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Roger Rodas' Widow Suing Porsche Over Carrera GT Crash

Investigations undertaken by local law enforcement may have vindicated Porsche from any wrongdoing in the crash that killed actor Paul Walker and racing driver Roger Rodas last year, but the latter's widow is apparently not convinced. According to emerging reports, Kristine Rodas has filed a lawsuit seeking unspecified damages from Porsche Cars North America. In her suit filed with the Los Angeles Superior Court, Rodas' attorney Mark Geragos reportedly disputes the findings of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, which asserted that the vehicle was traveling at an unsafe speed of 90 miles per hour on city streets, identifying the speed as the cause of the accident. Instead the lawsuit claims that the vehicle was only going 55 mph and that the cause of the crash was improper equipment – namely a faulty right rear suspension and the lack of a crash cage and proper fuel tank. "The Carrera GT was unsafe for its intended use by reason of defects in its manufacture, design, testing, component and constituents, so that it would not safely serve its purpose," according to the specifics of the suit obtained by the Los Angeles Times. When reached for comment, Porsche Cars North America spokesman Nick Twork told Autoblog: We are very sorry for the Rodas and Walker family's loss. The crash was the subject of a detailed investigation by the proper authorities (L.A. County Sheriff and California Highway Patrol), and their investigation disproves the allegations in the lawsuit. The investigation found that driving at a high speed in a negligent manner caused the crash and concluded that there was no mechanical defect. The Carrera GT is known as a difficult car to drive. As the LA Times report points out, Jay Leno spun one at Talladega in 2005, and the following year, Porsche paid part of a multi-million-dollar settlement after two were killed on a track when their Carrera GT struck a slower-moving Ferrari. The Rodas lawsuit could very well point to that previous suit from San Diego Superior Court. Whether the court in LA will hand down a similar ruling remains to be seen.

Porsche Australia racing chief dies in crash

The motor racing community in Australia was saddened today to learn of the passing of Jamey Blaikie, a longtime racing administrator and former motorsport director for Porsche in Australia. A former racing driver in his own right, Blaikie was better known for his instrumental role in starting the Porsche Carrera Cup in Australia back in 2003. He left Porsche Cars Australia just last year to pursue other interests, including running an Aston Martin entry in the GT Asia series. Blaikie was in Fiji reportedly undertaking charity work there when his rental car collided with a truck, prematurely ending his life at just 52 years old. Our condolences go out to his family, friends and the motorsport community Down Under, where he'll surely be missed.

2017 Porsche Panamera: Technical details of the world's fastest luxury sedan

In anticipation of our upcoming first drive of the new Porsche Panamera, here's an in-depth look at Stuttgart's new sedan. We already know what it looks like, but now we have details on the powertrain, chassis, and electronics. Let's jump right in. Engines, Transmission, Platform The big news is the all-new twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8 in the Panamera Turbo. It adopts a "hot vee" layout with the turbochargers in the engine's valley. This setup allows for a short run from the exhaust manifold for minimal lag, which is further reduced by the twin-scroll turbos. With 18.8 psi of peak boost, the new V8 pumps out 550 horsepower and 567 pound-feet of torque. As we mentioned, that's just 20 hp behind the outgoing Turbo S. And the Panamera Turbo is quick - good for 0 to 60 mph in 3.4 seconds with the Sport Chrono pack. Yes, launch control looks awesome. This is also the first Porsche engine to adopt cylinder deactivation - in four-cylinder mode the engine can run up to 3,500 rpm with as much as 123 horsepower. To shut down four cylinders at a time, the camshaft on each bank slides to engage a dummy lobe on cylinders two, three, five, and eight. When running in V4 mode, the valves stay closed on the shut-down cylinders. Another nod to emissions and efficiency is a catalytic converter mounted close up near the vee, right behind the turbos. All that heat requires airflow, so there's a dedicated duct from the radiator that routes fresh air over the turbos and catalytic converter. There's an all-new twin-turbo 2.9-liter V6 as well, made with the same 90-degree angle as the V8 because it's based on modular architecture. The V6 lacks cylinder deactivation but keeps the hot vee and adds two-stage variable lift on the intake valve. It is not lacking for power, with 440 hp and 405 lb-ft of torque. Both engines (and the European-market twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8 diesel) mate up to a new eight-speed dual-clutch automatic made by ZF. The new design is 5.6 inches shorter than the seven-speed it replaces and allows for an upcoming hybrid powertrain to be integrated without adding any extra length. The top three gears are overdrive ratios, with the top speed from both engines coming in sixth. Along with leading the development of the new V8, the Panamera is also the first car on the new MSB platform. That's Modularer Standardantriebs-Baukasten for you AP German students; a near-literal translation is modular standard drive.