by John Glynn | Feb 25, 2015 | New Models, Porsche News
Porsche will launch the all new Porsche Cayman GT4 and another currently unidentified sportscar at next week’s Geneva Show. This second car will (of course) be the eagerly anticipated Porsche 991 GT3 RS.
Porsche Cayman GT4 lead times for delivery
For all the buzz around Cayman GT4, I see very few people mentioning the delivery times. UK buyers dropping money on the counter now won’t see their cars much before the end of 2016 according to feedback from buyers – someone tell me if that is right! You’d think the cars would be in circulation well ahead of that time.
Porsche 991 GT2 development
Stuttgart’s press release claims a lap time of seven minutes and 40 seconds on the North Loop of the Nürburgring for the Cayman GT4, but “leaked documents” regarding the 991 GT3 RS claim a 7 minute 20 second lap time: just two seconds off the fastest-ever Porsche road car at the circuit – the 997 GT2 RS.
Thanks to hints from component suppliers, we know there is a 991 GT2 in development, although whether it will make it to production or not is a different matter (I think has to happen). So we can count on that GT2 laptime being smashed sometime in the future – maybe even by the new 991 GT3 RS in the right temperatures on the right tyres. That would be pretty amazing.
Porsche 991 GT3 RS launch live webstream
The world premiere will take place during the Porsche press conference in Geneva at 11:30 (CET) next Tuesday morning: March 3, 2015. A live webcast of the Porsche Cayman GT4 and 991 GT3 RS launch will be streamed from the event.
by John Glynn | Feb 5, 2015 | Porsche News, Race and Rally
Earl Bamber and Nick Tandy will share Nico Hülkenberg’s Porsche 919 LMP1 Hybrid at Le Mans, it has just been announced. It’s an interesting Porsche choice that slams all who claimed that the team’s Daytona upsets would damage either’s shot at Stuttgart’s top drive.
“It goes without saying that each of these drivers is fast and clever,” said Fritz Enzinger, LMP1 Vice President. “But in the WEC, and especially in Le Mans, there are more qualities to be taken into account. The ability to stay focussed and deliver consistent performances are must-haves for endurance racing. Another factor is team spirit and the skills to integrate into the team. This sport doesn’t make sense for loners.
“Each driver always has to take into account his teammates, as their individual speeds are what in the end are reflected by the Porsche Team’s results. Also a strong understanding is required of the skills and consequences when lapping slower cars. This isn’t for egocentrics either. Drivers have to view everything as the bigger picture. In every regard, I have full faith in our driver line-up.”
Porsche will field three 919 Hybrids for the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June, and also the previous month’s Six Hours of Spa. The Hulk 919 gets number 19. There are no quotes from the drivers, but you can imagine what they will say in the next press release. “Le Mans is the one every driver wants to win, driving the 919 Hybrid is an honour, I like my team mates and they are all mega quick, so we are in with a great shout if the car holds together,” said all three in unison, probably. Porsche won’t repeat the last bit.
Of course it is all true. Driving the 919 for an outright win at Le Mans is an immense privilege, as the pilots carry not just the team and the honour of Porsche, but all of our dreams along with them. It is a highly demanding appointment.
I think the line-up is killer: I am bloody delighted. Bamber and Tandy are fast, intelligent racers who take no prisoners: the perfect complement of skills alongside Nico Hülkenberg. Of course, none of this should take away from the 911 squad. No drivers are more capable of bringing our greatest champion home atop the GT ranks than the works RSR pilots: Christensen/Lietz/Bergmeister in number 91, and Makowiecki/Pilet/Henzler in number 92.
by John Glynn | Feb 4, 2015 | New Models, Porsche News
Porsche has finally released official details of its brand new GT4 Cayman. The car is expected to race.
Powered by a 3.8-litre flat-six engine derived from the 911 Carrera S, the GT4’s 385 bhp is sent through a six-speed manual gearbox with dynamic gearbox mounts. Cayman GT4 goes from 0-60 in 4.4 seconds, and on to just under 300 km/h.
The new Porsche Cayman GT4 shares some components with the 911 GT3. This is nothing super new, as GT3 parts are commonly used in upgrading Caymans: brake master cylinders and so on. But this car goes further, apparently using GT3 parts throughout the chassis. Some will be obvious from the photos, but more details to follow.
New Porsche Cayman GT4 Track Day/Race Mode
Outside, the GT4 majors in race mode. Three large intakes at the front and a sizeable rear wing point to downforce. The aerodynamic package is one part of a track-focused options list that includes ceramic brakes, carbon seats, custom Sport Chrono and a Club Sport package.
The Cayman GT4 premieres at Geneva in March, and can be ordered now for delivery by the end of March. Basic list price in Germany is about €86,000 (which is £65,000, or just under $100,000 according to fxtop.com).
by John Glynn | Jan 26, 2015 | Classic Porsche Blog, Porsche News
The first time I visited my friend Jonas Zambakides at JZM Porsche, I had just come from Autofarm. “How’s Josh?” asked Jonas. “He’s talking about selling the business,” I said. “He’s been saying that since I met him twenty years ago,” laughed Jonas. I could not disagree.
Autofarm is not too far from Ferdinand Towers, so I get down there every so often. On my last visit, a deal to buy the business was in progress – chatting with the buyers was interesting and the contracts have now been exchanged. Porsche 911 RS Carrera guru, Josh Sadler, has sold his Autofarm business to long-time employees: Mikey Wastie and Steve Wood.
Autofarm under New Management
It’s hard to imagine Autofarm without Sadler’s extensive understanding of the 2.7 RS close at hand. Originally founded at the same time as the RS was released, Sadler’s Autofarm became synonymous with the passage of RS Carreras from old homes to new. His famous little black book has more chassis numbers than a Porsche Museum catalogue, and it seems Sadler is not finished collecting them yet.
The new owners have split the business responsibilities, with Mikey running engines, projects and restoration, while former Carrera cup pilot and keen racer Steve will manage the service and storage sides. Sadler stays on in a heritage capacity: there is no better word to describe his core skills in the business of Porsche.
“Stepping back from the day-to-day running allows me to focus on car sales and heritage. As 911 values have risen, provenance has become increasingly important and investors are seeking perfect, correct specification cars. With Autofarm’s expertise and history, we can really help customers,” says Josh.
I don’t claim to know anything about the Carrera RS, but I’ve spent a great deal of time with RS people. Some supposed experts were all smoke and mirrors, and some who I assumed would be largely nonplussed on the subject of Carrera RS and early Porsche race cars like the ST or T/R knew much more than they thought. No doubt Sadler can comfortably hold his own in any RS discussion: I’m glad he will still be around.
Despite his annoyingly youthful appearance, Mikey Wastie’s served a valuable apprenticeship under Sadler, so is not short on knowledge. The company has managed some interesting restoration projects over the last few years, and the new owners will open the doors slightly wider, to bring in a few more modern Porsches. Autofarm will have quite a different flavour with new hands on the tiller: I’m excited for the business – it might need a bigger car park.
by John Glynn | Jan 25, 2015 | Porsche News, Race and Rally
Tuthill Porsche celebrates tonight, following victory in the world-famous Monte Carlo Rally. Driving a Tuthill Porsche 911 in the R-GT category, François Delecour finished almost three minutes ahead of his rival, Romain Dumas, to win the opening round of the R-GT Cup.
“We’ve won rallies in Porsche 911s on every continent, but no rally means more to Porsche fans than Monte Carlo, site of so many classic moments in Porsche history,” said delighted team boss, Richard Tuthill. “To win on this event with the great François Delecour is extremely special: something we will always remember.
Having spent days with the Tuthill crew and most of the weekend keeping tabs on events in Monte Carlo via every available social channel, I know how hard the team worked for this win. Rallying may look like a rock-up-and-ponce-around event, but nothing could be further from the truth. The conditions were deadly: one false move from Delecour or one mechanical failure would have killed the whole effort. Victory in a heavier car with less power than the 4-litre RS of Romain Dumas, a more than worthy adversary, is an excellent achievement.
“An overall Porsche win is no longer possible in the modern World Rally Championship, but we treasure this win just as much,” Richard told me. “Fighting equally committed competitors in capable cars right to the finish was incredible. This year’s Monte Carlo Rally showed just how exciting R-GT rallying can be with more cars taking part.
Delecour in Tuthill Porsche wins Monte Carlo
François Delecour and co-driver Dominique Savignoni set quick times from the start of the 2015 Monte Carlo Rally, building a lead of more than three minutes as they entered the fourth and last day’s rallying. Over the final three stages, including the treacherous Col de Turini, Delecour shrugged off extreme pressure before sealing a memorable victory: the first Monte Carlo Porsche win since 1978.
“This rally has been a huge challenge,” said François. “Snow and ice on the twisty mountain roads makes a great test for the driver! The final day of managing the gap to Dumas while driving quickly to keep concentration was not easy: I am just so happy now! We will celebrate tonight with family and friends, and this amazing team of Tuthill Porsche.”
The Monte Carlo win puts Tuthill Porsche and Delecour on top of the 2015 R-GT Cup: a five-round FIA championship for R-GT cars. The next R-GT round is the Geko Ypres Rally in June, which Tuthill Porsche has previously won in historics, as part of a victorious Belgian championship campaign.
“Ypres is a mega event,” says Richard Tuthill. “Starting with a Monte Carlo win in our pocket, a wonderful car that the fans absolutely adore and this incredible driver and co-driver pairing will be a dream come true. R-GT rallying is a brilliant experience: we want to see more drivers signing up for 2015, hopefully using Tuthill Porsche 911s!”
Photos by McKlein Photography
by John Glynn | Jan 21, 2015 | Porsche Cayenne, Porsche News
Missing my Cayenne at the minute. Long story involving many support vehicles sent ice driving in Sweden, but it is down in Monte Carlo with Tuthill Porsche, towing the Porsche 997 R-GT car into places for testing that the big Tuthill rally truck won’t reach easily.
The 955 Porsche Cayenne V8 is a big old girl and it sucks up plenty of fuel, but you do get attached to its sublime waftability. “I had a trouble-free eighteen months with a Cayenne Turbo,” agreed Porsche professional Cris in a daily driver thread on ImpactBumpers.com. “They are nonsense quick for a fat bird, quicker than the contemporary supercharged Range Rover and better on fuel. Although better than very bad is still awful.
“Downside of selling it is now all other cars seem rubbish, including the other half’s newish Golf 1.4 TSi. I’m ruined and am now saving for a Cayenne again: a GTS this time or maybe a diesel V6.”
After a holiday romance in the Canaries last Christmas with a cute little Citröen Berlingo rental, I crunched the numbers and buying a new Berlingo diesel was cheaper than running the Cayenne over the next three years. I looked at maybe changing for a Citröen, but I worried I might miss the Cayenne too much. Then I corrected an omission in my original workings and the man-maths more or less balanced out, as the Big Pig continues to manage the equivalent of 35 mpg while driven hard and running on propane gas. So I forgot my holiday romance.
Cayenne pining reached a peak as I flicked through some unopened mail this evening and found last month’s copy of Panorama. The magazine of the Porsche Club of America ran some great features through 2014, and this latest edition carried another cracker titled Real Genius: an excerpt from Randy Leffingwell’s Illustrated Porsche Buyers Guide, covering the genesis of the original Cayenne.
Butzi Porsche helped design the Cayenne
The story confirms our blog from a few months back on how the Porsche Cayenne was originally planned as a Mercedes joint venture, but Randy also learned from Cayenne designer, Steve Murkett, how Ferdinand Alexander ‘Butzi’ Porsche helped shape the 955 Cayenne.
“Butzi had always been an SUV enthusiast,” said Steve. “He said if we were going to design an SUV, he wanted to be directly involved.”
Steve tells how Butzi started coming very month, looking at the models. Eventually, F.A. came straight out and said he would design Porsche’s new vehicle. This did not go down so well with the design department, who had been working for years on the E1 SUV project. A Land Rover Defender would act as peacemaker: a Land Rover that Burkett ended up buying from the extensive fleet of SUVs and 4x4s purchased by Weissach for competitor evaluation.
“The Land Rover has absolutely nothing to do with what a Cayenne is, but for me it is an icon,” says Burkett. “It has character. I developed a pretty good relationship with Butzi, probably because he had a Defender as well. Anytime we got into a stalemate where we couldn’t agree about anything, we started talking about tyres on our Defenders.”
Butzi did work on a Cayenne design and the two concepts eventually went to the management for a final decision. Burkett’s design won, but he is honest about F.A.’s hand in the styling. “There is no doubt about Butzi’s contribution to the simplicity of the Cayenne. It doesn’t have all the little muscles and edges seen on BMW X5 or Mercedes ML, but that was Butzi’s thing: keep it simple.”
The complete feature could transform your opinion of the Cayenne: there is so much Porsche engineering in these cars. It makes me want mine back even more! For less than £10 new and delivered on Amazon UK, the Illustrated Porsche Buyers Guide is worth a read: it’s not the dry buyers’ guide you might expect.
