Driving down the boulevard in their Italian supercars, wealthy but genuine car enthusiasts face the difficult challenge of separating themselves from the typical playboys in fast cars. To solve this first world problem, HRE performance wheels proposed that there is no better way to add a touch of class to an exotic than by installing performance wheels with vintage flair.

Introducing the new Vintage Series, HRE wheels recreated three iconic designs from the brand’s 34-year history, each of which range from 18- to 20-inches, and are completely re-engineered as 3-piece forged wheels from quality aerospace-grade forged alloy. What’s more, each wheel is hand-finished in order to meet customer’s specifications for their modern exotic.

HRE provided a press gallery to showcase its new wheels installed upon the successors of the same automobiles that once wore the originals. The German racing car roots of the “501″ wheels are instantly recognizable, as its mesh lace design suits the latest viper green Porsche 991 ducktail nicely.  The five-porthole “454″ is a modern take on the wheels from the sensational Lamborghini Diablo and are just as striking to look at when fitted to the new Aventador. Finally, the pentagram design “505″ is a proper ode to the Ferrari F40, although pairing the set of wheels to a Ferrari 458 Spider is slightly clashing.

HRE Wheels President Alan Peltier said, “The process of recreating vintage designs that captured the style and essence of the originals was very exciting and challenging for all of us at HRE. These designs take us all back to the ’70′s and ’80′s when we were kids falling in love with exotics for the first time and truly becoming car lovers. Capturing all the character and magic of these designs, while ensuring they fit modern super cars and met our current engineering standards, made the project tougher than simply creating replicas of the original cast wheels. We found inspiration in those original designs but created wheels that reflect the HRE of today; wheels that are truly inspired.”

Wealthy automotive connoisseurs, rejoice!

GALLERY: HRE Vintage Series

[Source: Autoblog]

Rumors of a new Mercedes Benz SLC sports car by AMG  to rival the iconic Porsche 911 were sparked last year. Now, new information from Autocar sheds some light.

According to AMG boss Ola Kallenius, the expansion of the AMG line-up is greatly dependent to the sales performance of its specialized vehicles. “AMG is a financial company and runs with targets, just like every other company. These products can’t just be built for fun. We need a reasonable return to new fund projects.”

The past year for the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG coupe proved to be a successful one. Not only have the sales provided AMG a return, but the “technologically fascinating” SLS succeeded in establishing the brand among the supercar elite as well. To this, Kallenius said, “Could we grow the family? Probably, yes, but that is not a decision we’ve made at this stage. What is clear is that we have entered a segment with an overwhelming reaction from customers and fans — and many of them are entirely new customers to AMG — so it would certainly be the right strategy to grow the AMG brand.”

We expect an entry level stand-alone AMG sports car to be on sale as soon as late 2013. With a projected price tag of £80,000, the two-seat coupe will likely receive power from an all-new 5.4-liter twin turbo V8 nesting in a front-mid-engine layout. Performance is expected to contest the Porsche 911 Carrera S with a 0-62 mph acceleration of 4.5sec and a top speed of 180mph. Engine variants, coupes and roadsters are expected as well.

[Source: Detroit Free Press]

The Toyota GT 86, or Scion FR-S as it will be called in North America, isn’t available yet, but it’s already generating tuner buzz.

We were satisfied with the stock 200-horsepower boxer engine during our review in December, but that’s not quite enough power for some of the folks in the hachi-roku forums. Tetsuya Tada, the car’s chief engineer is encouraging the conversation.

“Some Americans already put a 5.0-liter engine in a Mazda roadster. There are fanclubs who want to do the same with our car. There is no rule to limit that. As manufacturers, we can’t do that. We have to give guarantees. We need to build cars that last. Tuners can try. We welcome that,” Tada said.

The 5.0-liter Mazda mod he’s talking about is, of course, the Monster Miata which gets a Mustang V8 shoehorned surprisingly well in place of it’s stock four banger.

While we don’t see the need to tinker with Toyota’s formula, it’s easy to understand the urge.

“As it is, only highly skilled drivers can make full use of the stock engine. Some people may like to have a higher speed in the straightaway, but there are lots of other cars they can choose,” Tada said,

He even teased the idea of putting a more potent engine into future models, though we aren’t holding our breath.

“For our current engine, we cooperated with Subaru. Maybe we [will] cooperate with Porsche or someone else next time. You can partner with anybody in the world these days.”

GALLERY: 2013 Scion FR-S

[Source: The Truth About Cars]

Out sneaky photographers have managed to snap spy photos of the upcoming 2013 Porsche Cayman on the streets in Germany.

Camoed-up, the test mule reveals little, although an interior shot does show that the Cayman will borrow from the recently revealed 2013 Boxster when it comes to the interior. (It also reveals the fashion sense of German engineers – check out that sweater).

When it does arrive later this year, also look for familiar engines, with a base 2.7-liter flat-six making around 275 hp, while a larger 3.4-liter on the Cayman S should deliver around 325 hp – a number just ahead of its soft-top counterpart. With the PDK dual-clutch transmission and the Sport Chrono package, the new Cayman S should achieve a 0-60 time of 4.6 seconds or less.

Sharing a light weight aluminum chassis with the Boxster, making it both wider and longer than the current car, expect significant weight savings, as well as a big improvement in fuel economy.

GALLERY: 2013 Porsche Cayman Spy Photos

A grid of 58 vehicles at the 50th anniversary of the Rolex 24 at Daytona made this year’s event one of the most competitive races in the history of the franchise. It was so competitive, in fact, NASCAR star racing driver AJ Allmendinger of the Michael Shank Racing #60 Ford/Riley car only beat Starworks Motorsport’s pole-sitter Ryan Dalziel by 5.198 seconds after 24 hours of heated competition.

After Allmendinger had won the Rolex 24, he described his last stint as, “the most fun three hours of racing I’ve ever done.”

Struggling for a race win at the Rolex 24 ever since 2004, Michael Shank Racing’s remarkable victory got even sweeter when its second Daytona Prototype crossed the line to clinch third and close out the podium. However, the battle between Allmendinger and Dalziel in their last stint was so relentless that the Michael Shank No. 6 sister car driven by Felipe Nasr couldn’t stay with the battle and fell back, finishing the race almost a minute behind. The top-three finishers were all Ford/Riley prototypes.

The #60 Michael Shank Racing Ford Riley was brought to the checkered flag by A.J. Allmendinger and co-drivers Justin Wilson, John Pew and Oswaldo Negri Jr. Starwork’s impressive 2nd place finish was thanks to the valiant driving performed by Ryan Dalziel and co-drivers Enzo Potolicchio, Lucas Luhr, Allan McNish and Alex Popow. Finally, in third place, the sister Michael Shank car was driven by Felipe Nasr, Michael McDowell, Jorge Goncalvez and Gustavo Yacaman.

Porsche is upping the engineering ante with their 2013 911 Turbo, which our spy photographer caught yesterday, to deliver more power and better fuel efficiency all at once.

The new 911 Turbo will keep the same 3.8-liter horizontally opposed six cylinder engine as previous models, but it will have a new boost thanks to a complex tri-turbo setup similar to what BMW is using in the M550d xDrive and X5 M50d models, among others.

The system employs one smaller turbocharger and two larger ones. The smaller spools up more quickly at lower rpms, delivering an initial power boost that carries smoothly into the second and third larger units.

Although the horsepower ratings aren’t certain yet, the new system is expected to boost the 911 Turbo from 495 to 525 horsepower, which is quite close to the 530 hp 911 Turbo S.

Porsche is currently completing testing on the tri-turbo setup inside their 991, though further details can’t be that far off given that it’s slated for the 2013 model year.

GALLERY: 2013 Porsche 911 Turbo spy photos

[Source: Auto Car]

Gemballa is known for some of the world’s most exquisite Porsche creations, and despite turmoil over the last couple of years, they’re looking ahead to the future and celebrating their 30th anniversary in style.

For those that aren’t fortunate enough to afford Gemballa’s real creations, they have had a model car collection of some of their most famous models available for purchase. But now a limited edition series has been released, starring their infamous Mirage GT Blue and MIG-U1 in white. Each model car will only have a limited quantity of 300, each numbered in an individual display. Best of all, the price is only around $76 based on today’s conversion rates and includes VAT and shipping. No idea if they’ll ship all the way to North America, but for two model cars with Gemballa’s prestige and a limited edition behind it, it’s a respectable price tag. If you’re interested, shoot collection@gemballa.com an email.

Vehicles in Gemballa’s other model car collections include their Mirage GT in various colors, their Avalanche GT2, Avalanche GTR, and their Cayenne variants.

GALLERY: Gemballa 30th Anniversary Model Cars Collection

Porsche continues to be a tremendous success story, particularly since the launch of the Cayenne SUV. A vehicle that saved the German sports car maker from bankruptcy, in some markets it now accounts for half of the brand’s sales, raising the question, is Porsche too reliant on the Cayenne?

The answer would seem to be in the affirmative. One shocking statistic comes from last year’s sales figures. Porsche Cars USA posted impressive figures with 29,023 units sold, a solid improvement over 25,320 in 2010. According to a report by automotive statistics firm GoodCarBadCar, if you remove all Cayenne sales from the mix the remaining number is 16,045. What’s so shocking about that? Well, Porsche’s sales in 2002, before the Cayenne joined the fleet, were 21,320 units, meaning that, Cayenne aside, the last time Porsche sold fewer sports cars than they do now was in 1997.

The time in between has seen the addition of the Cayman, hardly a volume seller, but still a factor in propping up the brand’s sports car numbers. And those years prior to 1997 are the pre-Boxster era.

The numbers are negligibly different for 2010 as well, with 16,997 Porsche models sold if you don’t include the 8,343 Cayennes. Subtract the 7,741 Panameras too and you’re left with just 9,256 Porsche sports cars sold. Delete the 7,735 Cayennes from the 2009 sales figures, Porsche’s worst year in over a decade, and you’re left with a slightly better 11,961 total, which includes few (1,247) Panameras. Jumping back another year to pre-recession 2008 and total sales are a more robust 26,035. Delete 11,216 Cayennes and you’re left with 14,819 sports cars.

A key contributing factor to the decrease in Porsche’s sports car sales over the past few years has been lower and lower sales of the 911. In 2007 Porsche sold 13,153 units, dropping to 8,324 in 2008. Jump ahead to 2009 and the number slides further to 6,839 and then just 5,737 units in 2010. It was only last year, with the addition of numerous special edition models and dealers eager to push 2011 models off their lots to make room for the next generation car that 911 sales increased to a few hundred units to just over the 6,000 mark.

Increased sales of the Cayenne and decreased sports car sales could be entirely unrelated events, though there is the possibility that Porsche customers are foregoing cars like the 911 for the Cayenne. Or, there’s the possibility that 911 customers are just going somewhere else entirely.

Based on these numbers it’s not surprising that the brand has announced another sports car to sit between its upcoming flagship 918 and the 911 range. Until that product gets here, the launch of the 2012 911 models and a new Boxster will certainly bolster the brand’s sports car balance sheet.

Since the debut of the new Carrera at the Frankfurt Motor Show last year the P-car faithful have been eagerly anticipating the launch of the next-gen 911 Turbo. That launch date is getting closer with our latest spy photos of the every day exotic giving a closer idea of just what the future holds.

Sharing a wheelbase with the Carrera, the new Porsche Turbo will be roughly 4-inches longer end-to-end and as is obvious from the photos will sport a significantly wider track and accommodate an all-wheel drive system. Of note, the rear spoiler on this test mule appears to be fixed, but expect an automatically-deploying unit on the production model. With the sleeker styling of the new 911 combined with these aggressive new rear haunches, the 911 Turbo is finally beginning to look more like a car that offers supercar levels of performance.

While no details about the upcoming twin-turbo flat-six engine have been released, considering the current Turbo S makes 530 hp we expect no less from the new Turbo. Even 550 hp would be a solid bet. Also, the Turbo could finally see a top speed that reaches the 200 mph mark.

Expect a major overhaul on the 911 Turbo’s interior with significant inspiration from the Panamera.

GALLERY: 2013 Porsche 911 Turbo Spy Photos

Chances are a burnout is pretty far from the picture when you think of a hybrid, but in this case speed is the name of the game.

Last friday we posted a story about a teaser video featuring the Porsche Panamera S Hybrid titled “World’s Fastest Full Hybrid,” but just when you thought the message was clear, an Infiniti M35h showed up in the shiny Porsches’s paint. Well, it’s official: the M35h is faster than the Porsche, meaning it’s the fastest accelerating hybrid in the world.

Just when we thought Audi had a headlock on the cheeky advertising niche, Infiniti jumped up to prove that they too could pull sneaky shenanigans over the competition. The teaser video turned out to be the first little bit of the full clip which, not surprisingly, showcased Infiniti spanking Porsche in a heads up race.

The video is a dramatization, though reading the small print reveals that the company did have Guinness World Redords there to keep things fair. In the end, the M35h scored a 13.41-second quarter mile, though there was no small print to show how Porsche fared. We get verification that Infiniti won the race, though the video isn’t a trustworthy source of the margin of victory.

Regardless, the M35h gets an impressive 39 mpg while managing to hit 60 mph in just 5.9 seconds. That beats the Porsche’s maximum 30 mpg highway by a big margin, meaning the Infiniti takes a win in both columns, something all but the most brand-loyal customers will likely be concerned with. On top of that, opting for the Infiniti, which starts at $53,700 means room in the budget to buy a couple of new economy cars for the kids, versus the $95,000 Porsche price tag.

That said, you should make up your own mind. Watch the video below.

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Porsche Design is setting up shop in New York’s trendy Soho district. This is the second Porsche Design store location in New York, and it will outfit affluent shoppers with its luxe line of products.

The new flagship store will not only feature swanky Porsche swag, it will also showcase a designed wall showcasing the brand’s history and a VIP shopping area. Located on West Broadway in Manhattan, the Porsche Design store covers 250 square meters of retail space filled with the brand’s entire range of products. This includes luggage, eyewear, smoking accessories, mobile phones, and the Porsche Design Fashion Collection for women and men.

“With the store in SoHo we are taking the Porsche Design luxury brand to the next level – not only in New York City and the United States of America but globally”, said Dr. Juergen Gessler, CEO of Porsche Design Group. “Porsche Design SoHo is the world’s largest store and brings our philosophy of ‘Iconic Style’ alive. The boutique will not only set its footprint within Lower Manhattan but also become a landmark for shopping enthusiasts around the world. The idea behind that new store and our whole lifestyle matches perfectly with the Manhattanites’ lifestyle.”

The 100,000th second generation Porsche Cayenne was assembled today in Porsche’s Leipzig, Germany plant and marks steady and clear growth for the German automaker.

The public and auto journalists alike had their doubts about the Cayenne when it was first brought to the North American market in 2003, but the luxury SUV has held its own and has had strong sales since the beginning. In 2011, the second generation Cayenne increased its sales by 15 percent over the 2010 model year selling 29,023 units in the United States.

Along with the 100,000th second generation Cayenne, Porsche is celebrating its 10th year of producing vehicles at the Leipzig site. “Ten years ago the success story of Porsche Leipzig started. What was a greenfield site, today ranks among the most modern car plants in the world. In addition to the Cayenne, Leipzig is also where Porsche produces the very successful Panamera luxury saloon, approximately 70,000 units of which have now rolled off the production line. That is why more than 93,800 vehicles left the Porsche plant in Leipzig in 2011, more than in any year before”, says Wolfgang Leimgruber, Member of the Executive Board of Production and Logistics of Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG.

Mirroring the American numbers, China has also recorded a sharp increase in the purchasing of the luxury SUV. From 2009 to 2010, Cayenne sales increased 14 percent in China and Porsche forecasts that by 2014 China will be its largest market.

The Leipzig plant will be adding a third shift to keep up with demand on the Cayenne, and will no doubt be kept busy by a re-surging auto market worldwide.

Click here to read AutoGuide’s 2011 Porsche Cayenne review.