1983 Porsche 911 Cabriolet on 2040-cars

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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.

2017 Porsche 911 Carrera First Drive [w/video]

The second seismic shift in the history of the Porsche 911 is happening as you read this. The first came in the late 1990s, when air cooling was thrown out and a more modern, water-cooled setup was put in place. People freaked out, and prices of air-cooled 911s are now skyrocketing. But I'll argue that this second major change is an even bigger deal: The free-breathing, naturally aspirated engine is gone, in its place a smaller, more powerful, turbocharged lump. But there's no need to panic. Purists be damned; "no replacement for displacement" shouters be silenced. This forced-induction heart beats beautifully in the 911's rump. I'm behind the wheel of a 2017 911 Carrera S coupe, stopped at the base of a winding mountain road on Tenerife, the largest of the Spanish-owned Canary Islands off the northwest coast of Africa. A nearly identical 911 is ahead of me, piloted by one of Porsche's test drivers. The road is closed. Hired spotters watch the corners. I'm about to run up the mountain at full charge, Porsche's expert leading the way. This forced-induction heart beats beautifully in the 911's rump. Behind me is the new engine: a 3.0-liter, twin-turbocharged flat-six. At idle, it still has that unmistakably Porsche, horizontally opposed hum. I've got 420 horsepower and 368 pound-feet of torque to work with, increases of 20 hp and 43 lb-ft compared to the old 3.8-liter, naturally aspirated six. If I launch it, I'll hit 60 miles per hour in under four seconds. Power is routed through the Porsche Doppelkupplung transmission – the best dual-clutch tranny in the business – and the fat, 305-section Pirelli PZero tires out back get all that thrust to the ground. There's a strong engine noise, complemented by the sound of the turbos sucking in air via the intakes just below the rear window. And then there's the exhaust. The standard Carrera comes with two large outlets and the Carrera S replaces those with quad pipes. But I've got the optional sport exhaust, not pictured on the car you see here, with two round outlets moved toward the center of the 911's hiney. Not only do they look way cooler, they're a treat for the ears. The Spanish may have decided to tunnel through many of Tenerife's mountainsides, but the pleasure of punching the throttle and letting the exhaust sing easily makes up for any loss of scenic views. The Carrera S' full 368 lb-ft is available right from 1,700 rpm, and there's no lag prior to arrival.

Porsche CEO outlines Cayenne diesel US repair proposal

Porsche has announced a plan to fix the emissions issue on the Cayenne with the 3.0-liter diesel V6, and it includes a software update and the replacement of the catalytic converter on some early examples, according to Reuters. The company believes these repairs are enough to make the SUVs emissions compliant, but the automaker's proposal still needs approval from the Environmental Protection Agency and California Air Resources Board before it can implement a recall. This authorization could come by the end of January. Note that the proposed 3.0-liter TDI plan is separate from the 2.0-liter TDI fix that was rejected by CARB on Tuesday. There are around 13,000 Cayennes on the road that the company needs to repair. Models from 2013 and 2014 would require a new catalytic converter and a software update, but those from 2015 and 2016 would just need the new software. "The technical aspects have all been submitted, we will wait whether there will still be proposals for corrections by the Americans," Porsche CEO Oliver Blume said to Reuters. He wasn't sure how long the repair process would take, but suggested less than half of the affected examples would require the upgraded exhaust hardware. Blume indicated to Reuters that Audi actually created this repair plan. The EPA first issued a violation notice against the 3.0 TDI in early November and later broadened it to around 85,000 vehicles from the 2009-2016 model years, including diesel examples of the Cayenne, Volkswagen Touareg, Audi A6, A7, A8, Q5, and Q7. Audi later admitted the engine contained previously undisclosed auxiliary emission control devices. CARB gave the automaker 45 days to come up with a recall proposal to fix the 15,000 affected models in the state. Related Video: