Driving Motor & Sport

10/08/2018

Rally concept Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport
Fans are in for a real treat at the ADAC Rallye Deutschland contested from 16-19 August: A very special course car, the Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport, will run ahead of the starter field. For Porsche, the entry of a concept study for the FIA R-GT category based on the near-production GT circuit race car is a critical test under real conditions. Whether this turns into a rally project for customers with a similar vehicle in the medium term will be decided at a later stage.

Driving the vehicle is Porsche works driver Romain Dumas (France), who is considered one of the best all-rounders in the motor racing scene. For the last twelve years, the Le Mans winner has contested rallies around the world with his own team. Dumas has also won the legendary Pikes Peak hill-climb four times and holds the course record there. The factory drivers Richard Lietz (Austria) and Timo Bernhard (Germany) are also seasoned rally drivers and were involved in the test programme with the Cayman GT4 Clubsport concept rally car.

The Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport, which has been campaigned at clubsport level worldwide since the 2016 season, is powered by a 283 kW (385 hp) 3.8-litre flat-six engine. The mid-mounted engine drives the rear wheels. The vehicle features a Porsche dual clutch transmission (PDK) with shift paddles on the steering wheel. For rallying, full underbody protection has been fitted. An energy-absorbing foam element, as used in WRC cars, has been mounted in the doors.

“We’re looking forward to seeing how the rally world responds to our FIA R-GT concept study,” says Dr. Frank-Steffen Walliser, Vice President Motorsport and GT Cars. “I would like to invite every interested driver and team principal to visit the service park and take a close look at our rally concept car. Based on the feedback and the interest from potential customers, we will then decide by the end of the year whether we’ll develop in the mid-term a competition car for near-standard rallying based on a future Porsche model.”

29/06/2018

Nordschleife record of Timo Bernhard and the Porsche 919 Hybrid Evo

Timo Bernhard (D) lapped the 20.832 kilometre (12.94 miles) Nürburgring Nordschleife race circuit in 5 minutes and 19.55 seconds. This results in an average speed of 233.8 km/h (145.3 mph) on what is revered by race drivers, engineers and enthusiasts alike as the world’s most difficult track. Driving the Porsche 919 Hybrid Evo, Bernhard beat the previous lap record, set by Stefan Bellof, by 51.58 seconds.

For 35 years and 31 days Bellof’s 6:11.13 minutes record remained uncontested. The German driver from Gießen, who tragically died at Spa-Francorchamps in 1985, counted as the biggest racing talent of his time. He drove his record on May 28 in 1983 at the wheel of a powerful 620 bhp Rothmans Porsche 956 C during practice for the 1000-kilometre WEC sports car race. Also his average speed was over 200 km/h.

29/06/2018

Porsche fabulous Nürburgring lap time

17/06/2018

24 Le Mans: Julien Andlauer (Porsche 911 RSR #77): “At 18 years of age I was given the chance to contest Le Mans for the first time and then we won. I’m very proud of the whole team and I can’t really believe it yet. Now I’m the youngest Le Mans winner, incredible.”

17/06/2018

Double victory for Porsche at the 24 Hours of Le Mans

Porsche has won the 86th edition of the Le Mans 24 Hours in both the GTE-Pro and GTE-Am classes and has extended their lead in the FIA WEC Championship.

In the factory-run Porsche 911 RSR with the starting number 92, Kévin Estre (France), Michael Christensen (Denmark) and Laurens Vanthoor (Belgium) crossed the finish line first in the GTE-Pro class on Sunday afternoon.

Second place went to the #91 sister car driven by Richard Lietz (Austria), Frédéric Makowiecki (France) and Gianmaria Bruni (Italy).

In the GTE-Am class, the Porsche Young Professional Matt Campbell (Australia), Christian Ried (Germany) and Porsche Junior Julien Andlauer (France) took the flag in first place for the Porsche customer team Dempsey-Proton Racing. This makes 18-year-old Andlauer the youngest class winner in Le Mans history.

21/02/2018

The new Porsche 911 GT3 RS

The Porsche motorsport department is presenting Weissach’s latest treat at the Geneva Motor Show: the 911 GT3 RS with motorsport chassis and 383-kW (520-hp), four-litre, high-speed naturally aspirated engine. The new high-performance sports car is based on the 911 GT3, which has been refined still further to combine the performance-enhanced engine with a running-gear setup that features re-calibrated rear axle steering designed for maximum dynamics and precision. The 911 GT3 RS accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 3.2 seconds, reaching a top speed of 312 km/h. Following the launch of the 911 GT3 and the 911 GT2 RS, this latest release will see Porsche present its third GT road-approved sports car within a year.

Aerodynamics and interior based on the race trim
Aerodynamics have determined the design of the wide, weight-optimised body with its classic rigid rear wing. The racing look continues into the interior with full bucket seats made of carbon to provide secure lateral support in response to high-level driving dynamics. Lightweight door panels with storage nets and opening loops, reduced sound absorption and the new lightweight rear lid further emphasise the consistency of the material choices.

The most powerful naturally aspirated engine at 520 hp
The four-litre, six-cylinder naturally aspirated engine from Porsche in the new 911 GT3 RS pushes the sports car to new limits: The flat engine delivers 15 kW (20 hp) more than the engine in the previous model and the 911 GT3. Together with a speed range reaching up to 9,000 rpm, it was the ideal choice as a thoroughbred sports engine. Combined with the specially calibrated seven-speed PDK, the high-performance engine guarantees an outstanding driving performance.

Motorsport-inspired chassis and Clubsport package
Technology straight from motorsport ensures that the chassis offers exceptional driving dynamics. Ball joints on all arms provide even greater precision than conventional elastokinematic bearings. 20-inch lightweight wheels with newly developed 265/35 sports tyres on the front axle enhance agility and steering behaviour, while 21 inch wheels with 325/30 tyres at the rear axle improve traction.

As with all current GT sports cars, the Clubsport package is also available for the 911 GT3 RS at no extra cost. The package includes a roll-over bar, a manual fire extinguisher, preparation for a battery disconnect switch and a six-point belt for a sporty driving experience.

Weissach package and magnesium wheels for additional weight savings
For particularly ambitious drivers, the Porsche motorsport department has created an optional Weissach package for a further weight reduction. The package features additional carbon components for the chassis, interior and exterior, as well as optional magnesium wheels. In its lightest configuration, this package reduces the weight of the 911 GT3 RS down to 1,430 kilogrammes.

05/02/2018

Porsche to invest six billion euro in electromobility

Porsche has been putting together an unprecedented future development plan: By 2022, the sports car manufacturer will invest more than six billion euro in electromobility, focusing on both plug-in hybrids and purely electric vehicles.

The decision was made by the Porsche AG Supervisory Board at its most recent meeting. “We are doubling our expenditure on electromobility from around three billion euro to more than six billion euro”, explains Oliver Blume, Chairman of the Executive Board of Porsche AG. “Alongside development of our models with combustion engines, we are setting an important course for the future with this decision.” The plans have been bolstered significantly to include around three billion euro of investment in material assets, and slightly more than three billion euro in development costs.

From the additional sum of three billion euro, some 500 million euro will be used for the development of Mission E variants and derivatives, around one billion euro for electrification and hybridisation of the existing product range, several hundred million for the expansion of sites, plus around 700 million euro in new technologies, charging infrastructure and smart mobility.

In Zuffenhausen, a new paint shop, dedicated assembly area and a conveyor bridge for transporting the painted bodies and drive units to the final assembly area are currently being constructed. The existing engine plant is being expanded to manufacture electric drives and the body shop will also be developed. Investment is also planned for the Weissach Development Centre. The Mission E project has created approximately 1200 new jobs.

The purely electric Mission E sports car has a system power of 600 hp, meaning that it will require significantly less than 3.5 seconds to sprint from 0 to 100 km/h; it will also be able to accelerate and brake repeatedly without any loss of performance, and it will offer a range of 500 kilometres in the NEDC. The charging time will be very short: Thanks to the 800-V system voltage, it will take just 15 minutes for 400 kilometres.

Comprehensive rapid charging infrastructure
Porsche, along with Audi, is representing the Volkswagen Group in Ionity, a joint venture with the BMW Group, Daimler AG and Ford Motor Company. The goal of this venture is to construct and operate 400 powerful rapid charging stations along the major European traffic routes by 2020. Construction began back in 2017. To complement the work of Ionity, the Porsche dealer network is becoming part of a nationwide rapid charging infrastructure.

Plug-in hybrid fast becoming a success story at Porsche

The release of the new Panamera sees the third generation of the Porsche plug-in hybrid drive on the road in two different variants. Both variants offer a purely electric range of up to 50 kilometres. The Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid is the flagship model in the model line – it offers the perfect combination of exceptional performance and maximum efficiency, with a four-litre V8 engine and an electric motor generating a system power of 680 hp. The model is the sportiest car in the luxury segment – and not in spite of, but because of its hybrid drive system.

And customers seem to be very pleased with the hybrid models available: Since the market launch, around 60 per cent of all vehicles in this model line delivered in Europe were equipped with these state-of-the-art drives. This figure was significantly higher on incoming orders in some countries and even reached around 90 per cent in Scandinavia.

02/02/2018

Grid girls will no longer feature in Formula 1 from the start of the 2018 season.

01/02/2018

12/01/2018

TOYOTA GAZOO Racing unveils the GR Super Sport Concept, a concept car that incorporates hybrid technology honed through participation in the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC), along with its test car, to the world today at Tokyo Auto Salon 2018.

27/12/2017

Long-standing partners ensured success of the Porsche LMP1 project

Over 100,000 km, over 350 tyre changes and more than 600 hours on racetracks all over the world. We'd like to say thank you to our partners and sponsors for ...