"Time running out on the development of the 911..."
03-23-2009, 08:49 PM
#18
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03-23-2009, 08:52 PM
#19
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I agree. It's time the cayman went racing. Nicely balanced, less weight and better weight distribution. a Cayman RSR will be able to go faster than a 911 RSR.
As far as the 911 going away.... I seriously doubt it. It is a sports car legend that is still relevant today. if it moves to a mid-engine layout, the +2 seats are lost, and it becomes a Biggie size Cayman. I think it is more likely to stay a rear-engined 2+2 sports car.
As far as the 911 going away.... I seriously doubt it. It is a sports car legend that is still relevant today. if it moves to a mid-engine layout, the +2 seats are lost, and it becomes a Biggie size Cayman. I think it is more likely to stay a rear-engined 2+2 sports car.
03-23-2009, 08:55 PM
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03-23-2009, 08:55 PM
#21
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well actually I don't agree .... I feel the boxster payed for the development of the Cayenne , and the Cayenne payed for the development of the CGT.
03-23-2009, 09:34 PM
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The label "grand tourer" is harder to attach these days. I think a good indicator for a "GT" 2 seater or 2+2 model is whether it sells more equipped w/ automatics than manuals. If sold mostly as slushboxes = GT, mostly manuals = sports car. Based on that, I'd guess that these models are:
G37 = GT
M3 = sports car
370Z = sports car
Lexus SC 430 = GT
MB SLK = GT
928 = GT
911 = sports car
Of course, transmissions like the PDK will make my rule of thumb harder to use.
There are other metrics, like luxury features vs. weight, ride vs. handling, etc. It seems the lines between GT, sports car, luxury car, and even coupe vs sedan have been blurred as of late...
G37 = GT
M3 = sports car
370Z = sports car
Lexus SC 430 = GT
MB SLK = GT
928 = GT
911 = sports car
Of course, transmissions like the PDK will make my rule of thumb harder to use.
There are other metrics, like luxury features vs. weight, ride vs. handling, etc. It seems the lines between GT, sports car, luxury car, and even coupe vs sedan have been blurred as of late...
03-24-2009, 11:10 PM
#25
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There was a Porsche engineer interviewed in a recent Panorama and he was asked if there would be a mid engine 911 and if they would race the Cayman. He said a mid-engine 911 is possible but they will not build it and that they would not race the Cayman because the 911 is THE focus.
03-24-2009, 11:31 PM
#26
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The head of Porsche racing was at the ALMS in Toronto and he said that exactly. there will be ONE racing platform and it will be the 911. It would be two expensive to develop 2 racing platforms and they would rather keep the focus on the 911. They already have their hands full keeping up with the ferraris. The new RSR was used in Toronto and it wasn't even close to the F cars.
03-25-2009, 06:31 PM
#28
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My biggest hangup on the Boxster is that it was never concieved of, or developed, for racing by the factory. The Cayman kinda follows in that concept. However, I have always admired the Boxster for its nod to the past-it really embodies all the benchmarks Porsche achieved in the early years. It is truly a world class sports car that gets a bad rap. With ease in ownership, service, and driving the Boxster/Cayman is a special car.
The 911 chassis has distinct merits on track endowed from the original concept. It's as good now as it ever was. The rear mounted,flat engine layout is not the novelty other camps(BMW) would like to have you think.
The 911 chassis has distinct merits on track endowed from the original concept. It's as good now as it ever was. The rear mounted,flat engine layout is not the novelty other camps(BMW) would like to have you think.
03-27-2009, 08:34 AM
#29
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If you go back to magazine articles from the time of the first 911, all of them tout what a great GT car the new Porsche was.
03-27-2009, 11:12 AM
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Watching the Sebring 12 hour race I heard one of the announcers mention "a little birdy told me" that there may be something new coming from Porsche, hinting that the 911 has reached the "end of it's development". He said "not today, not tomorrow, but possibly in a year or two". He failed to elaborate...does anybody know anything about this? Is Porsche giving up on the rear engined layout? ..or are they talking about a V8 "911"? All speculation on my part, FWIW. The only other thing they added was "remember, you heard it here first!"
Last edited by DDD; 03-27-2009 at 12:26 PM.