car to ride: Porsche 918

Showing posts with label Porsche 918. Show all posts

Porsche Confirms 918 Spyder's 7:14 Nürburgring Time, Says it was a One-Lap Attempt

Only a day after the official brochure of the 918 Spyder leaked on the web, Porsche confirmed reports that its hybrid supercar posted a 7:14 lap time at the 20.6 km (12.8-mile) Nürburgring track on September 18.

Porsche said that the prototype was packing 795HP, which is the first time the automaker is being specific about the 918 Spyder's "770HP-plus" output.

While most manufacturers do their best to hide their latest models from prying eyes before their official launch, Porsche has been quite forthcoming about its new supercar, the 918 Spyder.

In fact, it has already released a barrage of information, including the specifications of its 770+ HP hybrid powertrain and (provisional) performance figures: 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph) comes in 3.2 seconds and top speed exceeds 320 km/h (199 mph).

Today, Porsche announced on its Facebook page that the 918 Spyder has lapped the Nordschleife in 7:14’. That's better than most supercars, including its Carrera GT predecessor and the Lexus LFA Nürburgring edition, but behind the "old" Dodge Viper ACR (7:12.13) as far as production models are concerned.

Porsche is done hiding its forthcoming 918 Spyder supercar and is now looking to gain as much exposure as it can by displaying the hybrid model at select venues like the Gran Turismo Nürburgring Evo 2012 two-day driving event that took place in Germany this past weekend.

The Stuttgart-based sportscar maker unveiled a pre-production development model of the 918 Spyder dressed in a race-inspired livery on the last day of the event.

Obviously, Porsche engineers are trying to make the best of the summer weather in Europe to test as many of their upcoming new models as possible, including the new 911 GT3, spy pictures of which we showed earlier today, and the flagship 918 Spyder.

The hardcore 2013 Porsche 911 GT3 test car was spied on camera in and out of the Nürburgring racetrack.

A new video circulating around the internet has some people suggesting that Porsche may have shown the final-production version of its 918 Spyder to future customers during an invitation-only event in New York.

We cannot say for sure if it is indeed the production spec model, but the car seen here does sport some minor changes over the most recent prototypes caught on camera as well as the ones previewed in official shots such as the Martini Racing version.

For the past couple of months, Porsche has been seen testing prototypes of the upcoming 918 Spyder wrapped in various Martini Racing-themed monochromatic outfits.

Today, we learn that Porsche has completed a deal with the Martini brand, represented by Bacardi & Company Limited, to offer the racing livery on the production version of the 918 Spyder that goes on sale in September of 2013 at a starting price of €645,000 (about US$789,900 at today's exchange rates), excluding taxes and country-specific charges.

Given that, even the sighting of a single prototype of the upcoming Porsche 918 Spyder on a public road is a rare occasion, you can imagine the surprise of this driver who saw not one, not two but three examples of the plug-in hybrid supercar pass by on a highway in Valencia, Spain. Read more »

Spied: New Porsche 918 Spyder Plug-in Hybrid Photographed Inside and Out

Prototypes of Porsche's highly anticipated 918 Spyder hybrid plug-in supercar are popping up left and right in Europe, with the Stuttgart-based automaker's engineers having many creative moments with the car's livery.

This time, our crafty spies caught up with another race-themed 918 Spyder featuring the so-called "Martini Hippie" livery and No12 decals on the doors and the hood.

More importantly, they were able to get up close and shoot the first pictures of the German supercar's interior.

We are not exactly sure how one of our commentators concluded that "When you lead with 'goes for a spin on the Ring' It leads one to believe a video is available" in regards to our previous spy story on the Porsche 918 Spyder, but nevertheless, we'll try to satisfy his request with two freshly shot videos from the Nürburgring Nordschleife.

If we're not hugely mistaken, this is the first time we've heard the pre-production prototype of the upcoming Porsche 918 Spyder in action.

With the Volkswagen Group having more or less completed the takeover of Porsche's sports car business, the Stuttgart-based automaker's officials are now able to focus on expanding their vehicle portfolio.

Of course, we've heard this before, but Porsche execs have a knack for saying one thing today and another tomorrow (see below).

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Porsche Confirms 918 Spyder's 7:14 Nürburgring Time, Says it was a One-Lap Attempt

Leaked Porsche 918 Spyder Brochure Tells us that a Blue Shade will Cost Buyers a Mere...$65,000

Porsche Shows Off 918 Spyder at Gran Turismo Nürburgring Evo 2012

Scoop: 2013 Porsche 911 GT3 and 2014 Porsche 918 Spyder Captured on Film

Did Porsche Pull the Sheets Off the Production Version of the 918 Spyder to a Select Few?

Porsche Seals Deal with Martini to Offer Special Racing Livery on 918 Spyder Plug-in Hybrid

Scoop: Three Porsche 918 Spyder Prototypes Filmed on a Highway in Spain

Spied: New Porsche 918 Spyder Plug-in Hybrid Photographed Inside and Out

Spied: The Sounds of the Porsche 918 Spyder from the Nürburgring

Porsche Mulling BMW 5-Series Rival and a Second Mid-Engine Supercar