2008 - Porsche Boxster on 2040-cars

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Porsche's 959 is still poster-worthy after all these years

Today, we have the Porsche 918 Spyder. Before that, there was the Carrera GT. While both of those cars are dramatic departures from the traditional, rear-engine Porsche formula, they owe their very existence to another wild child of the iconic German brand - the 959.
Like so many of the great performance cars of yesteryear, the 959 was a homologation special, built just so Porsche could go racing in the clinically insane Group B rally series. Fewer than 400 959s hit the streets, but those that did were some of the most advanced cars of the 1980s. A rear-mounted, twin-turbocharged flat-six sent its power through a still-rare all-wheel-drive system, creating a race-inspired rocket that was, for a short time, the fastest production car on the planet.
Xcar has the story of the 959, from its inception to its conquest of the Paris-Dakar rally, which is interspersed with a drive of the legendary coupe. Scroll down for the full video.

Porsche reveals new LMP1 racecar testing ahead of 2014 Le Mans debut

Getting ready for its triumphant return to the premier racing class of Le Mans, Porsche has released a handful of images showing its new LMP1 racecar testing. Porsche hasn't run a car in the Prototype class at 24 Hours of Le Mans since 2009, but this racecar - still veiled in secrecy - will be expected to battle against the Audi and Toyota LMP1 Prototypes to help bring Porsche its 17th Le Mans victory.
Aside from knowing that it will use a hybrid powertrain to meet LMP1 rules, there are no other details about the car... including its name or potential sponsors. In the meantime, Porsche has set up a microsite, called Mission 2014, to share its extensive history racing at Le Mans. Also, be sure to check out some of the past videos Porsche has released as it gears up for its reborn LMP1 program.

Porsche 919 Hybrid sets new qualifying record at Le Mans [w/video]

Porsche is getting off to a great start at Le Mans this year, setting a new qualifying lap record. Both Neel Jani and Timo Bernhardt clocked qualifying times in the latest Porsche 919 Hybrid that eclipse the previous record. At 3:16.887 and 3:17.767, both Porsche factory works drivers beat the record 3:18.51 qualifying time achieved by Stephane Sarrazin in the Peugeot 908 back in 2008. We should note, however, that these times are for the current track configuration. The outright qualifying record for any configuration still belongs to – you guessed it, also Porsche. Pedro Rodriguez pole position in 1971 in the Porsche 917 at 3:13.90. His teammate Jackie Oliver lapped even faster during the practice session at 3:13.6, and went on to set the fastest race lap that same year, which still stands at 3:18.4. The long and short of it, though, is that Porsche has been and remains the force to be reckoned with when it comes to outright pace around the French circuit. All that remains to be seen is whether the team can translate that pace into victory over the defending Le Mans winners at Audi and the reigning World Endurance Champions at Toyota. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. 24 Hours of Le Mans : Porsche beats all records! As expected, this first day will be have been marked by the domination of the Porsche 919 Hybrid cars during the first qualifying practice and who totally smashed the record of the track. But let's be careful, Audi isn't far behind. In LM P2, an Oreca 05 from Team KCMG finished in front whereas the Aston Martins excelled in LM GTE Pro and LM GTE Am. During the free practice sessions that took place between 4 and 8pm, the competitors began carefully on a drying track after the afternoon rain. The red flag was presented only 5 minutes after the opening of the track because of an immobilized driver who had made a mistake (without any other consequence other than this neutralization) at braking point in the chicane ForzaMotorsport (first of the two chicanes on the Hunaudieres). The British driver Richard Bradley was the cause of this behind the steering wheel of the Oreca 05 n°47 of the Hong Kong team KCMG. The prototype LM P2 was brought back to the pits on the breakdown truck. A little later, the same Richard Bradley did the best time of the free session on this Oreca 05 n°47.