1982 Porsche 930 Turbo * Tastfully Modified * on 2040-cars

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Porsche unlocks secrets of its mid-engine 911

Porsche is beginning to realize that it's sitting on a goldmine of automotive history with its secret vault full of rare cars. Autoblog toured it a few months ago, and we were amazed at all of the curiosities hidden inside. Now, it's starting to let more folks in thanks to a new series of YouTube videos. The first covered the 965 prototype that shoved a water-cooled, Audi V8 into one of its cars. Next up, a mid-engine 911 that acted as the powertrain test mule for the Boxster.
The Porsche 911 is inextricably linked to its rear-engine layout. They go together like peanut butter and jelly. However, at the time Porsche was developing the Boxster, the company didn't want to lay all of its cards out of the table during testing. As opposed to using camouflage, it put a whole different car on top. The prototype looked just like any other 911 Targa of the day, but the biggest giveaway that something was amiss was the heavily tinted rear window. By obscuring it, inquisitive journalists couldn't peak at the new engine that replaced the backseat.
It might not look like anything too important on the outside, but this is a major piece of Porsche Boxster history underneath. Scroll down to watch the video about this fascinating prototype.

Ruf RGT 4.2 offers 518 hp of naturally aspirated power

Ruf has a reputation for building some fast interpretations of the Porsche 911, and the company's latest RGT 4.2 at the Geneva Motor Show provides an interesting point of comparison compared to the new GT3 RS that's debuting there. In terms of pure power, the Ruf wins out. The company crafts a flat six with 4.2-liters of displacement making 518 horsepower and 369 pound-feet of torque with a top speed of 200 miles per hour. In contrast, the latest GT3 RS gets 500 ponies and 338 lb-ft of twist from its direct-injected 4.0-liter mill. Depending on your desires, the RGT 4.2 might have the preferred gearbox too with its six-speed manual versus the Porsche's PDK. Styling is also going to come down to personal tastes between these two. The RGT 4.2 has an almost old-school racing look with its bolted-on fender flares, five-spoke wheels, thick carbon fiber rear wing and lower front air dam. Inside, there's also an integrated roll cage. The RS, on the contrary, appears thoroughly modern with its big fender intakes at the back, slashes just behind the front wheels, CFRP hood and magnesium roof. Check out Ruf's naturally aspirated monster on the Geneva show floor in the gallery, above. The RGT 4.2 maintains a long tradition of Ruf supercars with its outrageous driving performance. Unveiled in 2000, the first RGT was characterised by its powerful, torquey normally-aspirated flat-six engine. With a significantly reduced all-up weight and sports-oriented suspension system, the RGT was an extremely impressive driving machine.Now, in 2015, the RGT remains true its original concept, though its external appearance is clearly more athletic. The wheel arches are more bulbous and the front facade presents huge round air intakes for more effective cooling. The chassis is reinforced by RUF's hallmark Integrated Roll Cage (IRC). Propulsion is provided by its virile 4.2-litre six-cylinder, normally-aspirated engine, developing 525bhp and 500Nm of torque, featuring dry sump lubrication with external oil tank. A proper driving machine for sure POWER 525 PS / 386 kW @ 8.370/min TORQUE 500 Nm @ 5.820/min DISPLACEMENT 4178ccm TRANSMISSION 6-speed manual gearbox TOP SPEED 322 km/h FUEL CONSUMPTION urban 19,8 l/100km non-urban 9,8l/100km combined 13,6 l/100km CO2 emissions 317g/km Effizienzklasse G Related Video:

The 10 car brands most expensive to maintain over 10 years

Car maintenance has got to be one of the least fun things you can do with your free time, right behind going to the dentist and filing your taxes. However, depending on the brand you buy, your time spent at the shop could be much more than you bargained for. Consumer Reports’ new study on the most- and least-expensive-to-maintain car brands found that European car companies are most likely to break your wallet with costs nearly five times that of the automakers at the other end of the spectrum. Land Rover had the highest ten-year maintenance costs, at an average of $19,250. Porsche was second worst with $14,090 in costs. 10 car brands most expensive to maintain over 10 years: Land Rover: $19,250 Porsche: $14,090 Mercedes-Benz: $10,525 Audi: $9,890 BMW: $9,500 Volvo: $9,285 Infiniti: $8,500 Acura: $7,800 Mini: $7,625 Subaru: $7,200 The Euro brands at the “top” of this list arenÂ’t all that surprising. Land Rover has consistently landed as one of the most expensive vehicle brands to maintain for years now, though Porsche is generally viewed as being one of the more solid performance brands. That could suggest that some models donÂ’t always require more repairs, but the fixes they do need are significantly more expensive. Tesla, Buick, and Toyota were the three cheapest to maintain car brands, with 10-year maintenance costs of $4,035, $4,900, and $4,900, respectively. Consumer Reports noted that these numbers could be slightly skewed due to the fact that some automakers offer free maintenance for the first few years of ownership, and all companies cover their new vehicles for at least a few years after the purchase. Routine maintenance is a great way to avoid costly repairs over time, as itÂ’s much cheaper to catch a problem before it starts causing other issues. Check your oil, rotate your tires, and avoid driving like a wild person, and youÂ’ll likely fare much better than others, even if you own one of the scarier-to-maintain brands.