghini Pontiac Porsche ariel atom lamborghini miura pontiac aztek mashup

Porsche would have entered F1 if Audi had blocked its Le Mans program

Go back a few years and you may have heard rumors of Porsche heading into Formula One. That never came to pass - or at least, it hasn't yet - but that doesn't mean that it wasn't close to happening. That's how committed to returning to top-level motorsport competition Porsche has become recently.
Autosport reports that just as Porsche was merging fully into the Volkswagen Group, Zuffenhausen was weighing its options for a factory racing program. Le Mans was its favorite, which makes sense, as it remains far and away the most successful constructor in the history of the famous endurance race. But the strategists at Porsche were worried that its new corporate overlords at Volkswagen wouldn't support two LMP1 programs and would favor Audi, which has positively dominated the modern era of endurance racing, coming second only to Porsche in the number of Le Mans victories it has scored to date.
Porsche's Plan B was reportedly to head into Formula One, although it isn't clear if the German automaker was intent on starting its own team, buying an existing one or merely providing engines to other teams. Porsche fielded its own cars in F1 in the late 1950s and early 60s, and returned as an engine supplier with TAG to power McLaren in the 1980s, powering Niki Lauda and Alain Prost to the World Championship in 1984 and 1985.