Porsche cars

2015 Porsche Macan

Remember when Porsche released the Cayenne? Remember all the people in their Porsche owners club shirts sitting around and telling you about how this new SUV was a disgrace to the Porsche logo and that all the company should design and produce are 911 variants?

While they might have had a point, the Cayenne sold like bottled water and like this water in plastic, it’s completely pointless. People don’t need this much power from something that will be used to haul around families. Yet, it became the automaker’s best-selling model, despite its looks.

Now, to put owner’s club folks in the mental home, Porsche has created a smaller SUV that it has dubbed the Macan, which was originally named “Cajun.” This puppy is intended for people who find the Cayenne to be a bit too large and fancy something a bit more crossover like.

Porsche officially confirmed the small SUV in a statement detailing its hopes for the vehicle: "Under the working name "Cajun," this efficient and sporty model will further expand the world’s most successful Porsche segment in the SUV sector. In addition to the new Cayenne, which has clearly consolidated its market position as the most successful sporty SUV in the premium segment, the "Cajun" will also have a very positive impact with its typical Porsche features such as light weight, ease of handling and agility. As an attractive entry model in the Porsche world, the "Cajun" will attract new and even younger customers to the premium brand along with the Boxster, the market leader in the segment of two-seater, mid-size sports cars."

Update 5/30/2013: Reports have revealed the unveil date and the rough release date of the 2015 Macan. See more after the jump.

More details on the Porsche Macan after the jump.

America is Set to Receive Biggest Allotment of 918 Spyders

To say that the Porsche 918 Spyder is just another supercar is pretty inaccurate. For one, it’s the most powerful vehicle Porsche has ever built. And another thing: it’s combination of power, speed, fuel economy and low emissions is nearly unrivaled, so much so that even with 918 models priced at over $800,000 a piece, it’s already nearly sold out.

Speaking of sold out, a lot of the customers that paid for the 918 Spyder appear to reside here in the U.S. That’s why Porsche has said that America will receive the biggest allotment of 918 Spyders than any other country with up to 190 models headed our way.

That probably explains why Porsche has taken to great lengths to promote the 918 Spyder in the U.S. Numerous promotional events held in the United States over the past two years, and soon enough, a lot of these actual supercars will be calling the Land of the Free their home.

Click past the jump to read about the Porsche 918 Spyder

Video: Porsche Project 50 - The Idea

This year, the Porsche 911 will celebrate its 50th anniversary and to mark the event, Porsche Great Britain launched "Project 50," which is a historic race that will take tons of 911 models on some the most famous racetracks in Europe, like Silverstone and Nürburgring.

In fact, "Project 50" started back in March when Porsche announced a special 1965 Porsche 911 Project 50. The Project 50 is powered by a 2.0-liter flat-six engine that produces 130 horsepower and will surely be one of the 911 models to be raced during this historic race.

This video will help you to discover the roots of Project 50, as introduced by Porsche Cars GB Marketing Director, Ragnar Schulte. Enjoy! Also, be sure to check the Porsche 50 race dates so you can now when to stay online for new details.

Click past the jump to learn which are the Project 50 history race dates.

2014 Porsche Cayman SP81-CR by SpeedART

Earlier this year SpeedART dropped the first teaser images on a SP81-CR package based on the new-generation Porsche Cayman S. Now, the tuner decided to finally release the kit on the market. Its official debut will be made at the Tuner Grand Prix at the Hockenheimring racetrack in Germany and ales will begin next week.

Before talking about the SP81-CR let’s see what the Tuner Grand Prix is. The race is organized each year by Sport Auto magazine and brings together the best tuning kits out there. The cars are separated into classes and the drivers from Sport Auto decided which vehicle is the best in its class by making an average of the best times of the class.

Now, back to the SpeedART tuning kit; it includes exterior and interior upgrades, and customers can choose between three different engine upgrades.

Click past the jump to read more about the Porsche Cayman SP81-CR by SpeedART.

2004 Porsche Carrera GT by Carlex Design

Until Porsche finally decides to officially add the 918 Spyder to its lineup, we continue to look back and remember what a great car the Carrera GT was. Unveiled back in 2004, the supercar was limited to only 1,270 units and the guys over at Carlex Design had the chance to update unit No. 1,035.

If you have followed the automotive industry in the past few years, you know that Carlex Design is a tuner known for upgrading the interiors and this is exactly what it has done for the Carrera GT.

For the Carrera GT, Carlex paid close attention to the smallest details when restyling the supercar’s interior. It includes yellow-contrast-stitched black Carbon Optic leather combined with Alcantara. The yellow stitching also helps tie the inside to the outside, as it perfectly matches the yellow brake calipers.

The tuner also offers lots of luxury extras and add-ons, like the Alcantara floor mats in rhombus stitching; rearview mirror in Alcantara; and trunk lining decorated with a nice stitching.

Click past the jump to read more about the standard Porsche Carrera GT.

2014 Porsche 911 GT3

The Porsche 911 started its run back in 1963 - and oh what a run it is -, but it wasn’t until 1999 that a GT3 version was offered up for our ravenous consumption. It came to complete the series of performance vehicles that started back in 1973 with the 911 RS, a model that was capable of sprinting from 0 to 60 mph in 5.5 seconds and to 100 mph in 13 seconds.

Why the short history lesson? Well, the new generation GT3 has just made its world debut at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show and would be nice to make a comparison between the things that were and the things to come.

The new GT3 is lighter and more powerful than the model it replaces, and it brings innovative features like the first active rear wheel steering in a production Porsche. There is a bad news too unfortunately: the new GT3 will only be offered with a PDK transmission - at least for now!

Update 05/20/2013: Porsche has unveiled a new video further detailing the GT3’s technical highlights. Enjoy!

Update 6/14/2013: Chris Harris was one of the first journalists to get his hands on the all-new 2014 911 GT3. As always, he released a video with his full review. Check it out, after the jump.

Hit the jump to read more about the next generation Porsche GT3.

2013 Porsche 911 Carrera 4S by Eibach

The 2013 Porsche 911 Carrera 4S was unveiled with a series of updates that made it even better than the previous generation. Even so, when a tuner comes with some updates we can be nothing but happy.

German suspension expert, Eibach, is offering its Pro-Kit Performance Springs that lower the new 911 Carrera’s center of gravity, offers improved handling and gives it a more balanced appearance. With the new springs, the car’s ride was lower by 40 mm (1.57 inches), giving the Porsche a more aggressive stance.

The tuner is also offering a pro-spacer kit made from high-tensile-strength aluminum alloy that widens the car’s stance for added stability and a more aggressive appearance. These new wheel spacers also weigh significantly less than steel wheel spacers.

Eibach’s offerings for the 911 end there, but the new suspension kit may just be the perfect addition for the Carrera 4.

Click past the jump to read more about the standard Porsche 911 Carrera 4S.

2014 Porsche 918 Spyder

When Porsche unveiled the 918 Spyder concept at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show we were all in amazement. Within that amazement was a sense of a sense of pessimism, as we were unsure exactly how this future successor to the Carrera GT would look and run in the real world. We all know that manufacturers have a habit of “overestimating” its cars at these shows, to put it nicely.

Here we are about two years later and the 918 Spyder is nearing the end of its testing phase and we have all gotten a good hard look at what we figure to be its final design. The 918 has also made many passes around the “Green Hell,” thrashing its predecessor’s time in the process. All of these laps around the famed Nürburgring and at Porsche’s test facilities have given the automaker enough details to allow it to piece together all of its specs.

Remarkably, there have also been a few leaky valves throughout the process that let us in on the 918 Spyder’s top-secret pricing.

So, is the 918 Spyder everything it has been hyped up to be?

Updated 05/16/2013: Porsche revealed today new images and details on the 918 Spyder - a supercar that combines pedigree motor racing technology with excellent everyday utility, and maximum performance with minimum consumption.

Click past the jump to read our review and find out.

Video: Chris Harris Drives Pre-Production Porsche 918 Spyder

Now this is a ride we have been waiting to see for a very long time!

Chris Harris - our favorite presenters when it comes to reviewing performance cars - was invited by Porsche to test a pre-production version of the 918 Spyder. Of course, when you receive an invitation like this, you forget the fact that you are not testing the finished car, that there is no time to prepare and that you only get three laps in the driver’s seat; you just take the first plane and go for the quick spin.

So, what do you think, was Harris impressed by the upcoming 918 Spyder? We bet he was, after all the 918 Spyder is powered by a V-8 engine combined with a pair of electric engines, one powering the front axle and one on the rear.

This system delivers a total of 887 horsepower and 920 pound-feet of torque and sprints the car from 0 to 60 mph in just 2.8 seconds and up to a top speed of 202 mph.

One of our favorite parts was watching the Porsche rep in the passenger’s seat as Harris whipped the crap out of the Automaker’s £20 million project. It looked like he was on the verge of tears at certain points.

James Eastwood Sheds Some More Light on the Porsche 918 Spyder

In a recent interview with British magazine CAR, Porsche’s product manager James Eastwood offered new details on the company’s new limited-edition supercar: the 918 Spyder. According to Eastwood, the company has no plans in transforming the 918 Spyder into a competitor for models like LaFerrari or McLaren P1.

Eastwood said that the 918 Spyder is heavier at 3,747 pounds and a little less powerful, but more fuel efficient than both the other two supercars. Also, he said that in “certain conditions” the 918 Spyder will be a little bit faster than the P1 and Laferrari. It will be especially faster in and out of corners, thanks to its Torque Vectoring.

The 918 Spyder will also be offered with the same four-wheel-steering system we saw in the GT3; in fact, the system was developed for the 918 and adopted to the GT3.

The 918 Spyder is priced at about $845,000 for the base model, or $929,000 when equipped with the Weissach Package. Even with the price hike, half of the customer opted for this package because it reduces the car’s total weight by 110 pounds. Eastwood confirmed one more time that even though the model is still not sold out like the other two supercars, the company is not worried that it won’t manage to sell them all.

Click past the jump to read more about the Porsche 918 Spyder.