Should the term “truck” also apply to SUVs?

* Yep: 21% (50)
* Nope: 38% (92)
* Come on, let’s focus on Porsche CARS here!: 41% (98)

Total Votes : 240

Personally, I feel a bit victorious here. Throw out all the indecisive answers and clearly a Porsche Cayenne should NOT be referred to as a “truck”!

Every time I come across a video like this, it makes me want a Porsche Cayenne Turbo. Some day I’m going to own one of those. At least for a short period. See for myself if it lives up to all the hype of reviewers and owners.

This video is an interesting pairing of a Porsche Cayenne Turbo against a Porsche 911 Carrera 4S. Track times are surprisingly close.

Great Pictures at The New York Times ‘Origins of Porsche’ – Paul, the mostly silent half of PorschePerfect.com, sent me this yesterday. The New York Times did a little feature called Origins of Porsche in their collectible cars section. 12 great pictures of Porsche 356′s. My favorites are #1 and #6. Definitely worth checking out here: Origins of Porsche.

China eyeing the #1 market for Porsche – Right now they’re #3, and moving up the ranks quickly. What’s very interesting to me is that China is the world’s largest market for the Porsche Cayenne. Evidently the well-heeled and high-ranking military figures love the Cayenne. Get this, when they go on sale there, the Cayenne S will fetch $217,000 and the Turbo a cool $300,000. A deposit of $30k is required just to get on the waiting list! [Via TheTruthAboutCars.com]

Porsche working on electric sports car – We’ve known for a while that Porsche has been dabbling in EV cars. The push, in my opinion, really started to fire up when RUF released their electric 911. Though a bit short on range, it showed some true promise in the EV sports car sector. When Porsche released the 918 Spyder, they definitely tipped their hand and made all of us used Porsche mortals salivate at the technology we’d see trickling down to our hand-me-down Porsche ranks in the not so distant future. So it comes as no real surprise to hear Porsche officially say it’s electrified three Porsche Boxsters as research cars. Will be interesting to see what comes in the next year or two and which model, aside from the 918 Spyder, is first in line for an electric version. [Via The Independent]

Porsche Cayman Clubsport could hit the streets in 2012 – Planet-9.com is pushing the rumor that we’ll be seeing a Porsche Cayman Clubsport edition in 2012. Details are speculative at this point, but here are the specs that the rumor mill seems to be most confident in so far:

333hp 3.4L engine
Sport PASM suspension – 20mm lower than stock ride height
A/C, stereo are optional
162-184lbs lighter than stock Cayman S
Aluminum doors, fabric door pulls
19″ unique lightweight wheels
Restylized front fascia
Rear diffuser
Ducktail-style larger rear spoiler (fixed)
Optional “Track Pack”, includes partial roll cage, harness and fittings plus fire extinguisher (europe only)
Cited performance numbers – 0-62 in 4.6s
Base Price: $66,330
[Via Planet-9.com]

Porsche Cayenne Turbo will kick butt in 2011 form – The more I see the Cayenne Turbo, the more I want one. These are one heck of a performance SUV. When I read the short review on Motor Trend’s Truck Trend, I wanted one more than ever. 0 to 60 in 4.4 seconds, yet fuel economy that rivals the 2010 V6 model?! Unbelievable! How long before some brave soul enters one of these bad boys in a track series? [Via Blogs.TruckTrend.com]

The first is a bastardized Porsche Cayenne. A reader on Jalopnik.com came across an older Asian man that was literally supergluing fake rhinestones onto his Porsche Cayenne in the parking lot of a store. He had already added reflective tape, thermometers, compasses, pins, badges and lights as part of his customization treatment.

Add it to the long list of sad things people have done to Porsches over the years.

[Source & Images: Jalopnik.com]

2011 911 GT3 RS – Smokey and the Bandit Edition

I’m not sure what to think about this customized Porsche 911 GT3 RS. It’s a Smokey and the Bandit version styled after the 1977 Pontiac Trans Am from the movie. Great movie, especially for a car nut, but this rendition just doesn’t sit quite right.

Maybe the person who owns this is an avid fan and is pushing for a remake of the movie with a Porsche as the star car.

[Source & Image: RideLust.com]

Panamera Race Car

N.Technology has decided that given how well received the Porsche Panamera has been, it should also do well on the track. They’ve focused on the Porsche Panamera S and have made what appear to be extensive modifications, at least to the exterior, to make it race ready. It’s already 1212 pounds lighter than a stock Panamera.

Here’s a quote from the driver, Fabrizio Giovanardi: “We are very pleased with the work today, a really good way to start the development of the Porsche Panamera S! My first impressions on the car are positive, even this has been the first real check on the track. Thanks to today´s activities, engineers have now a good amount of data available to better prepare the next testing sessions. We expect to debut in the Championship at Mugello (July 25) and continue to better development in the coming weeks.”

Given all the room in the back of the Panamera, maybe they should sell rear passenger seat time for the race. They could fund their entry with the proceeds.

[Source & Image: N.Technology.it]

Maybe my dad is right. Maybe the Porsche Cayenne is really just a vehicle for those with too much money to show you how much money they have.

This is darn near as bad as the Porsche pulling the travel trailer. I wonder if someone at Porsche is keeping track of all these uses to help with new product development?

This guy isn’t going to win any awards on camera. He’s probably a good writer. However, this is a decent walk around of the new 2011 Porsche Cayenne. I have to say, I’m starting to like the Cayenne more and more. My dad claims he’ll disown me if I ever bought one. Says they’re what people with too much money drive to show they have SO much money.

Hey, if I buy a Porsche Cayenne AND a Porsche 928, I’ll be wifeless and fatherless. And again my immaturity comes out. All I can think about is how they’re telling me not to buy them. Makes me want them all the more.

This is one heck of a sweet video. Especially the first couple of minutes. Porsche never ceases to amaze me with their videos. I love the Cayenne ripping through the field, then on the track. Some great footage and interesting explanations of some of the technology the Cayenne takes advantage of.

I love the first 2 minutes of this video. Some of the old footage, the shift to new and ESPECIALLY the old 911 Turbo. If you don’t make it through the whole thing, at least watch the first couple minutes.

One of the wild things I remember about a visit to the Philippines when I was in high school was all the rip off stuff they had available for dirt cheap. You could buy the latest cassette tape (sorry, showing my age there), VHS movie, computer software, etc. for pennies on the dollar compared to what it cost in the States. You could also buy Ralph Lauren Polo label clothing for next to nothing and other famous brand accessories for a few bucks.

Course, when you looked closely at what you were buying, you could ALWAYS tell the difference. A lot of it was cheap knockoff crap. I still fell prey to some of it. What can I say? I was just a kid who didn’t know any different.

I was a bit surprised, but not overly so, to see pictures of this Huatai B35 supposedly to premiere at the Beijing Auto Show in the next month. Looks like a rip off of a Porsche Cayenne spiced up with a Bentley grill. Surely Porsche is going to put a stop to this. Especially with their sales projections for China in the coming years.

I’m sure if you look closely enough at it, just like the Ralph Lauren Polo shirt, you’ll see the cheap knock off for what it really is.

[Source & Image: Carscoop.Blogspot.com]

Porsche seems to contribute to my imaginative thought all too often with new features they put into their cars. Everything from the hybrid system to little safety “nuggets” that are constantly moving us down the road towards the eventual Jettson era. When I read about the Lane Change Assist (LCA) feature that Porsche is including in the new Cayenne, I couldn’t help but think we’re just a few small steps away from the Cayenne being able to drive itself.

The Lane Change Assist is an optional system that monitors the area behind the vehicle and the blind spots to the right and left. At speeds above 19 mph, radar sensors kick in and alert the driver of a vehicle in the blind spots or approaching quickly from behind. There’s no active intervention to help you avoid hitting someone. Just an alert that comes up in the mirror.

As much as I love this technology, one question I had is would it be annoying. An alert in your mirror every time a car came up behind you or passed you would get pretty old, pretty quick. Now if it gauged the speed a car was coming up from behind or correlated alerts with the proximity your Cayenne was in relation to a car in the blind spot, that would be very useful. It would also keep the thing from going off constantly.

Regardless, I still love seeing the little ways Porsche works to enhance the technology included in it’s vehicles and their resulting safety implications. I’m confident that George Jettson was driving flying a Porsche in all those cartoons. They just removed the badging because there were no licensing/advertising deals in place.

[Source & Image: Porsche.com]