Originally Posted by 9Magazine.com

Porsche Will Reportedly Debut A New 918 Coupe At The Detroit Motor Show

Porsche has promised us something “spectacular” for the upcoming Detroit Auto Show, and it appears as though the German automaker will deliver on that promise. Since the initial coments made by Porsche spokesman Hans- Gerd Bode, the internet has been buzzing with speculation. Will it be the “Baby Boxster,” the “Cajun” or a varient of the 918 Spyder concept shown earlier this year? All the signs seem to point towards a new variant of the 918.

According to Bloomberg, Porsche will reportedly debut a new 918 Coupe at the Detroit show. “The two-seater vehicle will be a concept race car with a V8 engine relying on about 600 horsepower” said two people with knowledge of the matter who asked not to be identified before the Jan. 10 presentation.

Approval by the Supervisory Board was granted to produce the 918 Spyder Hybrid and it’s expected to make its appearence as a production vehicle in 2014 at cost of over 600K.

The 918 Coupe is being described as a track-only racecar for now. However, it remains possible that the coupe variant will arrive alongside the Spyder in Porsche showrooms in 2014.

Originally Posted by eshaun

Originally Posted by hoggel

Damn! It wood be good to see that running with the F cars, BMWs, and Corvettes in ALMS.

Originally Posted by Nurburger

Glad that I managed to secure some press passes for the NAIAS... Should actually be worth going this year!

Originally Posted by Jez Spinks

Porsche's most controversial model, the Cayenne four-wheel-drive, will get a baby brother in 2015.
VW CEO Martin Winterkorn had hinted at a smaller Porsche off-roader at last March's Geneva motor show, and said the company will get "a new SUV, a smaller brother to the Cayenne which might be called Cajun".

European speculation has pinned a late 2014 or early 2015 on-sale date for the baby Porsche SUV, which has been rumoured for a couple of years and had been expected to be called Roxster.

Porsche is also expected to produce a baby sports car to sit below the Boxster as Volkswagen aims to double Porsche's global sales to 150,000 in the next few years.

Originally Posted by curve lover

Originally Posted by curve lover

Originally Posted by curve lover

Originally Posted by 9Magazine.com

With only hours to go until the German automaker marks its return to the Detroit Motor Show after a four-year absence, speculation has been running wild as to what Porsche has in store for us. Earlier reports pointed towards a racing car based on the 918 Spyder concept from Geneva.

From watching the latest video posted “Countdown to Detroit” it seems our speculation could be right. The camouflaged vehicle seems to be a 918 coupe

Originally Posted by hoggel

Damn! It wood be good to see that running with the F cars, BMWs, and Corvettes in ALMS.

Originally Posted by 9Magazine.com

ATLANTA/DETROIT Jan. 10, 2011 - Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, Stuttgart, is continuing to extend its performance and high efficiency competence via intensive development work in the field of hybrid technology. With the Porsche 918 RSR, the manufacturer of sporty premium vehicles is presenting a high-end synthesis of 2010′s successful hybrid concepts. The two-seater mid-engine coupé 918 RSR clearly reveals what happens when the technology fitted in the 911 GT3 R hybrid and thedesign of the 918 Spyder are transferred to a modern, innovative super sports car.



With its highly-efficient flywheel accumulator, the 911 GT3 R hybrid racing car proved to be an attention magnet during competition racing on the Nürburgring Nord schleife circuit, during the American Le Mans Series races (ALMS) in Road Atlanta/USA and the ILMC run in China’s Zhuhai. It demonstrated its massive performance potential under realistic motor racing conditions against top competitors. The 911 GT3 R Hybrid, referred to internally as the “Race Lab” actually surpassed the high expectations of Porsche Motorsport. Competitiveness, high reliability and exemplary fuel efficiency combined with top performance underscored the Porsche technicians’ basic idea of generating additional power in an intelligent manner. The 911 GT3 R Hybrid obtains its additional power from its own vehicle dynamics when braking. Porsche is now transplanting this technology into the mid-engine coupé 918 RSR, the motor sports version of the 918 Spyder concept car.



From the tradition established by classic Porsche long-distance race cars such as the 908 long-tail coupé (1969) and the 917 short-tail coupé (1971), the Porsche designers created a link to the postmodernism of the “form follows function” philosophy. In the 918 RSR, the lines’ elegant flow is dominated by muscular wheel arches, dynamic air intakes and a pulpitlike cockpit. A visible fan wheel between the ram air intake tubes and a rear spoiler with RS Spyder dimensions additionally emphasise the racing laboratory function. The new “liquid metal chrome blue” colour which has been created underscores the sculptured curves of the forms, whilst the typical Porsche hybrid orange colour on brake calipers and the body’s longitudinal stripes lends remarkable touches.

Motor racing technology also dominates within the particularly light, torsionally stiff carbon fibre-reinforced plastic (CFRP) monocoque. The V8 engine is a further development of the direct injection engine from the successful RS Spyder race car and now offers an output of precisely 563 hp at 10,300 rpm in the 918 RSR. The electric motors on the two front wheels each contribute 75 kW, i.e. a total of 150 kW, to the peak drive power of exactly 767 hp. This additional power, which is generated during braking, is stored in an optimised flywheel accumulator.

In the 918 RSR, the two electric motors offer a torque vectoring function with variable torque distribution to the front axle. This additionally increases agility and improves steering response. Mounted upstream of the rear axle, the mid-engine is integrated with a racing transmission also based on the RS Spyder race car. This further developed six-speed constant-mesh transmission with longitudinally mounted shafts and straight-toothed spur gears is operated using two shift paddles behind the racing steering wheel.



The vehicle’s functional equipment underscores its puristic motor racing character. Whether it be the characteristic doors which open obliquely upwards, the air intake in the roof between the wing doors, the quick-action locks on the front and rear CFRP lids, the two roofmounted terials for pit radio and telemetry, the RS Spyder-like small, lateral front flics or the air splitters beneath the front lip or no-profile racing slicks on 19″ wheels with central locking, the vehicle can be clearly recognised as an experimental racing laboratory.

In contrast to the 918 Spyder concept car, unadorned racing atmosphere predominates in the interior of the 918 RSR. The figure-hugging bucket seat’s brown leather covering cites the history of the gentleman driver; the gear flashes on the racing steering wheel and a recuperation display on the steering column in front of the display screen supply the pilot with information. Instead of the futuristic, ergonomically avant-garde centre console with
touch-sensitive user interface from the 918 Spyder concept car, the 918 RSR’s cockpit is split by a minimalistic console with rocker switches. Instead of a second seat, the flywheel accumulator is positioned to the right of the console.

This flywheel accumulator is an electric motor whose rotor rotates at up to 36,000 rpm to store rotation energy. Charging occurs when the two electric motors on the front axle reverse their function during braking processes and operate as generators. At the push of a button, the pilot is able to call up the energy stored in the charged flywheel accumulator and use it during acceleration or overtaking manoeuvres. The flywheel is braked electro mag netically in this case in order to additionally supply up to 2 x 75 kW, i.e. a total of 150 kW, from its
kinetic energy to the two electric motors on the front axle.

This additional power is available for around eight seconds when the system is fully charged. In the successful 911 GT3 R Hybrid, this additional power can also be used as a consumption aid depending on the racing situation, e.g. to delay pit stops or reduce the fuel tank volume and therefore the weight of the vehicle.

With the new 918 RSR racing laboratory, Porsche is now elevating this motor racing hybrid concept to an experimental level. In the 918 RSR, “Porsche Intelligent Performance” equates to research into methods for further sustainable efficiency improvement under the intensified conditions of the race track, lap times, pit stops and reliability – a metier in which Porsche has been demonstrating its success for over 60 years.

Finally, the starting number, 22, pays homage to the anniversary of a further triumph. Back in the days when overall victories in Le Mans were not yet an entirely routine matter within the Porsche racing department, the pilots Dr. Helmut Marko and Gijs van Lennep were the first to cross the finishing line in 1971′s 24-hour classic. The distance record set by their Porsche 917 short-tail coupé – 5335.313 kilometres (3315.21 miles) at an average speed of 222.304 km/h (138.13 mph) – did not remain unbeaten for an eternity, but for exactly
39 years until 2010. At the time, the 917 in the Martini colours was also an experiment and far ahead of its time: a magnesium space frame set new standards in Porsche’s lightweight construction domain.

Originally Posted by curve lover

^^ ... plus they added a mini-R2D2 unit, improving upon a Honda owner's previous idea

Originally Posted by 9magazine.com

Second Award for the Show-stopping 918 RSR

Atlanta, January 13, 2011—The Porsche 918 RSR, which was unveiled for the first time at the Detroit Auto Show on Monday, received one of the show’s most respected automotive awards- the 2011 NAIAS AutoWeek Editors’ Choice Award for Best in Show.

“Porsche marked its return to the Detroit Auto Show in a big way with the 918 RSR concept, and—like the 918 Spyder concept revealed last year in Geneva—it was the undisputed star of the show,” said AutoWeek editor Wes Raynal.

This marks the second time in less than a year that a Porsche concept car has won AutoWeek’s Best in Show designation. AutoWeek editors hand down Best in Show awards at the world’s major auto shows in Detroit, Geneva, Paris, Frankfurt and Tokyo. Last year, AutoWeek editors selected the 918 Spyder as their choice for Best in Show in Geneva.

Porsche received Detroit’s Best in Show award earlier today during the 17th AutoWeek Design Forum, held at the College for Creative Studies. Porsche Cars North America’s Area Vice President Doug Battie accepted it on behalf of the company.

“To receive this award for the 918 RSR is significant as this car dramatically shows our brand’s commitment to develop products that combine superior performance and high efficiency,” Battie said. “The 918 RSR epitomizes the passion that Porsche engineers and designers have for developing the world’s most advanced—and best-looking—sports cars.”

The AutoWeek designation was the second award collected by the 918 RSR since its debut on Monday.

Earlier this week, the Porsche 918 RSR won the EyesOn Design Award for Best Concept Vehicle introduced at the Detroit Auto Show. The EyesOn Design Award is judged by top automotive design executives and by academics from transportation design programs.

Originally Posted by JPP

I was thinking the 'passenger' in the interior shot looked a lot like an R2D2 relative when I saw it ....