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Porsche Pajun to go all-electric as Tesla rival

Porsche has been rumored to be working on a smaller counterpart to the Panamera for nearly four years now, but we have yet to see any sign of the model dubbed Pajun coming to fruition beyond a digital rendering hidden in the background of another Porsche design. Apparently Stuttgart has been having trouble making the business case in an already crowded market segment. But that doesn't mean the project is completely off the table. According to the latest from Germany's own Auto Motor und Sport, Porsche is now planning to launch the so-called Pajun (shorthand for Panamera Junior just like the Macan project was previously called Cajun) purely as an electric vehicle. With an eye evidently fixed on how dedicated hybrids and EVs are gaining traction in the marketplace (to say nothing of actual tarmac), the electric Pajun - almost certain to carry a different name to the showroom – would be different enough to distinguish itself from existing four-doors of that size like the Mercedes E-Class, BMW 5 Series, Audi A6, et al. Word has it that Porsche believes that battery technologies will advance enough over the next four years to give its four-door EV a range of nearly 250 miles on a single charge. The model's arrival would be just the latest in a series of environmental concessions made by the company with the broadest range of plug-in hybrids on the market. Aside from the E-Hybrid versions of the Panamera and Cayenne, Porsche arguably led the charge (so to speak) towards hybrid hypercars with the 918 Spyder, is downsizing many of its engines and is turbocharging almost the entirety of the 911 range.

Porsche sells final 918 Spyder amidst excellent year of sales

2014 has been a banner year for Porsche, as the company has moved over 169,000 units through November, an increase of around 12,000 units over the same period in 2013. During last month alone, the company's sales saw a year-over-year jump of 25 percent. The European market, meanwhile, saw an 18-percent jump in sales, while its North American efforts have jumped 13 percent. "This strong November is evidence that our strategy is working extremely well," Porsche board member Bernhard Maier said in the accompanying statement. "It also confirms our commitment to taking advantage of every opportunity presented in the global markets." Those notable sales gains aside, this latest sales report comes with some bad news for the overwhelming majority of Porsche fans – the last 918 Spyder has been sold. All 297 cars have been spoken for, with US deliveries set to begin soon. According to Porsche, there are currently around 100 Spyder owners spread across Germany and China. Porsche exceeds previous year's sales by November Last unit of the 918 Spyder sold Atlanta. Porsche AG increased global deliveries to customers from January to November this year to more than 169,000 vehicles, already exceeding the overall total for 2013 of 162,145 new vehicles. This represented a growth of 15 percent over the same period last year (January to November 2013: 147,290 vehicles). In the month of November, Porsche delivered 17,700 vehicles – an increase of one quarter over the same month last year. "This strong November is evidence that our strategy is working extremely well," said Bernhard Maier, Member of the Executive Board – Sales and Marketing of Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG. "It also confirms our commitment to taking advantage of every opportunity presented in the global markets." In Europe, Porsche delivered 54,500 vehicles from January to November 2014 – an increase of 18 percent over the previous year, with the domestic German market accounting for 22,200 of the sales. The American region also showed a significant 13 percent increase over last year with a total of 51,600 deliveries. In addition, November announced the finality of sales for the 918 Spyder hybrid super sports car. With a limited run of 918 units, the majority of the cars – 297 – will be shipped from the Zuffenhausen manufactory to buyers in the USA. In both Germany and China there are already around 100 proud new owners who have taken delivery of the super sports car.

New details mooted about Porsche's '988' Ferrari rival

We could be on the verge of a big expansion at everyone's favorite rear-engined German sports car manufacturer. Porsche is allegedly preparing a four-car assault that will be led by a proper challenger to the Ferrari 458 Italia (sorry 911).
Code-named "988," the new model will reportedly feature a mid-engined layout and, get this: a flat-8. Autocar, which has the story, expects that engine to displace about 4.0 liters, while the car itself will draw styling inspiration from the 918 Spyder. 600 ponies and over 400 super-accessible pound-feet of torque should be on tap with the new mill.
Joining the 988's supposed eight-cylinder is a new family of four- and six-cylinder boxer engines that Autocar claims will have a focus on power density and fuel economy. These new mills will be available in naturally aspirated, turbocharged and hybrid forms.