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Hi Eduardo!
Have you heard anything about the forthcoming 911R? Based on your experience, could such special and limited edition units be custom ordered as well?
Saludos from Spain!
JM
Hi Eduardo!
Have you heard anything about the forthcoming 911R? Based on your experience, could such special
and limited edition units be custom ordered as well?
Saludos from Spain!
JM
Hola JM:
In general, the Limited Editions they do in smaller batches are the ones less likely to be allowed
to be heavily customized. Usually that is the case because PAG subcontracts the interiors which
will feature some special colors or embroidery...and they want to simplify the ordering process.
The MY2010 'Sport Classic' Limited Edition (250 units worldwide) was a case in point.
Below is a 'Sport Classic' on display currently at Porsche Leipzig which I photographed in July:
I don't have any direct source information on the upcoming 911R, but a person well connected
to the 918 VIP program has reported to me the following information that he has heard on what
to expect:
- over 500HP
- very very light: interior mods, etc.
- manual
- limited numbered run (between 500-911 produced, not decided on exact number yet)
- worst news ever: most likely no PTS (white only)
- announced and shown at Geneva 2016
- probably going to be the swan song of 991 generation and become as valuable as 997 GT3 RS 4.0 cars
So if this report is accurate, there will be very little opportunity to customize this model.
But it's all speculation at this point, so take it with a 'grano de sal'.
After a long search for a uniquely configured (pre-owned) 991S, I finally drove home in this car. Originally configured by Brett Payne, at Sonnen Porsche, the car was posted by Edouardo awhile back as an example of creative configurations for red interiors that are tasteful (subjective, of course).
Thanks to Edouardo, for providing background on the car before I bought it. I drove through Marin and spent some time with Brett (who also showed me his stunning 991).
I have the build list, but it can also be found back in this thread, posted by Edouardo.
Apologies but I don't have any good pictures of the red contrast stitching, which runs all around the car (doors, dash, rear, steering column). Will add soon.
Cheers
PS: I received a "gift" from the California Highway Patrol about 90 minutes into my drive home. Great start
Last edited by LDV; 10-25-2015 at 04:24 PM.
Reason: Forgot to add details
After a long search for a uniquely configured (pre-owned) 991S, I finally drove home in this car.
Originally configured by Brett Payne, at Sonnen Porsche, the car was posted by Eduardo awhile
back as an example of creative configurations for red interiors that are tasteful (subjective, of
course).
Thanks to Eduardo, for providing background on the car before I bought it. I drove through
Marin and spent some time with Brett (who also showed me his stunning 991).
I have the build list, but it can also be found back in this thread, posted by Eduardo.
Congratulations, Larry. Glad I could be of minor help on this matter after you found the car for sale
as a traded-in/pre-owned at Mercedes of Santa Rosa. And I am glad you were able to meet Brett at
Sonnen before you drove it back home to Southern California. It is an unusual build with those 'red'
seats...which I think are just awesome! You will not find many builds like this, so this is a great find!
For the information of others reading this post, below is the link to the original thread where we
discussed this particular vehicle when it was for sale new at Sonnen back in December of 2013:
'Directors Say Volkswagen Delayed Informing Them of Trickery' Article from the NYT dated Oct 23rd:
"At least three members of Volkswagen’s board said they were left in the dark about the company’s emissions cheating for two weeks after top executives admitted the deception to American environmental officials...If Mr. Winterkorn did not know about the communication with the American regulators, he was unaware of a fundamental threat to the company. If he was aware, he withheld significant information from members of his 20-member supervisory board...It was a 'grave mistake' for Volkswagen executives to withhold information as long as they did, Mr. Weil said on Friday in a statement. He noted that American regulators had raised red flags about Volkswagen emissions in 2014. 'Talks took place for a full year before Volkswagen admitted the deception,' Mr. Weil said. 'This confession should clearly have occurred much earlier'...Some outsiders expressed surprise that Mr. Winterkorn, known for his attention to detail, would have been unaware that E.P.A. officials had been asking for more than a year why Volkswagen diesel cars had far lower emissions in laboratory tests than on the road. 'I find it very improbable,' said Ferdinand Dudenhöffer, a professor at the University of Duisburg-Essen who follows Volkswagen closely. 'He was always the one who wanted to know everything'.
Volkswagen initially contested findings by independent researchers and the E.P.A. in 2014 that showed big discrepancies between the pollutants that its cars generated on the road compared to lab tests. Then, on Aug. 21, 2015, at a conference in Pacific Grove, Calif., organized by the University of California, Davis, a Volkswagen official informally mentioned to a senior E.P.A. official that the company had been deceiving regulators. The revelation surprised the official, Christopher Grundler, who runs the agency’s Office of Transportation and Air Quality. Standing next to him at the time was a regulator with the California Air Resources Board, according to an E.P.A. official who confirmed the events, earlier reported by Reuters. In a Sept. 3 conference call with officials from the E.P.A. and the state of California, company executives detailed how Volkswagen vehicles were programmed to trick emissions-testing equipment. An E.P.A. spokeswoman declined to identify the Volkswagen officials who have been in talks with the agency."
Comment: In the history of modern management I doubt that that there is a similar instance where a corporate 'official' has admitted to government officials that his company was willingly deceiving regulators in this manner without the presence of legal counsel..unless he was a whistleblower. If he is not the latter, he must be the most naive and 'stupid' individual that has ever worked for a corporation in such a capacity and there will be a special 'dark' place in the annals of corporate business history for this 'dumb ***'. In fact this case might require, from now on, any government official that hears such a 'confession' to read to the corporate employee that is babbling away his 'Miranda' rights and alert him/her that they has a right to remain silent & in the presence of legal counsel before he /she continues to 'talk' & make such self-incriminating admissions.
The only sensible solution once VW realized the 'defeat device' deception could no longer be contained, or explained away, was to let their legal department & governmental affairs personnel handle the sensitive negotiations leading to their admission (at last resort) of some sort of 'wrong doing'. And negotiate a 'plea bargain' deal from the 'prosecutors'. The least intelligent and totally reckless behavior was to admit to both the EPA and CARB the 'fraud' in an informal at some 'academic' function involving a California university.
If corporations could be run like a military organization, this VW official would merit the firing squad...for sheer stupidity. Unless he is a disgruntled employee & whistleblower. Inquiring minds want to know more about who this VW official was...
****
'VW suspends key exec in emissions rigging scandal, reports say
Winterkorn said to be in clear over diesel engine cheat' From Article on Automotive News on Oct 25th:
Comment: It's too early in the investigation to 'clear' Winterkorn. You will see what I mean as the investigation continues & grows.
****
'German Minister Heads to U.S. for Talks on Volkswagen Scandal /
Meetings with U.S. counterpart and EPA officials as worries over fallout to economy rise' Artilce in the WSJ dated Oct 23rd
Comment: Another visible & tangible proof that the German Government will not abandon VW to its 'fate' in the hands of US government & other foreign regulators. Angela Merkel's appearance with Matthias Mueller is not without significance. See WSJ article above re: increasing German government involvement in the 'problem' with US authorities!
****
'Financial Times Reports EU was Warned About Vehicle Emissions Rigging in 2013' Article in Industry Week about a FT report dated Oct 25th:
'The European Union's top environmental official warned his colleagues that automakers were rigging European emissions tests in 2013, long before the scam was uncovered last month, the Financial Times reported on Sunday...Top EU regulators were aware of test manipulation two years ago, but allowed regulatory loopholes to remain, according to the FT, which cited an exchange of letters between officials. 'There are widespread concerns that performance has been tailored tightly to compliance with the test cycle in disregard of the dramatic increase in emissions outside that narrow scope,' EU environment commissioner Janez Potocnik wrote to industrial policy commissioner Antonio Tajani in February 2013, according to the newspaper.'
Comment: Other European auto manufacturers making diesel-engined models might have been doing the same thing as VW to 'rig' their diesel emissions too. The task now is how that information will surface in the press and the implications for the other auto manufacturers with regulators here & abroad.
****
Finally, did you ever wondered how rigorous was the testing by the West Virginia University on diesel emissions, who was included in their investigation and the reason why they were chosen? If so, read this little gem of a story:
'Volkswagen emissions scandal was uncovered because boffins couldn't afford posh cars' Article on The Mail dated Oct 19th:
''The Volkswagen emissions scandal was uncovered only because researchers could not afford to test more expensive cars, The Mail on Sunday can reveal. The American engineers who discovered that Volkswagen used a ‘cheat device’ to pass emissions tests said they originally wanted to test Mercedes and BMW vehicles, but the cars were too pricey to rent. Instead, they used a VW Passat and a VW Jetta saloon – without knowing the cars were fitted with the device to help them pass emissions standards. A BMW X5 sport utility vehicle was also used. The testers spent a month driving the three cars around California with specialist monitoring equipment. The results showed the two VW models would pump out as much as 40 times the allowed levels of nitrogen oxide. When this was later corroborated by the US Environmental Protection Agency and California Air Resources Board, it sent the German car firm into near meltdown.
Daniel Carder, who led the testing team from the Centre for Alternative Fuels, Engines and Emissions at West Virginia University, said: ‘We didn’t set out to trap Volkswagen – it was just that we could spend less money on using their cars.’ More than 11 million cars are being recalled worldwide, with 1.2 million of those in the UK. VW, which yesterday said it had been forced to drop the Royal Warrant from its communications in the wake of the scandal, has set aside £4.7 billion to deal with the fallout from the scandal, but analysts at Credit Suisse say it could cost it closer to £56 billion. Meanwhile, a survey found that public trust in the car industry has been badly damaged, with nearly eight in 10 people now saying they expect more manufacturers to be drawn in to the scandal'.
Comment: To survive, VW will have to prove that it was not the only one rigging the emissions on its diesel engines. Slowly it's coming out that other diesel car manufacturers were/are suspect...it's just that VW were the cheapest cars the investigators could afford to purchase for testing. That lid has now been blown on 'diesel gate' ...and everybody & everything claimed that is diesel-related will be suspect & tested. And that is what might save VW in the end...and why the German gov't might have to come to the rescue by telling the US & other regulators that the problem is universal to the European (and perhaps the ROW) diesel industry and they (the regulators) can't make VW an scapegoat (nor a sacrificial lamb) because it could destabilize the entire German & European economic (and thus political) system due to the importance of the auto industry to the EU.
Saludos,
Eduardo
Presently in Seattle
Follow this other thread too: "More Information on the Resignation of Ferdinand Piëch from the VW Supervisory Board!"
Hola Eduardo,
As with most of the members of this forum, your help was crucial in configuring my new 911 of which I took delivery on 5th January 2015. Its been almost 9 months of sheer enjoyment that now I would like to share with all of you by posting some pictures of 3 of the 4 911’s that I have owned over the past 30 years, with the only exception of a C2 996 Cabrio of which I cant find any photographs.
Starting with the current one, this is the result of our (you and the members of the forum, and I) combined effort in custom ordering a MY2015 991 C4S in Agate Grey with Cognac and Expresso interior. Many thanks and keep up your fantastic work!
Saludos desde España,
JM
10-21-2015, 08:42 PM
