Porsche 918 Spyder

[snoopyc4]

[JDS]

I'm sick of this Porsche environmentalism bull****, and I'm sick of this Porsche hybrids bull****.

I saw a very depressing full-page ad in some magazine, I think it was Excellence or Road & Track. The tag line was something along the lines of "The Porsche GT3 R Hybrid: It's victory was at the starting line."

No. No. No. You don't get to award yourself "victory" for putting a car on the starting line, when it loses the race. You know how you get to claim victory? By fielding a GT3 RSR and crossing the finish line before the other cars.

This 918 is crap and the fact that the age-old 911 platform, in the form of the GT2 RS, laps the Nurburgring faster, just proves it.

And what the hell is up with this new trend of Porsche supercars all being spyders? What happened to the good old days of the 959 and GT1 being coupes? A supercar needs to have a roof.

But I have to say...that gas engine? Amazing. ****ing amazing. Just unbelievable. The sound makes me happy in my pants. I want it, with no electric motors, in a car under 3000 pounds. You have to spin it up to 9400 RPM to get the power out of it, so it would only be good for the racetrack, but holy hell it would be an amazing track car.

[erickonphoenix]

I think that's a beautiful car. And I enjoy the technical exercise in making a performance hybrid but I have to side with JDS in spirit on this one. It's kind of a marketing slut. I can only imagine the unholy carbon trail this thing must have in it's assembly, however since it's German they have probably kept that to a minimum. I hope.

[JDS]

I think that's a beautiful car.

I agree, it's got beautiful, flowing lines...but it would still be better with a roof. I'm really a stickler for a car having a roof...

And I enjoy the technical exercise in making a performance hybrid but I have to side with JDS in spirit on this one. It's kind of a marketing slut.

Well that's another dimension to this. Porsche isn't satisfied anymore to make an excellent car, they have to...well...show off. It's not enough to try to build good, or excellent cars, they have to showcase technology unlike anything else on the road...like the 959's computer-controlled multiplate active center differential...the CGT's bizarre F1 clutch that's indestructible no matter how many times you dump it on full throttle launches, but blows up when you try to slip it gently...the 918's hybrid powertrain that doesn't use high-capacity banks of batteries...the GT1 which is just a Le Mans racecar they somehow got certified for street use...

I think they don't even care if other manufacturers build cars that are faster or even arguably better, just so long as they prove that their engineering is superior.

I can only imagine the unholy carbon trail this thing must have in it's assembly, however since it's German they have probably kept that to a minimum. I hope.

I'm really sick of hearing about "carbon", both because I hate hearing people repeatedly, obsessively use the wrong term for something, and because I'm sick of people's cult-like blind acceptance and rabid obsession with the carbon-dioxide myth.

But for what it's worth, environmentally the 918 is better than most in that it doesn't use NiMH batteries AND it only uses a small lithium ion battery pack, unlike most hybrids which rely on enormous trunk-sized banks of batteries. At least that's all I know of it. It might be entirely upholstered in baby-harp-seal-leather, and Porsche is the industry leader in covering absolutely every interior surface of a car in leather, including stuff that you didn't think it was even possible to cover in leather. No joke, they put it on the air vent slats.

[904nm]

Hybrid for performance I can buy, but for environmental concern is pure BS. A Hummer over its lifespan is more environmentally friendly than a Prius. If they can get more performance by using a hybrid design (which I doubt) then go for it, but please cut the crap about trying to save the environment. If they want to save the world then Porsche should start building cars to compete with the Ford Focus.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyaA5I9IvPo

[JDS]

Hybrid for performance I can buy [...] If they can get more performance by using a hybrid design

Not gonna happen.

If they want to save the world then Porsche should start building cars to compete with the Ford Focus.

If they want to save the world, this is the kind of thing they should be building:



Volkswagen Lupo 3L, first car to surpass the 3L/100km (78.4 mpg).

Not that fuel efficient cars will actually do any good, but at least it fools people into thinking you're helping.

Also, this is the video you tried and failed to post

[JDS]

Oh and us auto techs hate hybrids even more...you know those 500+ volt electrical systems they use in the drivetrain? Now imagine you have to take them apart and stick metal tools into them.

Lotsa fun.

[904nm]

Volkswagen Lupo 3L, first car to surpass the 3L/100km (78.4 mpg).

Not that fuel efficient cars will actually do any good, but at least it fools people into thinking you're helping.

Any car small enough to where you can use it for your coffin after a collision with a SUV is off my list. (Not that any of them were ever on my list to begin with...)

The hybrid scam is just that, a scam for feel good politicians and the clueless masses to think they are solving a problem that does not exist. VW has some very clean and efficient diesel engines, yet mention diesel to a liberal and they go nuts.

I had a rental Prius once (they were out of all cars that day but the Prius) and it was by far the worse car I have driven in my life. Well, maybe the Chevy Chevette loaner car I drove in the early 80's while my car was in the body shop was worse, but it would be a close call. In all seriousness, how anyone can drive a Prius is beyond me. It is absolutely devoid of any personality and handling is non-existant. I was genuinely shocked at what a POS it was and returned it after 2 days and said I'd take anything they had on the rental lot except another Prius. The replacement car was a red G37 coupe. Life was good again.

[JDS]

[QUOTE=904nm;762221]

Any car small enough to where you can use it for your coffin after a collision with a SUV is off my list. (Not that any of them were ever on my list to begin with...)

I have read many "experts" with no qualifications insist that you need to buy a vehicle with a high curb weight to be "safe". I absolutely cannot figure out how they come to that conclusion, unless they confuse "safe" with "killing anybody you run into". Not that I care about the OTHER person's safety if I get into an accident...but being in a large and/or heavy car doesn't help me any. Crash testing and safety statistics demonstrate this.

I still wouldn't buy some 1.2L toad-car like a Lupo, though.

VW has some very clean and efficient diesel engines, yet mention diesel to a liberal and they go nuts.

See that's what I don't understand, European liberals are all over diesels, but American liberals hate them. Just like European liberals love nuclear electricity, but American liberals equate it with torturing babies (to be fair, I'm up for that, too). Does Europe just have smarter liberals than we do?

[Darrenf]

See that's what I don't understand, European liberals are all over diesels, but American liberals hate them. Just like European liberals love nuclear electricity, but American liberals equate it with torturing babies (to be fair, I'm up for that, too). Does Europe just have smarter liberals than we do?

Pretty simple really, Tax gasoline over here as heavily as it is in Europe, and you will see Americans flock to diesel.