Steven Ortiz, a 17 year old California high school student, managed to slide behind the wheel of a Porsche Boxster by bartering various items on Craigslist.

Ortiz started with an old cell phone and wheeled and dealed his way through cell phones, iPods, dirt bikes and a MacBook Pro. Steven eventually managed to trade go from a souped up golf cart and an old Toyota 4Runner to a 1975 Ford Bronco. While Steven used the Bronco as a trade for the Boxster, the Bronco, which is fast becoming a collectors item, might have been the car for Ortiz to stick with. The costs of maintaining a Bronco are lower, it has more room for high school girls his buddies and has a kind of retro cool that the Boxster doesn’t.

On the other hand, is there anything cooler than being in high school and showing up for class in your own Porsche? The best part is that Steven earned the car himself, not from his parents wallet or some crappy menial jobs, but a bit of hustle and 14 smartly executed trades. Hopefully Steven will execute a good 15th trade and dodge the oncoming maintenance and insurance bills.

[Source: Jalopnik]

Porsche‘s $630,000 918 Spyder isn’t the only new sports car the company is seeking to add to its lineup. According to reports from Bloomberg, the German sports car maker is set to debut a new line of smaller roadsters set to slot in below the current Boxster.

A sub-Boxster model has been rumored for years, but the Bloomberg article contains the first concrete evidence pointing towards it, quoting Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn as confirming the new model.

Winterkorn’s assertion lends credibility to the rumors that one platform will spawn not only the new Porsche, but the Volkswagen Bluesport roadster and the long-rumored Audi R4, albeit with different engines that are representative of their respective brands.

[Source: Bloomberg]

Porsche‘s decision to sell a four-door sedan, over the loud objections of “diluting the brand,” appears to have been vindicated, as the Panamera climbed to the top spot in the Porsche sales race, moving an impressive 678 units in April. The fact that the Panamera is a pretty expensive car, and not an entry level model like a Boxster or Cayenne, shows that the market for pricey performance sedans is still there, and the Porsche brand is strong enough to challenge both the Mercedes and BMW’s of the world as well as more niche players like Maserati and Jaguar.

Porsche’s total sales were down about 6% in April, but the company remains optimistic – as they should, when a six-figure sedan is selling like hot cakes.

[Source: TopSpeed]

Porsche has just announced the opening of a new $100 million museum on Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen to celebrate the history of the famous German sportscar maker. This 60,250 sq.-ft. building was designed by Viennese architects Delugan Meissl and houses displays with 80 important models.

The museum collection, however, totals 400 vehicles and the 80 shown at any given time will change frequently. Porsche is proud of its driving heritage and so vehicles will regularly be taken out of exhibits and driven or even raced.

Along with the exhibits, Porsche intends to use the museum as a location to hold events and the building also houses a restaurant and even a cigar lounge. Automotive journalists, authors and historians will appreciate the fact that the museum includes an archives which will be made available to them.

Among the most significant exhibits at the new museum, Porsche lists the following:

A 1939 Type 64. Known as the original Porsche, this 33hp vehicle was built by (and raced by) Ferdinand Porsche in the Berlin-Rome long-distance race.

A 1950 VW Beetle. With 21.5 million units sold this original Beetle represents the original People’s Car, which Ferdinand Porsche presented in 1934. With an air-cooled four-cylinder mounted int he rear – creating enough room for four people, this is easily one of the most historic vehicles of all time.

1948 Porsche 356 “No. 1” Roadster. This 35hp model was the  first Porsche to bear the Porsche name.

1953 Porsche 356 America Roadster. With 70hp, this roadster was built specifically for the American market and was much lighter than other models of its time.

1956 Porsche 550 A Spyder. Knick-named “Little Bastard” by James Deam, this is the same model the actor was driving when he died on his way to the racetrack in 1955.

1960 356 B 2000 GS Carrera GT. Featuring 175hp and many innovations this is the first Porsche to bear the Carrera name.

1964 Porsche 911 2.0 Coupé. The successor to the 356, the 911 was original named the 901 but Peugot had legal rights to all three numbered car names with a zero in the middle.

1973 Porsche 917/30 Spyder. Featuring a turbocharged 12-cylinder boxer engine this race car boasted 1200 hp and a top speed of 239 mph.

1973 911 Carrera RS 2.7 Coupé. Known as the fasted production car of its time, the ducktail rear spoiler characterized this vehicle. It made 210hp and was capable of hitting a top speed of 149 mph.

1976 Porsche 911 Turbo 3.0 Coupé. The first Porsche to use an exhaust gas turbocharger.

1988 Porsche 959. One of just 292 vehicles ever built the 450hp 959 displayed advanced technology in a street car.

2003 Carrera GT. Yes, all 612hp of V10 goodness. This was the first street car from Porsche to feature an all carbon fiber body.

Official release INCLUDING MORE INFO ON EVEN MORE PORSCHES after the jump:

Continue Reading…