PORSCHE Finale Models?

In the 911 world, the most recent beast to emerge is the GT2 RS.  With a record 620 HP on tap, the Autobahn storming car lapped the famous Nordschleife in only 7:18, over 10 seconds faster than Porsche’s mid-decade super car, the Carrera GT.  Not content with merely adding power, Porsche shaved off 154 lbs. from the previous GT2, making the power to weight ratio less than 5 lbs. per horsepower.  If you want one, you’d better not wait long, there are only 500 being built.  The GT2 RS will debut at the Moscow Auto Show this August.

For the light and nimble purists, the Boxster Spyder is now appearing in dealer’s showrooms, and a white one will be this year’s PCA raffle car, with the winner announced on the 5th of July.  Not content with the regular Boxster S, Porsche’s engineers pared 176 lbs. off, designing a new top, adding aluminum door skins, and a stunningly beautiful rear deck, complete with humps leading to the roll hoops.  The basic Boxster Spyder has no radio or air conditioning, though they can be added back in as no cost options.

The 3.4 L 9A1 motor has been ECU-tuned to 320 HP, a new peak for Boxsters, but the really special feature is the chassis, featuring sport suspension and a limited slip differential.  No adaptive dampers or other digital tech, it rides suspended on old school shocks and springs, fine-tuned, wearing forged 19” wheels.  The editorial response have been raves, even the most discriminating of reviewers, Excellence’s Pete Stout writes, “This is a genuinely fast car, one that’s deeply satisfying to use on a back road…”

I highly recommend a trip to Porsche’s website to review the particulars, and download the wallpapers – I love the one parked under the overpass in a shower, also available from dealers as a poster, captioned, “Roofs weight too much.”    ALSO A GOOD READ:   Pete Stout’s review.

In Porsche business news, you may remember that ambitious takeover plan from 2009, the one in which Porsche SE lead by Dr. Wendelin Wiedeking attempted to take over Volkswagen AG.  The Great Recession quashed Porsche’s line of credit, and the takeover failed.  Bloomburg has reported that some stockholders weren’t so happy with the $177M Porsche’s management board received, given the takeover failed, and thus filed suit.  A Stuttgart court dismissed the minority investor’s lawsuit, finding in favor of Porsche SE.

Porsche’s May Sales in the U.S. are down 5% from 2009, awaiting new Cayenne models coming this summer, but Boxster sales are on the upswing, up almost 30% from last year.  Leading the charge is Peter’s favorite, the Panamera, with 605 heading out the door.  My dealer has sold 10 of them, and more on the way.  CPO cars are also booming, with 812 being sold, versus 693 in May of 2009.  In Germany itself, there’s a mixed blessing of news, auto exports were up 46% from May 2009, but domestic sales are way down, 34% lower than in 2009.

Speaking of Panameras, rapper Kanye West’s cousin has been doing crash testing of Kanye’s Panamera, totaling it by failing to turn on Hibiscus Drive in Hawaii and plowing into a garage. Police had a difficult time extracting the car from the structure, but apparently the Panamera’s safety features worked well – witnesses saw three men running from the scene.

Irritated by an Autobahn overtaking lasting more than 5 kilometers, German Transport Minister Peter Ramsauer told a German newspaper he wants the states to institute a ban for trucks passing on the Autobahn, citing “staus” or traffic jams, costing Germany up to 100 billion Euros each year.  I can only imagine what he’d think of the left lane hogs in the U.S.

If you’ve wondered whether there’s a correlation between the economy and number of citations, a recent study shows indeed, there’s a direct correlation. The Federal Reserve Bank’s Thomas Garrett and Gary Wagner analyzed data from 1990 to 2003 and found, yes Virginia, it correlates.  Take a look at their study, on the St. Louis Fed web site:    http://research.stlouisfed.org/wp/2006/2006-048.pdf

In a related note, not only more tickets are being written, the buffer above the posted speed limit is shrinking as well, reports USA Today in this story.

JIM MILLICK, guest author