I’ve been mulling over the Porsche Boxster E since the trio of cars showed up at the Michelin Challenge Bibendum in Berlin in May. Two Boxster E models were represented: one car containing two electric motors, and two cars with just one electric motor. The tests of the day were successful as far as Porsche was concerned. Their engineering team, I’m sure, gleaned loads of valuable test and real world experiential data as a result of the outing.

Interestingly, the Boxster E with two motors turned out some decent specs for Porsche’s first all-electric offering:

• 0 to 62 mph in just 5.5 seconds
• Top speed that’s limited to 124 mph
• 107 miles of driving pleasure
• Road ready weight of 3,527 lbs

Specs are fairly close to a Porsche Boxster S. Not bad. The two motor Boxster E will recharge in 9 hours on 220 v power. What’s interesting about the dual motor version is the increased efficiency of the drive unit as a result of two motors being used. More power is recovered due to more energy being captured during braking.

Here’s part of my hang up though. From the Porsche press release:

Because all Boxster Es are comparatively quiet on the road, Porsche engineers have designed an Active Sound Design system that provides drivers with acoustic feedback as well as alerting any passersby.

Now call me crazy, but it just feels like we’re getting away from some of the things that have not only defined automobiles, and specifically Porsches, but part of the allure and thrill of driving these cars in the first place. At the point where we have to manufacture a sound track not produced by the engine itself, I start to think we’re moving too closely to the Jetson era where none of us will even be able to enjoy the thrill of driving any longer.

I know electric cars are coming (heck, they’re already here), and it’s an important step in the evolution of the automobile. I’ll even admit I thought the Toyota Prius was the best thing since sliced bread when I first saw it and wanted one I could mod to double the battery power. Essentially coming close to what Porsche has done with the Boxster E, minus the good looks and power.

Maybe it’s all the futuristic “what will the road be like in 20 years” articles I’ve been reading lately, but I’m starting to wonder if I really want an Electric Porsche. This despite feeling the Tesla Roadster is one heck of a cool sports car. I guess I fear losing what I’ve come to love about Porsche (and other exotic greats like Ferrari and Lamborghini)…the sound…and possibly the place to even drive these cars if the bumper-to-bumper self-driving car predictions are to be believed.

That said, I know there is much to be gleaned from Porsche’s tests of the Boxster E. What they’ve put together with the Porsche 918 Spyder surely hasn’t disappointed! Nor has their advancements on the track with the Porsche 911 GT3 R Hybrid. I gladly embrace those cars as true Porsches through and through. I trust Porsche knows how to maintain the fabric woven into the brand and the cars they’ve successfully created for so many years. Maybe I just need to embrace change a bit more readily.

Would love to hear what you all think about an Electric Porsche and what that means for the future of the brand.

[Source & Images: Porsche]

This is no surprise and one of the true benefits to large auto conglomerates like the Volkswagen Group. They’re able to take the best of the best and build out models much more quickly and efficiently under other brands. In this case, the Porsche Panamera and Porsche Cayenne may serve as the base for future Lamborghini models.

First up, a reborn Lamborghini LM002, a model we saw back in the 80′s, may use the next generation Porsche Cayenne SUV platform to build a successor. The LM002 was a monstrous SUV with a hefty price tag to go with it. A rich man’s Hummer of sorts. I remember seeing one in a museum in Germany. The thing just seemed massive. Talk is that the Lambo SUV would use a V12 power plant from in house.

Second, a production version of the Lamborghini Estoque, a four door concept car shown at the 2008 Paris Motor Show, is rumored to be on the table. Underpinnings being considered are the Porsche Panamera platform.

I love Lamborghini, but I’m not sure how I feel about them making an SUV and/or a 4 door sedan. Very similar position to Porsche in the last decade or so. I suppose there are worse things a supercar manufacturer could delve into. In one sense, they are very good at building incredible cars. The Aventador promises to push the envelope in both performance as well as technological advancements. Maybe it’d be interesting to see what they could turn out with 4 doors or mountain eating capabilities.

Regardless, I once again love to hear that Porsche has developed technology sister companies are wanting to take advantage of. Makes me proud to be an avid Porsche fan.

[Source & Image: AutomobileMag.com]

A couple of weeks ago, Porsche officially announced it would be building the Porsche 918 Spyder concept car it showed off for the first time at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show. Dealers are taking orders for the $845,000 Über Porsche for delivery towards the end of 2013.

As a side note, I can’t imagine spending nearly a million dollars on a car I’m not going to see for at least two and a half years, possibly more if any production delays enter into the picture. Guess there are some seriously patient rich people out there.

The Porsche 918 Spyder reminds me of the Porsche 959 back in the 80′s. I just caught the Top Gear episode where they test drove a Porsche 959 alongside a Ferrari F40. Such an advanced car for it’s day. The 918 Spyder promises to be the same for today.

Here are some highlights:

• 500+ hp 4.0 liter V8 with a pair of electric motors providing a combined boost of 218 hp (at a minimum)
• Fuel economy on the order of 3.0 L every 100 km, which equates to nearly 16.5 mph, based on the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC)
• Manual roof system with removable panels you can store in the front luggage compartment
• 7 speed PDK transmission
• 0 to 60 in just a touch over 3 seconds
• Estimated top speed of 199 mph
• Anticipated times around the Nürburgring Nordschleife in under 7 min, 30 sec
• Capability of reaching speeds up to 94 mph solely on electric power
• Batter rechargeable via a standard household outlet

This is going to be one heck of a car. Fast, efficient, and filled with technological advances. One of those cars we see from Porsche once a decade or so.

Can’t wait to see one of these babies parked at the local Papa Murphy’s for a pizza pickup.

Found a link to this teaser video while looking for another press release. The Porsche Museum spent the last four years restoring building a replica of the world’s first fully functional hybrid car created by Ferdinand Porsche back in 1900. The Semper Vivus, which means “always alive” is a testament to the commitment to ground breaking technology Porsche was founded on. You gotta see the video if you haven’t already.

The Semper Vivus will be make an appearance at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show which starts in a couple of days, then be on display at the Porsche Museum.

If you haven’t subscribed to the Porsche Channel on YouTube, consider at least checking it out regularly. Some amazing videos posted by Porsche.

I came across this video a while back and bookmarked it. Just watched it again. It talks about the company behind the hybrid technology used in the Porsche 911 GT3 RS Hybrid race car. Dang amazing. Worth the short watch if you haven’t seen it already.

I’m usually on the fence a bit about Jay Leno and his car related content, but this clip from Jay Leno’s Garage is a pretty interesting walk around of several Porsche race cars by drivers and Porsche staff. I especially liked the Patrick Long segment.

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]

This is a pretty cool video of the Porsche 911 GT3 R Hybrid. They have some great cutaway shots of the car highlighting the technology. I’m excited to see how this car does in production on the track.

This is a pretty cool feature I was reading a little more about today. It’s called dynamic cornering lights and comes standard on the new Porsche Cayenne Turbo. The basics are when you come wheelin around a corner, the electronics account for a number of factors like speed and how hard you’re cornering, and turn the headlights into the corner to help you better see what’s coming up on the road.

Here’s a little bit from Porsche’s site:

As you turn into a bend, the dynamic cornering lights automatically adjust to provide better illumination of the road. The system uses a series of sensors to monitor the speed, yaw velocity (speed of rotation around the vertical axis) and steering lock to calculate the characteristics of each corner. Based on this data, the system then calculates the optimal angle of illumination, up to a maximum swivel angle of 15 degrees on the Bi-Xenon headlight units. As a result, the corner is easier to see, and potential obstacles are easier to identify.

If that isn’t cool enough, Porsche has also included something called static cornering lights. Check it out:

The static cornering lights are extremely useful when turning at an intersection, even at lower speeds. Depending on the amount of steering lock applied, they can, for example, provide helpful illumination of an unlit side street.

Both, as I mentioned, are standard on the new Cayenne Turbos, and available as options on the standard Cayenne and the S models.

This is one of those areas that you don’t always expect technology to make that big of an impact and surprises you when it does. Sure there are better lights and whatnot, but this has the potential for being a game changing enhancement that will improve safety on the roads. Porsche has even integrated dynamic leveling and a cleaning system into the whole setup.

Porsche is once again proving it’s forward thinking and attention to improving not only safety but the driving experience. Won’t be long and we’ll be adding features like this to our next mini-van.

Before you dismiss this as “too technical”, you have to watch the video. Porsche rigged up a test system for it’s engine that looks like it’d be more at home at your local carnival than at the Porsche factory (think tilt-a-whirl). The video is short and it’s worth watching.

In a nutshell, Porsche has put the 911 dry-sump lubrication system on steroids. It now has four separate scavenge pumps to suck the oil out of the engine. So no matter where the oil is thrown inside the engine, it can be sucked out efficiently and made ready for the pressure pump to reuse. They even saw a 3 hp gain by going to this system. You can read more about it in the nice little summary post CarAndDriver.com put up a few months ago.