1997 Porsche Boxster Base Convertible 2-door 2.5l on 2040-cars

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Porsche 918 Spyder could lap the 'Ring even quicker [w/video]

Porsche had a lot to crow about at the Frankfurt Motor Show last week. Not only did it debut the new 50 Years edition and Turbo versions of the 911 and the new hybrid and diesel versions of the Panamera, but while unveiling the final production version of the new 918 Spyder, it revealed the record lap it set around the Nürburgring.
The 918 Spyder's 6:57 lap time makes it the fastest street-legal production car ever to lap the Nordschleife and the first to break the seven-minute barrier. But the driver who clocked the time thinks it can go even faster.
That driver was Marc Lieb, who has won the Nürburgring 24-hour race four times, making him something of an expert on the subject. In speaking with Australia's Drive TV, Lieb suggested that they could get even more out of the car, as you can hear for yourself in the video below.

Aston Martin renames Vantage GT3 after Porsche throws hissy fit

Porsche has a long history of using the name "GT3" for its hardcore, naturally aspirated 911 models, and that means it's certainly not going to share it with the likes of Aston Martin. See, it seems the arrival of the Aston Martin Vantage GT3 at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show didn't sit well with Stuttgart, which opted to lawyer up. According to Goodwood Road and Racing, attorneys from both sides of the Channel have been in discussion for months over the issue, with Porsche arguing it's been using the GT3 name since 1999, and that makes it theirs. Aston, though, argues that the FIA GT3 racing series makes the name fair game for road cars. Moreover, the Brits point out that the alphanumeric was in use well before Porsche got its mitts on it – GRR rightly points out the Lotus Esprit GT3 hit the streets three years before the 996 GT3. And while we're on the subject, Bentley has its own GT3, but we're guessing its status as one of Porsche's siblings means its immune to this kind of squabbling. Rather than getting into a knock-down, drag-out courtroom brawl with one of the Volkswagen Group's prized brands, though, Aston has taken the high road. The company will rechristen both the road-going Vantage GT3 and Vantage racer as the GT12. While Porsche is no stranger to aggressively protecting what it views as its closely held vehicle names, we have to admit, it seems like Aston actually has something of a case. Do you think the Brits were right to settle and change the Vantage's name, or should they have taken the fight to Porsche? Have your say in Comments.

Porsche has doubled US sales to women [w/videos]

Porsche is having a good sales year in the US, with 25,129 vehicles delivered year-to-date coming off the automaker's best July sales ever. That's a 31-percent increase over the same period last year (19,253 deliveries). With year-to-date Panamera sales a surprising 36 percent lower than last year, what possibly could be driving Porsche's sales surge? If you answered Cayman and Boxster sales, you're right. But dealerships are noticing another factor: more women are coming in to buy Porsches, CNBC reports, the bulk of whom picked up new Cayenne SUVs. The German automaker's sales to women in the US have more than doubled in the past two years, increasing from 7 percent to 15 percent. This has helped year-to-date Cayenne sales reach 11,082 - 31 percent higher than the same time last year.
Porsche executives have been trying to tap into the women's market, as evidenced in part by the company's move to pick professional tennis player Maria Sharapova as a brand ambassador. Porsche maintains it has not moved to dramatically change its brand image, but it has shown a number of ads in recent years that uncharacteristically emphasize its vehicles' practicality under the "Engineered for Magic. Everyday" banner - some featuring female drivers.
Be sure to watch CNBC's video report on Porsche's female movement below - you'll also find one of the aforementioned Engineered For Magic ads as well as an interesting case study video on the campaign from ad agency Cramer-Krasselt.