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Porsche employees take pay cuts so they can build Mission E

Porsche's 13,000 workers in Zuffenhausen, Germany, agreed to work more and at adjusted wages to ensure that the factory can build the production version the Mission E electric performance sedan. Their sacrifices could save the German sports car maker several hundred million euros, according to Reuters. The Zuffenhausen site was possibly in danger of losing the Mission E because workers there receive higher wages than Porsche's other factories. The specific savings from these concessions reportedly include increasing the workweek by one hour to 35 hours and eliminating portions of pay increases between 2016 and 2025. Porsche didn't officially confirm the precise cuts, but a spokesperson told Reuters: "Employer and employees have jointly drawn up measures that have led to the decision of producing the Mission E model at Zuffenhausen." Porsche plans to invest about $768 million into the Zuffenhausen factory over the coming years. That money will help create over 1,000 new jobs and will build a new paint shop, assembly plant, and upgrade the engine factory to produce electric motors. The expansion will also allow the company to move all production of the Cayman and Boxster to Zuffenhausen by August 2016 rather than the current strategy of outsourcing some of the models' assembly to Osnabruck, Germany. The Mission E should enter production by 2020, and Porsche Executive Board Chairman Dr. Oliver Blume promises it to be the "most sophisticated model in this market segment." The concept at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show offered a glimpse at the next-gen technology by presenting a swoopy EV sport sedan with all-wheel drive and a total of 590 horsepower from two electric motors. Porsche claimed the concept could reach 62 miles per hour in just 3.5 seconds and go nearly 311 miles on the European testing cycle.

Porsche 911 GT3 RS spec sheet leaked, promises 500 hp

Axis of Oversteer has three pages of what's purported to be the spec sheet for the Porsche 911 GT3 RS, and it's got a few bolded items noting key differences with the already spectacular 911 GT3. Prime among them is its output, pegged at exactly 500 horsepower and 339 pound-feet of torque, which looks at first blush to be a minor bump: just 25 hp and 14 lb-ft over the GT3, and the redline drops 200 rpm to 8,800 rpm. If the document is accurate, though, there will be a hefty dose of weight loss to make the most of it. The bodyshell and doors are aluminum, carbon fiber reinforced plastic is used for those vented front fenders (the vanes are plastic), the front trunklid, the rear engine cover, and the rear wing, while the roof is made of magnesium and the side windows are polycarbonate. The bucket seats, door entry guards, and other interior trim pieces are also fashioned from CFRP, and it gets lightweight door panels with pull-loops. Elsewhere around the coupe, the body grows wider by 50 millimeters in front and 30 mm in back over a track that's 36 mm wider. There's a pit-lane speed limiter for track days, tinted taillights, an optional Clubsport package with a six-point seatbelt, and GT3 RS logos everywhere. It's looking more and more like this car was developed to define the word "epic." Featured Gallery Porsche 911 GT3 RS spec sheet Related Gallery 2016 Porsche 911 GT3 RS News Source: Axis of Oversteer Geneva Motor Show Porsche Coupe Performance 2015 Geneva Motor Show porsche 911 gt3

Winterkorn will leave remaining VW posts by end of the month

After stepping down as chief executive of the Volkswagen Group last month, Martin Winterkorn still retains a few key positions within and related to the German automaker. According to the latest reports, he's set to resign from those positions as well in the coming days. Aside from his former position as chairman of VW's executive board, Winterkorn has also served (and continues to serve at present) as chairman of the supervisory boards of Audi, truck manufacturer Scania (which is owned by VW), and the group's Truck & Bus division (of which Scania is part alongside Man). He's also the chief executive of Volkswagen's largest stakeholder Porsche SE, having taken up the position after the Porsche/Piech family enterprise acquired its majority stake in the group that also subsumed the sports car manufacturer. In what could prove a strong indicator of things to come, and according to the report from Reuters, Winterkorn was not present at a recent meeting of Audi's board. In his place, the meeting was presided over by deputy chairman Berthold Huber. The former labor leader also served as interim chairman of the VW board after Ferdinand Piech's departure but before CFO Hans Dieter Potsch was named to the post. The companies in question have yet to make any announcements regarding Winterkorn's remaining positions, or confirm the reports regarding his future. However parties close to the automaker and its owners reportedly expect the resignations from those positions to come as well before the end of the month, if not before the week is out. Related Video: News Source: ReutersImage Credit: JOERG KOCH/AFP/Getty Green Hirings/Firings/Layoffs Porsche Volkswagen Diesel Vehicles vw diesel scandal martin winterkorn Scania truck and bus gmbh