1982 Porsche 928 on 2040-cars

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Charles Morgan drives a wicked air-cooled Porsche 911 GT2

Porsche has made a fantastic array of driver's cars over the years, but few can still drum up the kind of excitement as the first 911 GT2. It launched in 1993, based (appropriately enough) on the 993-generation model to serve as a homologation special, and remains a cult classic over two decades later. So to review one, the blokes at Carfection brought in Charles Morgan, former managing director of his family's sportscar manufacturer. The 993-gen GT2 was the first of its breed, packing a 3.6-liter twin-turbo flat-six cooled by air and good for 430 horsepower, all driven to the rear wheels through a six-speed manual. It had a full roll cage, plastic fenders riveted over the wider track, and... little else. It was raw, engaging, and extremely rare. Only 57 road-going examples were made, and these days they're trading hands for stupid money that only investors could afford – but could not afford to drive lest it crash into a write-off. Little wonder that Harry Metcalfe opted for a non-original example that had been brought up to GT2 spec in the aftermarket, and that's what Mr. Morgan is driving here as well. That may make it less authentic, but it still looks like a blast to drive along twisting country roads. See for yourself in the eight-minute clip above, brought to you by the same chaps who used to make the Xcar videos. Related Video:

Porsche offers a closer look at the Mission E's design

As Porsche's first fully electric sports sedan to go on sale, the production version of the Mission E concept could revolutionize the company's products. It's vital to get the look just right because of so much riding on the upcoming EV, and a new video from the German sportscar maker offers a glimpse inside the Mission E's design process. When Porsche decided to create a four-seat sports car with an electric drivetrain, the designers started by creating a series of drawings that became clay scale models. While they don't look too different from the final shape, this video gives us a look at several different design sketches for the Mission E. The designers tacked up pictures of the brand's models and took some ideas from them. For example, the smooth nose has a resemblance to the front of the 718 RSK racecar from the late '50s and early '60s, and the Mission E also has cues from the current 919 Hybrid. The interior design process proceeded similarly. The stylists wanted to carry the look of the 911 into the future. For a cutting edge cabin, they also included elements like gesture recognition and holographic displays. In concept form, Porsche claims the Mission E all-wheel drive EV powertrain makes 590 horsepower, and Porsche promised a 311-mile range under the European testing method. Production should begin around 2020 at an updated factory in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen, Germany. The company's workers at the plant even agreed to adjust their wages to make sure assembly happened there. Related Video:

Buyers resent low inventories, prices over MSRP, study says

Vehicle inventory low, vehicle transaction prices high, customers fretting … welcome, J.D. Power, to the era of supply and demand. In a recently published survey from one of the auto industryÂ’s top analytical firms, findings show that customers' satisfaction with vehicle purchases in the United States this year has dipped for the first time in 10 years. The 2022 U.S. Sales Satisfaction Index (SSI) Study found that overall sales satisfaction has dropped to 786 (on a 1,000-point scale) from 789 in 2021. In that year, higher than expected trade-in values softened the effect of new vehicle price increases. But in 2022, on top of trade-in prices shrinking, many dealers elected to charge more than the ManufacturerÂ’s Suggested Retail Price, a factor that did not sit well with buyers. “When dealers charge more than MSRP, particularly with long-term loyal customers, they risk a potential long-term negative effect on customer advocacy and service business," said Chris Sutton, vice president of automotive retail at J.D. Power. Satisfaction among buyers who paid more than sticker price is 757, while satisfaction among those who paid the sticker price or less is 850, the Power report said. The lack of dealership inventory was also a customer irritant, J.D. Power found, a point that automakers and their dealers may want to consider. Many have maintained, or considered maintaining, a smaller inventory in the wake of the pandemic, keeping costs down and driving more customers toward factory orders. Regarding those consumers shopping for electric vehicles, the survey said that more than a third of them “failed to get instruction on EV charging before they left the dealership, which notably affects satisfaction.” Said Sutton, “Salespeople donÂ’t need to show gas-powered vehicle buyers how to fill their tank, but they do need to show EV buyers how to charge their vehicle.” There are positives to the Power conclusions, however, especially for Alfa Romeo dealers. The Italian brand ranked highest in customer satisfaction among premium brands with a score of 833, with Porsche a very close second (831) and Lexus (819) third. Alfa is on something of a roll these days, with its compact Tonale crossover due for release in the spring, and a new sports car in the works. Meanwhile, in PowerÂ’s “mainstream brand”” segment, Buick ranked first with a score of 825, followed by Dodge (816) and Subaru (804), all performing higher than the industry average.