Following the spy shots revealed yesterday of the upcoming Porsche 911 Turbo playing in the snow is a fantastic bit of news about what it will be carrying under that luscious hood. Turns out, the 911 Turbo will be powered by a 3.8 liter, horizontally opposed six-cylinder engine, but not equipped with a twin-turbo system as one would expect. Instead, Porsche is following in BMW’s footsteps by offering a tri-turbo system.
This system is currently in the final phase of development and, according to the first details, will help raise the engine’s output from the current 495 HP to somewhere in the region of 525 HP — or the same as that of the current 911 Turbo S. It will include the usual twin turbochargers found in the current engine, but will get a smaller unit mounted close to the engine to boost low-end response. This system will also improve fuel economy and reduce CO2 emissions.
Once this tri-turbo system is complete, not only will it fit in with the 911 Turbo, but will also get dropped in the next-generation 911 GT2 and GT2 RS.
A few days ago, the Audi RS6 Avant prototype was out testing in the snow, giving our spy photographers an opportunity to capture it in action. After that, it was high time to do a little magic and come up with a new rendering of the production version, so here it is.
While building the new RS6 Avant, Audi focused on reducing the weight by as much as possible, so the production version will have plenty of elements built from lightweight Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic (CFRP). That reduction of weight will benefit the 4.0 TFSI bi-turbo V8 engine that will be under the hood of the RS6 Avant. This engine was borrowed from the S6 and S8 models, as well as the new Bentley Continental GT V8. It delivers 500 HP, or possibly up to 550 HP, getting rather close to the 580 HP of the current RS6 Avant and its V10 engine.
Let us know what you think about our rendering in the comments section below!
Lately, all of Europe has been under piles of snow and, for some automakers, this means that it’s the perfect time to test the capabilities of their newest models. The upcoming Porsche 911 Turbo Coupe is now joining the long list of models taken out to play in the snow. Although the model has dropped some of its camouflage since the last time it was caught on camera, the bumpers and the air intakes on the side are still well hidden, completely hiding their real shape.
Just like the standard 911, the new Turbo version will adopt a sportier appearance, as well as a powerful engine. It will be powered by a 3.8-liter flat-six engine that will deliver about 550 HP. The engine will be mated to an improved manual gearbox as standard, or an optional PDK gearbox. The PDK will have with no less than seven forward gears, combining the driving comfort of a converter automatic transmission with the dynamic gearshift of a sequential racing gearbox. The Porsche will also feature brake regeneration and stop start systems.
The new Porsche 911 Turbo Coupe is expected to make its world debut at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show in March and go on sale later in the year.
BMW is doing a running jump into the diesel market by releasing a few new variations in one day. The highlight of this trio of diesels is the long-rumored M550d xDrive scheduled to appear at the Geneva Motor Show in March 2012. In Germany, the M550d xDrive will go on sale at a starting price of 80,800 euro ($104,500 at the current exchange rates) for the sedan and 83,750 euro ($108,400 at the current rates) for the station wagon version.
The BMW M550d xDrive is the first model to come from BMW’s latest M Performance Automobiles division and is joined by the X5 M50d and X6 M50d. All three models will share a new tri-turbo straight-six diesel engine that delivers a total of 381 HP and a peak torque of 546 lb-ft. In the M550d xDrive, this power is just enough to sprint the car from 0 to 60 mph in just 4.7 seconds, while top speed is limited to 155 mph. Fuel economy comes in at 44.8 mpg.
UPDATE 01/26/2012: This review has been updated with the official images and specs for the BMW M550d xDrive.
Full story
The new generation BMW M6 is preparing to rev its way to dealerships in Summer 2012 after its debut at the Geneva Motor Show in March and its promising to be the most powerful super-coupe in BMW’s history. Its twin-turbo 4.4-liter V8 engine with 552 HP and 502 lb ft of torque makes it capable of running its owner to their job on a daily basis, as well as running the track in superior fashion. That being said, a BMW insider has stated that the M6 should not be referred to as a "pure sports car." That designation should be left to the super car that the BMW M Division is trying to develop, again.
"M wants to build its own car. BMW has a great heritage of super-coupés and the M6 is the latest part of that. But we also want to do something that we can call a ’super sports car’."
By the time this M Division super car is ready to be launched, BMW is hoping it will take on vehicles like the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG with ease. BMW and its M Division have been trying to come up with a business case for the future super car for a long time, using the BMW M1 Hommage (pictured above) as a starting point. When that concept first debuted in 2008, it was rumored to get a powerful V10 5.0 liter engine capable of delivering 600+ HP, even though the original 1978 BMW M1 only pushed out 270 HP.
We figure that if BMW can attempt at least a happy medium between the original 270 HP and the rumored 600 HP, then the M Division’s super car may be a tough contender in the tough "pure sports car" market. Let us know what you think in the comments section below!
