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1950s car ads are timeless

Usually around the Super Bowl a few great car commercials show up, but for the most part auto ads today pale in comparison to the '1950s and '60s. In an era with a truly viable magazine industry, automakers would take out gorgeous full-page spreads to get the word out about their wares. It was also a time when imports were just hitting the US, and there was a boom in sports cars. Car and Driver has gone for a dig into its advertising archives from when the book was known as Sports Cars Illustrated for a truly great viewing experience. You can imagine a young Don Draper mulling over the copy for these ads, but some of it is laughably quaint today. For example, there's a great image of a driver whipping an Austin-Healey 100 around a track. The italicized red text proudly proclaims, "From 0 to 60 MPH in 10.5 seconds." One of the beautiful parts about these advertisements is that you seldom see photos of the cars. Instead, there are often detailed drawings that slightly distort the vehicles' lines. With this approach, the Porsche 356 ends up looking far more curvaceous than in real life. Plus, the front end of the Chrysler 300 looks large enough to land a helicopter on. The whole thing is worth scrolling through. There are some fascinating glimpses into auto history like an ad for Abarth exhausts before the brand was just known for tuning Fiats. Related Video: News Source: Car and DriverImage Credit: GM Heritage Center Marketing/Advertising Read This Chrysler Fiat Porsche Performance Classics porsche 356 abarth

Road & Track names its 2013 Performance Car of the Year

Road & Track recently staged its first annual Performance Car of the Year test, pitting 13 new and updated performance cars against each other on track, then graduating the top six to a road test before picking a winner. Additionally, the magazine staff picked the best automobiles of the year in eight categories.
But first, let's cover the PCotY segment. Here's the list of cars brought to the comparison test: Audi R8 V10 Plus; BMW 435i; BMW M6 Competition Package; Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Z51; Ferrari F12 Berlinetta; Ford Fiesta ST; Jaguar F-Type V8 S; Jaguar XFR-S; Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG S-Model Wagon; Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Black Series; Mini John Cooper Works GP; Nissan GT-R Track Edition; and Porsche Cayman S.
To find out the results of the comparison, head over to Road & Track's website or check the press release below, where you'll also find the magazine's top-rated vehicles in eight categories. Want more? Head over to the 2013 PCotY hub. But before you do that, take a stab at guessing the winner of PCotY (we'll give you one hint: it isn't a Porsche).

Porsche 918 Spyder with Weissach package does 0-62 mph in 2.6 seconds

Porsche marketers are having a field day with the 918 Spyder after some last-minute tuning improved the car's performance. They now say that it's so fast it's already beaten itself. Let us explain: Using a Weissach package-equipped 918 as an example (which reduces the plug-in hybrid supercar's weight through the deletion of some interior items, more generous use of carbon fiber and magnesium wheels), the car's previous official 0-62 miles-per-hour time of 2.8 seconds has been cut to 2.6. Additionally, 0-124 mph takes 7.2 seconds and 0-186 mph is dispatched in 19.9 seconds, times that were reduced by half a second and 2.1 seconds, respectively.
In all-electric mode, a non-Weissach pack 918 does 0-62 mph in 6.2 seconds (with the package, 6.1 seconds), down from 6.9 seconds. Efficiency is also improved thanks to the final tuning. The New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) rating of a Weissach pack-equipped car equates to 94 miles per gallon, up three mpg compared to before. That's pretty good for a car with 887 horsepower!
Check out the press release below for more details on how Porsche's final tuning measures improved its flagship supercar.