Porsche Cars North America is getting really racy for the 2007 Chicago Auto Show, where the automaker's stand in McCormick Place will feature an all-out racecar as well as the second generation Porsche Cayenne sport utility vehicle, which for the 2008 model year will be available with as much as 500 horsepower and with new dynamic technologies that allow the vehicle that put the "sport" into sport utility to perform like a nimble sports sedan while being fully capable of carrying five people, towing a trailer and blazing over unpaved terrain and through inclement weather.The Porsche display also will feature the full lineup of 2007 Porsche models, including the Boxster, Cayman, and 911, and featuring the new 911 Targa 4, Targa 4S and 911 GT3.
RS Spyder wins American Le Mans Series championships
The Porsche RS Spyder is a purpose-built racecar, an LMP2 prototype, that made its full-season debut in 2006 by winning three American Le Mans Series championships. The car won the constructor's championship as well as the driver's title for Sascha Maassen and Lucas Luhr (Porsche drivers who tied for the championship) and also team honors for Penske Motorsports.
With a Porsche 911 GT3 RSR taking honors in the GT2 category, it marked the first time in ALMS history that one manufacturer won constructor and driving titles in two classes in the same season.
Competing in the LMP2 competition marked Porsche's return to factory prototype racing for the first time since the 1998 season. The RS Spyder took class honors in seven of 10 races, but posted a remarkable 1-2 overall finish at Mid-Ohio, the only time that LMP2 cars have achieved such an accomplishment in the history of the series.
Porsche now has claimed nine manufacturers titles and eight drivers' championships in the eight years of ALMS racing. Porsche racers also have won 71 class victories, far outdistancing all other manufacturers.
Updated RS Spyder makes debut at Chicago
Penske Motorsports returns to the ALMS to defend its titles in 2007 with an updated Porsche RS Spyder that makes its debut on the Porsche stand in Chicago.
Commissioned by Porsche Cars North America, Inc. and Porsche Motorsport North America for racing customers who compete in the LMP2 class of the ALMS, the Porsche RS Spyder features a completely new Porsche engine, transmission and chassis, all incorporating the latest in Porsche automotive technology and created to conform to rules and regulations of the Automobil Club de l'Quest, organizer of the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans race.
Penske Motorsports Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Penske Racing, Inc., will field a pair of new Porsche prototypes in a season that opens March 17 with the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring. Dyson Motorsports, another racing team with a long and proud prototype racing history, also will field a pair of RS Spyders in the ALMS in 2007.
The heart of the car is a newly designed 3.4-liter V8 engine that is restricted to 480 horsepower by ACO rules. The engine is mated to a Porsche-engineered sequential six-speed constant mesh transmission operated by a paddle shift system that is attached to the steering wheel.
The RS Spyder chassis is light but strong, comprised of carbon fiber reinforced by Kevlar composites.
2008 Cayenne looks – and is – more powerful
With a striking new face that features a dramatic new headlight design and with a wide and muscular body accented by broad wheel arches, the 2008 Porsche Cayenne's newly sculpted shape provides vivid visual testimony to the vehicle's enhanced technical features. Indeed, all three 2008 Porsche Cayenne models feature larger and more powerful engines, engines that for the first time boast direct fuel injection, a technology that enhances fuel efficiency as well as power output.
For the 2008 Porsche Cayenne with its $43,400 base price ($58,900 Canadian), that engine is a 3.6- liter V6 that pumps out 290 horsepower and 283 lb-feet of torque. For the 2008 Porsche Cayenne S with its $57,900 base price ($78,500 Canadian), the engine is 4.8-liter V8 that generates 385 horsepower and 369 lb-feet of torque. For the 2008 Porsche Cayenne Turbo with its $93,700 base price ($124,300 Canadian), the engine is a twin-turbocharged version of the 4.8-liter V8 that produces 500 horsepower and 516 lb-feet of torque, propelling the five-passenger SUV from a standing start to 60 mph (96 km/h) in a mere 4.9 seconds on its way to a top speed on the test track of 171 mph (275 km/h).
Despite such performance, the enhanced engine injection technology and improved vehicle aerodynamics produce significant fuel economy improvements.
But direct fuel injection is only one of the new technologies featured on the 2008 Porsche Cayenne. The second generation SUV can be equipped with optional Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control with active anti-roll bars that almost completely offset body roll in turns, improving handling, comfort and active safety on-road while providing enhanced off-pavement traction.
Also new are Dynamic Curve Lights (standard on the Cayenne Turbo and optional on the other models) that improve the driver's view while driving on winding roads at night. Standard equipment on the 2008 Cayenne includes Porsche Stability Management (PSM®), now with such new functions as pre-loading of the braking system when needed, new Trailer Stability Control, and off-road anti-lock breaking system (ABS).
For the first time, the Cayennes come with a rollover sensor able to trigger both the belt latch tensioners and curtain airbags in an emergency, thus helping to reduce the risk of injury for all occupants in a rollover. In conjunction with the Cayenne's six standard airbags, this system gives Porsche's SUV a benchmark occupant safety and protection system.
Other new features include a standard and push-button Sports mode for all Cayenne engines, a standard power rear lift gate, optional of 21-inch wheels, a rail-mounted cargo management system, and XM satellite radio.
2007 Porsche 911 Targa and 911 GT3 also featured
Also on the Porsche stand in McCormick Place are the new 2007 Porsche 911 Targa and 911 GT3.
The Targa features a unique roof system that provides a panoramic view whether the glass roof is open or closed. The Targa also is the only 911 with a separately opening, hatchback-style access to the rear cargo storage area.
The 2007 model year marks the first time that the Targa has been available on Porsche's wide-body and all-wheel drive platform and has come with a choice of engines. The 2007 Porsche 911 Targa 4 draws from a 325-horsepower, 3.6-liiter horizontally opposed six-cylinder "boxer" engine while the Targa 4S is propelled by a 355-horsepower, 3.8-liter engine.
The 2007 Porsche 911 GT3 is a very special vehicle created for the driving enthusiast who craves track days and demands such a capable car on weekdays as well. Among the GT3's many unique attributes are the most powerful non-turbocharged engine ever offered in a Porsche 911 in the North American market and an adjustable suspension system that can be fine-tuned to specific motorsports venues.
The GT3's 3.6-liter engine pumps out 415 horsepower, rocketing the car from a standing start to 60 mph in just 4.1 seconds. The car is capable of reaching 193 mph (310 km/h) on the racetrack.
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