Porsche Report - April - June 2022

SPECIAL PORSCHE EASTER NATIONALS EDITION

From the Editor

The April to June period covered by this second edition of Porsche Report has been anything but quiet, either on the state, national or international Porsche scene. COVID has continued to affect all of us and disrupt our plans to some degree, but your PCSA has continued to organise what has turned out to be a very successful motorsport and social activity program. Not least, as referenced by the Presidents Report, the successful staging of the Easter Porsche Nationals at The Bend circuit was a tribute to the efforts of the motorsport committee and all the volunteers, as well as the team at The Bend facility. We have tried to capture all the action in this edition.

On the theme of motorsport, as readers may know, I am an ardent follower of both World Endurance Championship racing (WEC) and F1. As reported in this edition, Porsche AG has announced its entry into F1 through a strategic engine alliance with Red Bull F1 Racing, and at the same time, has also announced its intention to compete in the Hypercar class in the WEC with the exciting Porsche-Penske racing 963. You can read all about it here.

On a more personal level, we also have an article on the actor Michael Fassbender and his achievement of his ultimate goal of racing at Le Mans 24 hour. I am sure that all our motorsport fans have been following the YouTube series on Fassbender and his ‘Road to Le Mans’. It has documented the very personal struggle for this amateur driver to reach a standard suitable to drive in the WEC and to successfully team with the Porsche drivers in a 911 RSR. As all the motorsport members of PCSA will know, to drive in any motorsport event takes determination, commitment and focus and the desire to learn from your mistakes and hopefully improve your skills. A recurring theme in all the accounts of drivers in professional motorsport that resonates with us all, is the need to reach a point where the driver feels at one with the car to the point that the driver instinctively knows how the car is going to react and what

his or her inputs need to be. I would venture that we all seek this state in the personal enjoyment of our Porsches, on the road or track. Of note, Fassbender was teamed with none less than the Australian Matt Campbell who we now know has been selected by Porsche as part of its Hypercar team.

Besides the Easter Nationals we also cover the Hillclimb events on 10 April and 5 June, the Motorkhana event on 1 May and the Super Sprint on 15 May and 26 June. On the social scene we feature the Drive to The Bend on 16 April, the Foggy Dew Run on 22 May and the Drive to Auburn on 19 June.

You will also find the usual smattering of interesting articles about Porsches and new releases as well as Technical Notes, for your enjoyment. We also feature a Members article from Mark Coupe on his much loved 928 S4. This is Part 1 and we look forward to further instalments.

On a final sad note we also said goodbye to a staunch Porsche enthusiast and PCSA member and friend, Jim Pierson, who passed away peacefully on 16 June. Thank you to his daughter Monique and to Lee Fulton for putting together a Vale to Jim which we proudly feature in this edition.

As previously flagged, I am still keen to feature a Letters to the Editor section and welcome your input to magazine@ pcsa.asn.au Feel free to have your say about anything to do with PCSA, the magazine articles, Porsches in general and your personal experiences.

I hope you enjoy this issue and look forward to your comments and ideas.

Chris Baldwin Editor

“Porsche Report” is the official magazine of The Porsche Club of South Australia Inc.

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Cover Photo Porsche 956 PCQld by Bob Taylor

Very soon you will be

It does not seem that long ago that I was talking about the start of the year, and here we are in May 2021 already.

president’s report

A major event for the Porsche Club of SA held at the Bend Motorsport Park over the Easter long week-end, Good Friday and Easter Saturday was a resounding success. Although sixteen of our friends from the Porsche Club of Queensland were locked out of the event, those who were fortunate enough not to be affected by Covid19 still represented other state clubs, along with our large home state contingent.

Dear Members

As you read this we are well into 2022, with many events having been organised at the track and a variety of social venues, with great support from you the members. If you have any ideas that you would like included in our range of activities make sure you send us an email with your suggestions.

you to respond to a series of questions and to update your club information. We, as the Porsche Club of SA Inc, are moving to a new database, Club Express, to ensure your information and details are up to date and secure. The new system will give member portal access allowing you to enter events, attend functions, contact the committee and update your details from anywhere you can find the opportunity to log in. Johnny Fricke has spent hours researching and questioning the Club Express group to ensure we are getting best platform available to support our growing club and the diverse needs of a database system.

During April, May and June, Lee Fulton has been busy with a range of social activities including Hotel dinners, breakfast runs and planning for the Black-Tie Event, and already preliminary work for the 2023 Show and Shine. If you have any time or think a particular event appeals, feel free to touch base and offer your assistance in any way, shape or form; remember, it is your Club.

Vic Moore President president@pcsa.asn.au

James Law Vice President & Membership 0416 044 051 vicepresident@pcsa.asn.au

Darien Herreen Secretary & Motorsport secretary@pcsa.asn.au

Darien Herreen and his Motorsport team are to be congratulated for the enormous amount of time and effort that they put into the Porsche Clubs of Australia Easter event, not once but twice!!!! Why twice, the first time the event was scheduled for Easter 2020 and then of course Covid19 caused the major disruption to all of us and so the event was cancelled at short notice. I also need to acknowledge the incredible support from The Bend Motorsport Park and Charise Bristow for all the background work to allow the event to be rolled over to 2021. However, that did not mean Darien’s work stopped there. It was basically start again with all the re-organisation, planning and scheduling and the final result was an event which will continue into the future each Easter. Just a note at this point that I also need to acknowledge, Darien as an employee of Qantas had to juggle many situations at work while still trying to negotiate the future of the event and he acquitted himself in exemplary style in both roles as always, thank you on behalf of all members Darien.

Once again Easter saw the return of our National Titles at The Bend Motorsport Park, with our fellow Porsche Club members from Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria making the huge effort to get to the event. The minimum distance for travel would have been about 800 kms for those from Victoria and obviously a greater number of kilometres for those from Queensland, for both cars and drivers. Members from South Australia provided great support for this now major two-day meeting, which provided the opportunity for all of us to meet and greet our fellow Club members from around Australia and share the world class Bend Motorsport Park with fellow Porsche enthusiasts. As South Australians we have access to this magnificent facility any day of the week and thanks must go to the Shahin family for the vision to take Motorsport in SA to the world stage with this magnificent playground.

Darien Herreen, our Motorsport Director organised and executed the event to the exceptional standard we have come to recognise with whatever he does, whether it is our Motorkhanas, Super sprints or Hill climbs, keeping Qantas flying or managing the family, his dedication, passion and commitment is remarkable. A huge thank you Darien for another truly magnificent two days of competition and social interactiogn. Darien was supported by Mark Coupe, Josh, Doug and Lorraine undertaking documentation, registration, form up and many other tasks over the weekend. Helen Kowalenko organised and set up the table décor and welcome baskets with an array of local products and magnificent Porsche baked treats created by her daughter Sarah.

Mark Coupe was another of the Motorsport team who made the competitors most welcome with his excellent service at the front desk and the great job in form up and of course the support for Darien. As I said the feedback and general comments from competitors, visitors and support groups has been extremely satisfying and we look forward to Easter 2022 when more of our interstate clubs will be joining us for the next chapter of Porsche Clubs of Australia at The Bend.

Bob Taylor once again produced a plentiful supply of photographic shots over the weekend, with his trademark ability to take exceptional images and capture all the action in and around the track for all of us to enjoy.

If you were not a competitor our Social Committee members, but mainly Lee Fulton, organised a lunch run to the Bend for members to share in the event enjoying the excellent food and beverages track side and an opportunity to have a drive on Australia’s world acclaimed Motor Racing Circuit. Thank you Lee and to all those who made the effort to attend and meet some of our interstate friends. Mark the date in your calendar as part of your 2022 planning.

Each year there is an Interstate competition with points accumulated over the weekend by the competitors from each state and a trophy awarded as a perpetual award to add bragging rights to each states competitive nature. Chris Windsor our dealer Principal at the Adelaide Porsche Centre has generously offered to sponsor the trophy for the competition for 2023 and beyond.

A big thank you to Porsche Cars Australia and Chloe Adamson for supporting us financially with the welcome baskets and pre-dinner beverages for all to enjoy.

Our membership is expanding with the number now in excess of four hundred and growing each quarter and with such expansion, we as a committee are looking to support the diverse needs of you the club members. The social calendar is being finalised as I write this article, with three dinners, the AGM and the Black Tie Dinner and a week-end away just some of those to come. Keep an eye on the website for further updates and submit any suggestions to the committee via email of any future social event or idea that you may like included.

During the past months your committee has been working tirelessly on a range of tasks and activities to ensure the Club is functioning to the highest standard and achieves the goals and expectations we all hope to achieve. There are times when change occurs and we need to be flexible and prepared to regroup and continue with our tasks. Johnny Fricke resigned from his role as Vice-President and I want to publicly thank Johnny for his loyal support, his exceptional work in initiating the Club Express database system to administer all our Club functions, activities and membership and all the preliminary work on the review of the Club Constitution, to the point where we are able to have a document that meets the current legislative requirements. Thank you, Johnny for all your time, effort and expertise, and we look forward to you re-joining the committee in the future. James Law is our current Vice President and will continue in the role until the AGM when elections are held.

Steve Thiele Treasurer 0412 195 634 treasurer@pcsa.asn.au

Which brings me to the next item of news for you the members to contribute to and support the team who will be producing the Porsche Partners page(s) in the Porsche Magazine. Keep an eye out for the first instalment in this issue.

Historic registration, membership and the new financial year. All members who have vehicles on Historic registration are reminded that they must renew their club membership and have their logbook signed to remain legally registered and insured under the current agreement. I will email details of time and location for logbooks to be presented for endorsement in the next few weeks.

Roger Paterson Motorkhana Director Mobile: 0414 993 930 motorkhana@pcsa.asn.au

Ron Wishart Social Secretary / Merchandise social@pcsa.asn.au

Phillip Kellett Magazine Editor Mobile: 0409 931 193 magazine@pcsa.asn.au

It is with great sadness that I am writing this to inform you of the passing of one of our beloved and well-respected Club members. On the 16th June 2022, James Richard Pierson (Jim) passed away after a short illness. Jim was larger than life, a true gentleman and a “bloody” nice bloke. That infectious smile, beaming grin and honesty that was so much of the “man” Jim, will be missed but also it will always be remembered. Jim was a true Club person who participated, attended, supported and thoroughly enjoyed the Porsche Marque and the Porsche family. He is affectionately known for his generous donations for raffle prizes for Black Tie events and any time we needed a donation. Jim and his son ran a successful and innovative almond orchard with many of Jim innovations and visions being adopted to assist other growers through the development of the Almond Growers Cooperative. The donations for raffle prizes from Jim, were obviously his produce and it was to become common knowledge that Jim’s Almonds, or more correctly Jim’ s Nuts would be the raffle prize at perhaps a Black-Tie event or similar function. To this end it became evident that some of our members were very happy to win the prize of “Jim’s Nuts!!!!!!”

Doug McPherson Website/Facebook 0419 704 247 webmaster@pcsa.asn.au

It is with great pleasure that we announce that Helen Kowalenko has been made an Honorary Member of the Porsche Club of SA Inc, in recognition of her years of service and dedication to so many aspects of the Club and the Porsche marque. As many of you know the Christmas function and the assistance given to Santa with the suitable present choice for the children has been Helen’s domain for many, many years and Santa sends his congratulations too. More recently Helen with the assistance of her daughter Sarah produced beautiful gift packages (all SA products) for those who attended the dinner at the Bend on Easter Friday. Many of the interstate participants were very appreciative. Congratulations Helen and on behalf of past and present members of the Club thank you for your unwavering support.

Peter Brunnthaler Historic Register/ Licencing 0410 614 911 historic@pcsa.asn.au

Peter Kowalenko Historic Register/ Licencing 0429 390 911 historic@pcsa.asn.au

general committee

Mark Coupe

Johnny Fricke

Lee Fulton

Vic Moore, President, PCSA Inc.

Our thoughts are with Jim’s family and we are all richer for having had Jim as a true friend and Club member. Thank you, Jim.

Kind regards,

Vic Moore, President, PCSA Inc.

VALE:

James Richard Pearson JIM

Adelaide on the 11th June 1943

Adelaide on the 16th June 2022

Jim had a high level of integrity and was dependable: if he said he was going to commit to something you could rely upon him to deliver

Ben’s life, his son.

He was heavily involved in club activities including: the AGM, weekends away, track training days, black tie events, pub dinners, Porsche rallies, show and shine which he regularly won in our club, travelling interstate to Porsche events and Saturday morning runs to various parts of the Adelaide hills, the Barossa and the Fleurieu Peninsula.

Jim loved getting out in the south Australian countryside to him it was a big part of his life.

Once you spent a short time with Jim you soon realized he would be a loyal, giving, and special friend for life

Whenever you talked to people about Jim before and after his passing the compliments and the deep affection for him was breathtaking

In particular I asked people in the club about his qualities as a friend and a mate with the list being extensive and humbling:

Jim was very loyal and always there for you when the need arose

Jim possessed a high level of empathy: on a Saturday run in his Porsche, on a downhill incline a cyclist lost control and then slammed into the back of Jim’s Porsche.

instead of being precious about his car he was more concerned about the welfare of the cyclist, providing him assistance and eventually ferrying him and his bike to the cyclist’s house.

If this was not enough, he then paid for the bike to be repaired even though the accident was not his fault.

Jim was a good listener for the not only the major issues for example a family illness or incident, a car accident, work issues but also the little things that needed someone to listen to rather than give advice.

Jim was extremely trustworthy, and you knew if you shared confidential information, it would not be shared with a third party

Jim was exceedingly generous with his time but also when the PCSA needed to support a charity whether it be meals on wheels, the cancer foundation, etc Jim would supply expensive baskets of nuts, chocolates, biscuits to be raffled to support those less fortunate in the community.

Finally, and most significantly all people I spoke to about Jim’s qualities and strengths said: spending time with Jim made you feel good.

Jim, members of the PCSA will greatly miss you.

You will always be in our hearts.

Rest in peace, Jim.

2023 Porsche 911 Sport Classic is turbocharged, rear-wheel drive — and manual only

Article and photos by: Damon Lowney and Porsche

Porsche announced a new limited-edition sports car, the 911 Sport Classic, which is based on the 911 Turbo chassis and powertrain yet comes exclusively with a seven-speed manual transmission and rear-wheel drive. There will be 1,250 cars produced.

The 992 Sport Classic’s turbo flat six, manual transmission, and rear-wheel drive positively scream GT2, but the official inspiration was the 1973 911 Carrera RS 2.7, a car covered in-depth recently in this YouTube video, and the 997 Sport Classic (which was also inspired by the Carrera RS 2.7). Porsche makes clear that the new Sport Classic is a high-style sports car meant for driving enjoyment, not for turning record lap times like its GT RS cars.

Though the Sport Classic is based on the 911 Turbo, it comes with a less potent 543 horsepower and 442 pound-feet of torque. Apparently 572 hp and 553 lb-ft were too much for the seven-speed manual to handle, though it has still grabbed the title of the most powerful 911 currently offered with a manual transmission. Also missing is the Turbo’s all-wheel-drive system, shedding weight and increasing driver responsibility —

just like a GT2. Porsche also got rid of the intake openings on the rear fenders, which was not an insignificant task due to the engineering and new tooling it required.

The Sport Classic keeps the Turbo’s carbon ceramic brakes (but with black instead of yellow calipers), active anti-roll bars, and rear axle steering. A sport exhaust system is standard as is Sport Chrono Package. Porsche says the front spring rates are softer than the Turbo’s to compensate for the lighter front end, and the car sits 10 millimeters lower.

The 992 Sport Classic’s arrival comes just two months after Porsche Club of America (PCA) and Porsche unveiled the 996-gen 911 Classic Club Coupe, a restomod performed by Porsche Classic in Germany for PCA that completes a trio of water-cooled 911s that were inspired by the 911 Carrera RS 2.7. With that in mind, you’ve probably noticed the new Sport Classic shares many design cues with the Classic Club Coupe, including the Sport Grey Metallic paint with light Sport Grey stripes; side decals; a double-bubble roof (carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic CFRP in this case); and a CFRP ducktail rear spoiler. The front hood is also CFRP and

dips in the center, continuing the lines of the double-bubble roof. A fixed front spoiler lip replaces the retractable one on the Turbo. Unique 911 Sport Classic wheels (20-inch front, 21-inch rear) are a modern reinterpretation of the original Fuchs wheels. LED Matrix Headlights complete the package.

If you’d like your Sport Classic in a different color, Porsche will paint it nonmetallic Black, Agate Grey Metallic, or Gentian Blue Metallic.

Inside, the seat centers and door cards feature a cloth Pepita material, while the rest of the interior is covered in black and Cognac leather. A single-tone black leather interior is optional. Open-pore Paldao wood trim is a nice standard touch, as is the obligatory badge with unit number on the passenger side of the dashboard. The gauge cluster and Sport Chrono timer also have some unique visual touches. Race-Tex (aka, Alcantara or faux suede) covers the headliner, A-, B-, and C-pillars, and the sun visors.

The 911 Sport Classic is the second car produced as part of Porsche’s Heritage Design strategy, following the 911 Targa 4S Heritage Design Edition of a couple years ago.

The Sport Classic will begin to arrive in dealers in 2022 as a 2023 model. Porsche says it will announce pricing as it gets closer to market arrival.

PCSA Run to The Bend

On a lovely sunny Easter Saturday morning, some 32 Porsche Club members and guests, and 18 Porsches (and 1 Ferrari), assembled at the back of Feathers Hotel in Adelaide, ready for an enjoyable run through the Adelaide Hills to The Bend circuit at Tailem Bend.

After a briefing from the organiser, Lee Fulton, we set off up Greenhill Road at 10am headed for Uraidla and on to Balhannah. It was an impressive sight, all 18 Porsches of various models, (and

one yellow Ferrari) travelling in convoy as we snaked our way through the lovely countryside at a reasonable pace but respecting the speed limits, as always. From Balhannah the drive took us towards Nairne, passing Oakbank where the Oakbank Easter Race meeting was being held. Unfortunately, the police decided to interrupt the convoy by halting the rear half in order to allow cars to cross that were heading to the Race meeting, hence our once impressive Porsche convoy was now effectively split in two.

The run took us through Nairne and on to Kanmantoo where we all thankfully met up for a comfort stop and to enjoy some lovely ‘melting moments’ being kindly handed out by Lee.

Then it was on to the freeway and straight through to Tailem Bend and the circuit at The Bend.

All cars that wished to participate in a few laps of the circuit were directed to the form-up area and then on to the track by 12 noon for 2 laps of the circuit.

Article and Photos: Chris Baldwin

“It was an impressive sight, all 18 Porsches of various models, (and one yellow Ferrari) travelling in convoy as we snaked our way through the lovely countryside...”

Needless to say, we could all have gladly done more laps (and faster) but two it was and then it was time to park cars and make our way inside the Track complex for lunch.

Everyone had been given the chance to pre-designate their food choices, ranging from Barramundi or Parmigiano to Pesto or a very appetising Burger. The setting was comfortable and relaxed, and everyone was able to enjoy both the food and company. We were then able to make our way out on to the balcony to

view those cars participating in the Easter Nationals – Porsche Clubs Australia meet.

For those members who had not previously been out to The Bend circuit it was an ideal opportunity to both see the circuit and drive on it, as well as view the motorsport participants activity in the pit garages. All in all, it was a wonderful drive and lunch and the chance for both old and new club members to meet up, talk about all things Porsche and enjoy driving their cars.

Thank you must go to Lee and Pam Fulton for their organisation of this social event. We look forward to seeing many more members and their cars out at the next social run – the Foggy Dew Run through the Hills on 22 May.

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PORSCHE wants to cool its hybrids’ batteries with electric turbos

Article and photos by: Peter Holderith (by kind permission The Drive)

It is fascinating how various hybrid vehicles manage the relationship between their batteries, motors, and internal combustion engines. It’s a tricky problem, and sometimes the solutions are extremely interesting even if their true effectiveness is open to question. In a patent published in late May, Porsche lays out an interesting way to address the issue of battery cooling. The solution it comes to, however, is a little unorthodox.

In a nutshell, Porsche wants to cool a hybrid car’s batteries using pressurized air from the engine’s turbocharger, preferably an electric one. The automaker details a layout where the battery, or perhaps even individual battery cells, are placed in the engine’s intake tract to achieve this. That way, the boosted air provides additional pressure to the intake side of the engine and pulls heat from the battery. The document notes that the air might be “heated somewhat” in this process, although it doesn’t really address the issue beyond that.

The idea is laid out in a patent application titled “VEHICLE HAVING A HYBRID DRIVE,” which goes into detail on why and how Porsche might want to do this. It’s primarily an effort to save weight and complexity, or so the automaker claims. The entire system is not as simple as just flowing air over some batteries, though.

The important thing to know about the system is the basic layout of all the components. I don’t usually go through the arduous process of labeling all the parts in an automaker’s engineering diagrams, but it’s pretty necessary here. (Of course, Porsche brought me to this.)

The outside air is first compressed, either by a conventional turbocharger or an electric supercharger. It then encounters an auxiliary booster. This is described as a “blower, pump, compressor or the like,” and it’s there, as I understand it, to provide cooling air for the battery at low engine speeds if the system utilizes a conventional turbocharger. In other words, if the battery is still hot but there’s not enough airflow from the turbo to cool it, it kicks on to provide some more airflow. If the system uses an electric compressor instead of a regular turbo, this may not be included.

The charge air then travels through an intercooler before encountering a heating element. This would be used to heat intake air on a cold day in order to condition the batteries. After it goes through this, we finally get to the battery...where we encounter a bypass valve. Basically, if the battery—a small pack or perhaps even individual cells to increase surface area—

doesn’t need to be cooled, Porsche thinks it would make sense just to bypass it and go straight to the engine. This valve is also sort of like a thermostat; it could be used to maintain an ideal battery temperature by being open/closed.

After all of this, we get to the engine, where we encounter... bypass valve #2. This one is for when you only want to vent battery heat out of the car and not into the vehicle’s intake. This valve might be utilized in off-throttle situations, or perhaps when the vehicle is stationary. The patent indicates this heat can either be vented straight into the atmosphere or perhaps into the exhaust system.

The Stuttgart automaker says this is all to save weight and complexity, but it seems like a lot. Yes, a fluid-handling cooling loop might be a little heavier, but it would likely be less complex. Likewise, placing the battery outside of the intake tract would probably necessitate the addition of another blower to aircool the battery, but it would also be simpler. What Porsche is doing here is basically attempting to augment parts it already has in a car to realize an effective battery cooling solution to questionable effect.

It might be more effort than it’s worth, but who knows. Maybe when the hybrid 911 comes around, it will feature intakemounted batteries. It’s an odd solution for sure, but if it works, it works. It certainly wouldn’t be the most unorthodox thing a German automaker has engineered in the past.

The idea is certainly interesting, but high intake air temps might be a problem.

6 April 2022

In the future, there may be a tank of synthetic fuel inside your brand new Porsche.

Article By: Chris Tsui (By Kind Permission)

Fossil fuels may be a finite resource but the days of ‘hooning around’ in your vintage 911 may not be completely over. As much of the automotive industry—Porsche included—pivots to electrification, Porsche is holding out hope that synthetic fuels will keep the internal combustion engine alive. Putting more of its eggs into the eFuel basket, the German automaker is investing $75 million into Chilean eFuel production facility developer HIF in exchange for a long-term stake.

Made from hydrogen and carbon dioxide using wind energy, the electricity-based eFuels are slated to start production in the middle of 2022, out of a plant in Punta Arenas, Chile. The eFuels are said to provide “near” carbon-neutral fuel for internal combustion engines. This latest cash injection from Porsche will apparently fund the development of more eFuel facilities in Chile, Australia, and the United States.

Initially, Porsche plans to use eFuels in its top motorsport endeavors, with its current-gen GT3 Cup car already able to run on synthetic fuels. Later on, synthetic fuel could be used as the

automaker’s initial factory fuel (that is, the included tank of fuel that comes with every new Porsche) and to run cars at Porsche Experience Centers around the world.

The interest in synthetic fuel isn’t just a Porsche thing but something the German government holds as well. Earlier in the year, it openly challenged the existing 2035 ICE bans, saying a future consisting of electric or hydrogen-powered cars alone does not make sense and that combustion engines should be allowed to run past that deadline on synthetic fuels. In addition to potentially giving old gas-powered Porsches a new lease on life, the automaker says its eFuels could be valuable to other transport sectors that have yet to find a good alternative energy source, such as aviation and shipping.

It is certifiably too early to tell whether man-made fuels will indeed change the near-future automotive landscape, but as someone who’d much rather hear a screaming flat-six behind him than nothing at all, I hope it all works out.

6 April 2022

Technical - Porsche Running Tests With Taycan To See If It Can Power Everything

Porsche connected 5 Taycan’s to the German power grid to see if they can help support electricity demands

Article By: Chris Okula (by kind permission)

Porsche has a vision for its growing fleet of production EVs and it will help out anyone who uses electricity. In a test conducted with grid operator TransnetBW and consulting firm Intelligent Energy System Services (IE2S), Porsche tested five series production Taycan’s as power grid balancing solutions. The idea is to utilize the growing market share of electric vehicles as a power grid balancer during times of extreme power use.

In a future that could be dominated by electric vehicles power grid stability will be more important than ever, and Porsche is putting resources into a novel solution. Porsche sees EVs as the perfect solution to help balance the power grid during cases of extreme use. Porsche’s idea would utilize EVs that aren’t being driven

as backfill to power grid fluctuations that are currently managed by powerplants. The Porsche Taycan uses an 800volt architecture which helps it transfer energy quickly.

Until now, conventional power plants in particular have been responsible for cushioning any power grid fluctuations. Using high-voltage batteries as a buffer would be a win-win situation: drivers of electric cars could be financially compensated for their contribution to balancing power.

The test was completed by five seriesproduction Porsche Taycans that were connected to the power grid via the Porsche Home Energy Manager (HEM). This test was managed by TransnetBW and

consulting firm Intelligent Energy System Services (IE2S) to ensure accuracy and safety. The test relies on a unique cloudbased pooling system developed by IE2S that controls the charging process, based on the needs of the power grid, and can feedback power as needed.

Porsche’s initial test is the first step to building a symbiotic relationship between electric vehicles and the power grid that charges them. As both renewable energy and EV reliance continue to grow, powersharing will become more critical, which is why this test is so important for our automotive future.

Source: Porsche AG

The Porsche GT4 E-Performance

At first glance, it looks like a Cayman GT4. All the cues are there, the low stance, the mid-engine proportions, the wider hips, the extended splitter, the wing. But it’s not a Cayman GT4. Porsche won’t even call it a Cayman. This is the GT4 E-Performance, Porsche’s vision for an all-electric customer race car.

While the gorgeous Mission R Concept showed what an EV Porsche race car could look like, a limiter at 70 mph means it’s more of a technology showpiece. The GT4 E-Performance is a rolling lab. It and the Mission R share a powertrain, but the E-Performance is the real, unlimited prototype for the future of electric GT racing. This car predates the Mission R, with Porsche secretly beginning testing in 2021. The car was even tested not-sosecretly alongside a gas-powered GT4 Clubsport, but nobody noticed. Probably because the gas engine drowned out the EV.

Not that the E-Performance is quiet. The straight-cut gears make it sound like a driving buzzsaw. In qualifying mode, it has 938 horsepower delivered through two electric motors, one on the front axle, one on the rear (the more modest race mode has 536 hp to extend battery life). The huge brakes -- 15 inch front rotors with six-piston calipers, 14 inch rear with four-piston calipers -- are by-wire to allow for brake blending, an attempt to make the transition from regenerative to the actual

braking system feel natural. They’re also there to heave the car down from its top speed of nearly 180 mph. It weighs about 3500 pounds, 500 pounds more than the ICE-powered Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport. Much of that added weight is on the front axle thanks to the addition of the electric motors.

Both the Mission R and the GT4 E-Performance are based on a modified GT4 Clubsport chassis with parts from the 911 RSR race car. It’s 6.5 feet wide and has aggressive aero, but the real emphasis is cooling. The battery packs sit behind and next to you, and while the 900-volt system ensures that the 82 kWh batteries charge quickly, it also generates massive amounts of heat. The cooling solution is unique, a single unit up front that provides oil cooling to the batteries and electric motors. That deep duct in the hood houses the radiator that keeps temperatures in check.

The cockpit is shockingly normal. If you’ve glanced inside any recent race cars, it’ll immediately be familiar. There is a small screen in the center console that provides the state of charge, which is new, but otherwise this is still a race car. It’s cramped, a cage taking up a large amount of real estate. One thing that is new is getting out.

This is a hugely powerful electric car, and any breach of the battery is exceedingly

dangerous. Exiting the car in a situation like that requires an actual leap from the car, ensuring that you don’t touch the ground and the car at the same time. Practicing that jump, which ends up being more like a child trying to jump over a big puddle, is an easy way to look like a bit of an idiot.

Porsche gave me three sessions in the car at Circuit Ricardo Tormo, outside Valencia, Spain. Two six-lap runs in the lower-powered race mode and a brief fourlap session in the full-powered qualifying mode. Even with low power, it’s a rocket.

The added weight, particularly up front, has an obvious impact on how it needs to be driven. During a ride with Timo Bernhard, the two-time overall Le Mans winner and the outright record holder on the Nurburgring Nordschleife, we talked about what the driver needs to do to get the best out of it, most of which focused on braking. First, the brakes, which don’t have ABS, don’t like to be tromped on. A more delicate foot will get the most out of them. Second, it wants to be trail-braked. Get the weight on the nose and help it turn, or else it’ll want to plow straight on through a corner.

My first session was an adventure. Torque delivery is nuts. If you’ve driven any modern EV, the GT4 E-Performance’s response is that, but also way way more. There is no traction control, but it’s not

15 May 2022

A customer electric GT racing car doesn’t exist. But Porsche is working on it.

really needed (except from a standstill, where it will do a four-wheel burnout). The way it puts power down at speed is immediate. Acceleration is constant and linear, to a point. The top speed is gearing limited, and it hits that limit just before the end of the long front straight.

Timo was also very right about how to drive the thing, because of course he was. If you don’t trail brake into Ricardo Tormo’s tight corners, it wants to go straight. A little patience, a little extra brake, and then a big move back to power gets it right up to speed. It wasn’t intimidating, either. Even though I was in a car I’d never driven on a track I’d never seen, I was two seconds off Timo’s best time after four laps. I started pushing braking points and mid-corner speeds. In most cases, it was deeply friendly. That’s when I learned what happens when you trail too much brake. The rear tires lock on entry, and then you’re along for the ride, the heavier car pivoting aggressively behind. Because the brakes are by-wire and blended, the pedal itself gave no indication that the brakes were locking up. The resulting half spin was a good learning moment for how to manage the car. It was also deeply humbling to drive a one-of-one prototype into the garage full of gravel. I need to learn how to say “sorry” in German. (Editor’s note: There is no German word to sufficiently express the grave humiliation of disrespecting a Porsche.)

Another session in race mode, albeit with more conservative driving, and the car and I had become friends. It was a sweetheart. Qualifying mode changed that. I wish I had more than four laps in that mode, because adding nearly 500 hp makes it seem like a different animal. Braking points move up, the top speed is hit with a quarter of the straight left to go. It’s the sort of change in speed that recalibrates your brain, that takes the car from jovial to intimidating.

Even after riding with Timo in qualifying mode, I couldn’t wrap my head around how quickly this car can go. Porsche says that the GT4 E-Performance is quicker around many tracks than the 911 GT3 Cup. Timo’s quickest time around the track in qualifying mode would have seen him right in the middle of the grid for a GT3 race at that track. Of course, battery life being what it is, qualifying mode is only good for a few laps, with race mode intended to last around 30 to 35 minutes, a good length for a sprint race.

I went into this wondering if there’d be the same engagement here as in a gaspowered car. After all, the normal things a race car driver interacts with are missing. There’s no engine noise or gear changes, things that keep you involved but can also act as reference points around the track for brake and acceleration points. The by-wire brakes don’t provide the same granular feedback.

kind permission)

Yet it’s engaging in a different way. After my spin, I started relying more on my ears than pedal feel to suss out the brakes. While I couldn’t use gearing as a reference point, I focused more on the pitch of the electric motors. And even though there is no shifting to focus on, the manic acceleration fully commands that part of your concentration.

It’s surprising in all the right ways. The biggest thing is that it’s very hard to make an electric race car. Sure, there’s stuff like Formula E, Extreme E, eTCR, and VW’s wild I.D. R, but none of those are accessible customer cars meant to be raced by gentleman drivers. Productionbased EVs frequently have issues with braking or cooling on track, something that Porsche has readily addressed from the beginning. Is this car perfect? Not quite. Some refinement of the braking system is needed and it’d be great to see the company get the weight down even more. But it is damn close. While this car won’t be sold or go into production, expect there to be a version of the allelectric next-gen Cayman that uses the tech seen here. The GT4 E-Performance is a killer start. Now Porsche will refine this concept until it’s the model for all future EV customer racing programs. Because if there’s one automaker that can figure out how to turn any road car into a race car, it’s Porsche.

Article by: Travis Okulski (Road and Track) Photos by: Road and Track (by

Hollywood star Michael Fassbender eager to tackle his Le Mans debut dream

06 June 2022

Great cinema at the Sarthe: At the 90th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans on 11/12 June 2022, the Hollywood actor and Porsche driver Michael Fassbender will make his longawaited debut at the legendary endurance classic. For the last three years, the 45-year-old Irish-German, famous for his blockbuster films such as “Inglorious Basterds“ and “X-Men”, has prepared intensively and single-mindedly for the highlight of his motor racing career.

Fassbender tackles the hunt twice around the clock at the wheel of the 911 RSR fielded by the Porsche customer team Proton Competition. He shares the cockpit of the No. 93 Porsche 911 in the GTE-Am category with the Australian works driver Matt Campbell and Zacharie Robichon from Canada.

“It’s always been a dream of mine to contest the 24 Hours of Le Mans,“ says Michael Fassbender as he looks ahead to his upcoming career highlight. “And the thing with dreams is you don’t think about how much work you’ve invested or how many setbacks you’ve had to face. I not only learned what it takes to contest a race weekend but also how to be competitive. It’s giving me a fascinating opportunity to show my full potential. It could be a one-off chance, so I simply want to do my best.”

Michael Fassbender’s motor racing career began a few years ago when he met fellow actor Patrick Dempsey on a long-haul flight from London to Los Angeles. After an animated conversation, the American team co-owner and former Le Mans driver of Dempsey-Proton Racing contacted the

heads of Porsche Motorsport Marketing. During Fassbender’s visit to Le Mans in 2018, a plan took shape to support the actor on his “Road to Le Mans”. And this is the title given to a YouTube series that would accompany the motorsport rookie on his journey.

Shortly thereafter, he took his first serious steps towards a career as a racing driver at the Porsche Driving Experience, the entry-level programme for motorsport enthusiasts. Next on the plan was the Porsche Racing Experience, a season in the Porsche Sports Cup Deutschland and guest appearances in the Porsche Mobil 1 SuperCup at the wheel of the 911 GT3 Cup.

Article by: Porsche Newsroom

Photos by: Posche

Major progress during two ELMS seasons

With the goal of Le Mans firmly in his sights, Fassbender tackled the European Le Mans Series (ELMS) with Proton Competition during the 2020 season. With his teammates Richard Lietz (Austria) and Felipe Fernández Laser (Germany), the Heidelberg-born man earned 47 points from four races to secure sixth place in the GTE class. With the same driver crew, Fassbender netted 61 points from six races in the following year and finished fifth in the final standings.

Porsche customer team Proton Competition

As a highlight of the season, Fassbender celebrated his first podium result in the ELMS, with second place at the final round in Portimao, Portugal, in late October 2021. “That podium spot was very important for everyone in the team,” recalls Fassbender. “After all the disappointments, the occasional setbacks and missed opportunities over the past three years, this result felt incredibly good.”

As a debutante at the French long-distance classic, like all rookies, Fassbender first had to fulfil certain pre-requisites before heading out for his first real drive on the legendary racetrack. For first-timers, the rules require a simulator test. Here, drivers must familiarise themselves with how to behave during safety car phases,

slow zones, and other safety measures, which at times differ significantly on the 13.626-kilometre Circuit des 24 Heures compared to other racetracks.

Michael Fassbender

Fassbender’s journey has been documented in the YouTube series “Road to Le Mans”, which has already been viewed 75 million times. In the 24 episodes to date, this documentary follows the highs and lows of the racing actor over the last three years. It also gives an exclusive and fascinating look behind the scenes of motorsport and the Porsche Motorsport pyramid. Season three is currently available on www.porsche.com/ RoadToLeMans.

“It’s always been a dream of mine to contest the 24 Hours of Le Mans”

Porsche celebrates founding of first Porsche club in Germany 70 years ago

Porsche is celebrating 70 years of Porsche Clubs this year, the automaker announced, and some might be surprised that the oldest one is not Porsche Club of America. On May 26, 1952, Westfälischer Porsche Club Hohensyburg was formed near Essen, Germany. The chapter is now known as Porsche Club Westfalen.

It was the first Porsche Club in a network that spread next to Belgium and is now more than 700 strong, including the Porsche Club of America (which, by the way, was started in September 1955). Porsche Clubs worldwide have membership totaling more than 240,000 in 86 countries, with about

five independent clubs added per year, Porsche says.

Each Porsche Club is an autonomous, independent, registered associations run by volunteers. Just as in PCA, they put on numerous events throughout the year — car shows, concours, and drives on both road and track. Many Porsche Clubs even have multi-day Porsche Parade-like events, a type of event which PCA pioneered with its first in 1956.

Through the years the Porsche family have enjoyed the company of members from various Porsche Clubs. Dr. Wolfgang Porsche, Peter Porsche, their respective families, and Porsche executives continue

the tradition set by Ferry Porsche of attending events like PCA’s Porsche Parade.

To celebrate Porsche Clubs worldwide, Porsche says, it is “planning a worldwide campaign with a variety of communications and events under the banner of “Enduring Passion.” In addition to traditional Porsche-branded media materials, this includes a central content hub, on which the Porsche Club members can publish their personal club stories. The company is also supporting Porsche Club events such as the 356 Meeting in the Netherlands in May, the Porsche Parade USA and Le Mans Classic.”

Article by: Damon Lowney Photos: Porsche

24 May 2022

Best Porsche 911 GT3 R ends incidentpacked race in the top 10

Germany’s Sven Müller and Marco Seefried as well as Frenchman Patrick Pilet and Jaxon Evans from New Zealand finished the 50th edition of the Eifel classic in ninth place with the No. 33 Porsche 911 GT3 R. The identical vehicle campaigned by Huber Motorsport driven by the quartet Lars Kern, Nico Menzel, Klaus Rader and Joachim Thyssen secured eleventh place. Despite some highlights, the race ended with bitter disappointments for Porsche’s other customer teams in the SP9 class.

Sebastian Golz, the GT3 R Project Manager, was disappointed with the overall result, saying “We were plagued by bad luck on Saturday and Sunday. We lost six cars in accidents, most of which were involved in collisions through no fault of their own. We very clearly witnessed just how strong our GT3 customer teams and our cars were in the race from the top positions of Manthey und Toksport WRT, which makes it all the more disappointing that we weren’t able to turn our competitiveness into a decent result.”

The anniversary event of the 24-hour race took off in the Eifel at 4 pm on Saturday 28 May in sunny conditions and in front of 230,000 spectators. Early on, two Porsche 911 GT3 R treated fans to an impressive show. In just 90 minutes, works driver Kévin Estre from France catapulted the No. 1 car of the defending champion Manthey from P36 to first place.

Ed note: you can see some of this impressive drive on You tube.

His teammate and fellow countryman Fréderic Makowiecki maintained the position and handed the so-called “Grello” 911 off to Laurens Vanthoor. However, the 2018 Le Mans class winner smashed into the barriers at the end of the Döttinger Höhe straight. In a duel with his brother Dries Vanthoor (Audi), the Belgian lost control of the 911 GT3 R after a contact and hit the crash barriers on both sides of the track. And thus, the impressive show of the No. 1 came to an abrupt end.

At this stage, just three and a half hours into the race, the customer team Toksport WRT had also thrown in the towel. During his first stint, works driver Matt Campbell (Australia) steadily progressed through the field to third place in the No. 27 car before swapping his seat with Julien Andlauer. Just a few laps later, the Frenchman became the unwitting victim of a crash while approaching the Veedol chicane. The spirited charge ended in the gravel bed of the Grand Prix circuit after just 18 laps. Dinamic Motorsport’s No. 29 entry had been parked behind the barriers since lap eleven after an accident in the Bergwerk area.

The sister car of the Italian customer squad ran through the night as the bestplaced Porsche 911 GT3 R. However, the crew of the No. 28 car were also hit by bad luck. While running fifth overall, works driver Thomas Preining (Austria) became entangled in another competitor’s accident on the Grand Prix circuit. The damage

to the steering gear of the 911 was so extensive that it was no longer possible to repair it in a reasonable amount of time. Falken’s No. 44 Porsche retired during the night after an accident, too.

Despite light rain showers and a brief hailstorm, the action among the top 15 remained uneventful until an hour before the end of the race – once again a Porsche was the focus of attention. On the approach to Döttinger Höhe, the Norwegian Dennis Olsen hit the barriers. For the KCMG 911, which was in ninth place at the time, this incident brought an early end. In the final phase, the Falken Motorsport and Huber teams brought their No. 33 and 25 entries safely over the remaining laps and concluded the Nürburgring 24-hour race in positions nine and eleven. The first three positions were taken by Audi first, AMG Mercedes second and third.

Article and Photos by: Porsche Newsroom

The Porsche 911 GT3 R fielded by the customer team Falken Motorsports has concluded the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring in the top 10.

Hyundai and Rimac breaking up over Porsche

Article by Ben Hsu (by kind permission of Autoblog)

Hyundai is reportedly cutting ties with electric supercar maker Rimac Automobili. Hyundai-Kia has owned a 12% stake worth $90 million in the Croatian maker of the Nevera since 2019. However Porsche, which has owned a 10% stake in Rimac since 2018, upped that share to 24 percent last year.

According to Automotive News, that newfound closeness with Porsche is what's prompting Hyundai to end its collaboration with Rimac. Hyundai had two projects in progress with Rimac: an electric sports car to bolster its N performance sub brand that had yet to earn a name, and the Vision FK Concept, hydrogenpowered sports sedan with a Rimac battery pack.

The AN article states that Hyundai will continue its own development of the former, while the latter is dead in the water. However, the same piece also quotes an official response from Rimac, "We have two active high-level projects ongoing [with Hyundai], one completed and several future projects under discussion."

Rimac's deal with Porsche also gave it a 55% stake in the newly formed Bugatti-Rimac, while Porsche took the remaining 45%. It effectively gave Rimac control over the 113-year-old company, in which future Bugattis would run on Rimac's electric drivetrains. Porsche still retains its own 24% stake in Rimac.

At this point it is still unclear whether Hyundai-Kia will sell its stake in Rimac, but if the unnamed sources in the AN article are correct it doesn't seem like there will be much of a point in keeping it.

It could be argued that Rimac, Porsche, and Bugatti are a better fit, as the Nevera is limited to 150 units and costs $2.4 million. Even as an N performance car, Hyundai's EV would have required greater volume and demanded more mass market engineering constraints. It's quite a different beast than building a low-volume car where money is no object.

The 10 Most Iconic Porsches In Movie History

Article and Photos by: Justin Owen

14 April 2022

Porsche has made some of the most iconic and sought-after cars in the world. Hollywood has created some of the most iconic movies in the world. Occasionally these two things meet. Sometimes a car plays as much of a role as any actor and other times the car plays a supporting role, adding to the action, elegance, or action throughout the plot. While no Porsche has ever been featured as the leading automobile, many of them have played parts in memorable scenes of fast-paced cat and mouse games of speed. The first Porsche vehicle was produced in the early fifties and their unique style and flair for performance meant they would be on set in Hollywood in due time. Since then, actors of the highest calibre from Al Pacino to Jeff Bridges have been filmed in the most iconic Porsches in movie history. Here are ten of them.

Risky Business (1983) Porsche 928

movies. The most iconic scene happens early on with Joel exploring his newfound freedom by cranking up Bob Seger's "Old Time Rock and Roll" and dancing and lipsynching in an oxford shirt and socks. The other iconic scenes revolve around dad's Porsche 928. While many movie cars get lost or salvaged and forgotten not long after filming wraps, this 928 was preserved. Autoweek reported as recently as September 2021 that the car had been auctioned and fetched a healthy $1.9 million. The car was sold new with white paint and was painted gold for the film and features signatures of the cast on the passenger's sunshade. While 928s have seen their prices rise lately, trying to get a million dollars out of any other late '70s 928 really would be some risky business.

LeMans

No other actor ties together auto racing and Hollywood blockbusters like Steve McQueen. Not only did he play many roles in which he raced cars or drove them in high pursuit and high speeds, but he also owned many race cars and motorcycles and, later in life, dedicated much of his time roaming the country racing Triumph motorcycles. LeMans is one of the oldest and most grueling of all auto races. According to High Consumption, LeMans started in 1923 as the ultimate endurance test for automobiles and runs cars on a 10.7 miles course for 24 hours straight. From its inception, it offered manufacturers and race teams the opportunity to show off their engineering prowess and it became wildly popular. McQueen starred in the film LeMans driving the Porsche factory LeMans car, the 917.

Risky business features 17-year-old Joel, played by Tom Cruise, left to his own devices among his upper echelon Chicago home as his parents leave town for the week. Wealthy parents leaving town is a pretty common plot device for '80s

Arthur (1981) Porsche 924

Dudley Moore had a long acting career, but his finest performance may have been that of the drunken Arthur Bach in 1981's smash hit Arthur. The titular character Arthur Bach is an heir to a family fortune in New York who spends the greatest portion of his time drunk. As a wealthy young man with no responsibilities and even less ambition, Arthur fills his days with meaningless pursuits and alcohol. It is a fantastic movie and the skill with which Moore portrays a drunken and spoiled aristocrat is stunning. As a wealthy playboy of New York City, Arthur has all of the fanciest and most expensive toys of the time, and this includes a race car. Anyone who has ever been involved in racing will know it is one of the most expensive hobbies one could engage in. Arthur is seen taking laps on a closed course in an apparently race-ready Porsche 924. In its day the 924 would have been an excellent choice for road racing courses. Their four-cylinder engine can be tuned yet remain light and with the rear-mounted transaxle with a very even weight distribution — the perfect toy for an unencumbered young heir

Scarface (1983) Porsche 928

It makes no difference whether it is 1967, 1981, or the present day, escaping communist Cuba to immigrate to the United States is a harrowing journey. Fortunately for those who do, United States policy offers all Cuban immigrants asylum as long as they make it onto American soil. This has been documented through many Hollywood films, but none as celebrated as 1983's Scarface, starring Al Pacino. Montana does answer to another more powerful man during his rise. It is in service to his superior that Montana is

tasked with accompanying this other man's wife, Elvira, played by Michelle Pfeiffer, and takes a detour through a Porsche dealership. Throughout the scene, a playful Montana simultaneously toys with the salesman and flirts with Elvira until she gets bored with the charade. He instructs his assistant, Manny, to pay for the car and bring it to him later. Scarface is by no means what could be considered a "car movie" but every self-respecting drug lord needs expensive toys to spend their ill-gotten gains on, and a brand-new Porsche is the perfect example.

Condorman (1981) 911 fleet

There is nothing like a good cold war spyversus-spy thriller. With a tip of the hat to the James Bond film series, Condorman follows comic writer Woody Wilkins as he stumbles his way into the world of Soviet-era espionage. At the request of Wilson, the CIA creates several vehicles and contraptions modelled after those he wrote in his Condorman comic so that he may assume the real-life role of his comic hero.

The movie is a silly but fun parody of the spy genre and features many impressive machines, including the jet-powered Condormobile. Wilson as Condorman manages to elude a team of murderous KGB agents in black Porsches even though it is doubtful a team of Soviet spies would have access to a fleet of West German sports cars.

The lead assassin, Morovich, leads the pack in a Flachbau, or flat nose, 935 while the rest of his comrades make do with

standard 911s. Supercars.net lists this car with a 2.9-liter turbo engine cranking out nearly 600 horsepower. It would be a great car for a chase as it was developed to win races. The other cars in the pack appear to be contemporary 911s, which means they would have more trouble keeping up if they weren't getting roasted by Condorman's rear-mounted flame thrower and laser cannons. Regardless of how powerful any one of these Porsches is, they cannot compare to the jet power of the Condormobile.

Gone in 60 Seconds (2000)

In a movie all about cars, it should be no surprise that a Porsche would show up. The real stars of Gone in 60 Seconds could be considered to be the cars as it features some of the most desirable vehicles ever built, particularly a 1971 Ford Mustang known as Eleanor. But hiding in the shadows of the classic Mustangs, Ferraris, Astons, and Mercedes are a few Porsches, including a late 90s 911 996 displayed in the window of what appears to be a downtown dealership. Kip Raines, played by Giovanni Ribisi, sees the car on a rotating platform and proceeds to do his thing, driving the car through the front window less than 60 seconds later.

No Man’s Land (1987)

No Man’s Land follows the exploits of Ted Varrick, played by Charlie Sheen, who runs an operation that specializes in stealing Porsches and his nemesis is police Lt. Vincent Bracey, played by Randy Quaid, who sends a young officer to infiltrate Varnick’s operation. There are plenty of nice-looking Porsches in this movie and, in particular, they drive a silver 911 during a

failed attempt to boost another Porsche. After evading gunfire in a parking garage, they lead a high-speed chase through the city, running from a Camaro and a Lincoln land yacht, with a predictable outcome. Car Magazine lists the horsepower rating of this car at 300 horsepower and, with its weight of just below 3000 pounds, the Porsche is among the fastest cars of the time period.

Good Guys Wea

Good Guys Wear Black (1978)

John T. Booker, played by Chuck Norris, is a Vietnam vet deemed too dangerous for the streets by the CIA. Booker finds himself over and over fending off a cabal of martial arts-trained assassins and armed killers seemingly at every corner. When he is not putting down an assailant with a roundhouse or left jab, he is running laps around a Riverside, CA race track in a purpose-built Porsche race car. With the film happening in 1978, the car in question is certainly an air-cooled flat-6 that is either built up with strong internals or boosted with a turbo to get it screaming around the track. How Booker can afford such a toy remains a mystery as his day job appears to be kicking ass and taking names, and Indeed.com does not list a salary range for such a profession.

When he isn’t laying rubber on the track, Booker is running from cold-blooded killers in a black Porsche 911 with a perfectly huge whale tail spoiler.

Top Gun (1986) Porsche 356 Spyder

There is no denying the box office powerhouse that was Top Gun in 1986. Fuelled by heightened levels of Cold War patriotism and state-of-the-art fighter jets, this movie showed audiences the skill and supremacy of the United States military in theoretical and hypothetical cinematic glory.

Maverick and Charlie are at loggerheads throughout the film, which leads to a memorable scene featuring Charlie’s beautiful automobile. Maverick takes off on his Kawasaki Ninja after a tense dispute between the two so Charlie pursues him in a shiny black Porsche 356 Spyder.

Against All Odds (1984)

There is not much that can make 1980s Jeff Bridges any cooler, but a shiny bright red Porsche helps. The movie “Against All Odds” has everything you could want in a 1980s drama. There’s romance, betrayal, murder, shirtless Jeff Bridges, and a street race between a Ferrari and a Porsche.It is not so much a race where there is a clearly defined start and finish, nor is there a clear winner, but the super high-speed dangerous driving in traffic makes for a riveting scene.

A personal reflection...

Article by: Doug McPherson

I was a volunteer, helping with the form-up grid, along with Joshua Herreen & Lorraine Coupe, for the showcase Porsche Easter Nationals, hosted by the Porsche Club of SA and with attendees from Queensland, NSW and VIC, along with the SA entrants. The Bend circuit at Tailem Bend was the venue chosen for this important meet.

Initially sorting out competitor lap times was based on the car’s performance, but as each session was run, there was a continual change of order based on each competitors times from the previous session. Obviously, our interstate guests recorded the greatest improvements in their lap times during the first morning session, as they came to grips with a new track.

After the first day’s competition, most competitors and their ‘support crew’ ie family, attended a dinner at The Bend function room. It was an opportunity to meet other Porsche club members from interstate. In my case I was on a table with fellow Porsche enthusiasts from Brisbane.

The Bolwell Car Club were holding their National Rally based at The Bend over the same week-end. I was very fortunate to sit down at breakfast the next morning with a couple of the founding members of the Bolwell Car Company, which in its day was a leading Australian ‘kit car’ manufacturer. Interestingly the company is still involved with composite manufacturing today.

Always at these motorsport events there is an opportunity to re-connect with friends. John Marosszesky and I first met as trainee technicians at OTC in the 70s in Sydney. We were both into our cars as 20 year olds. We re-connected many years later at the Porsche Clubs event at Bathurst in Easter 2010. John was in his 968 and I was in my 964. As the cars had very similar performance we had nominated similar times under the regularity rules. This year John was attending in his bright blue (Miami Blue) 987.2 Cayman S, enjoying all that The Bend had to offer.

Porsche Easter Nationals 2022

14-16 April 2022

Photos: Bob Taylor

Motorkhana 1 May 22

Photos by: Ray Clements

D Lucas

T Pryzibilla

R Hambrook

R Patterson

P Mayer

P Panopoulos

J Coote

J Beckwith

N Goodall

R Patterson

R Hambook

D Lucas

O Thiele

D Herreen

PCSA Round 2 Motorkhana Championship Results 01-May-2022

Saturday

Super Sprint 3 The Bend

Article contributed by: Doug McPherson

Photos

by: Ray Clements and Peter Withersohn

The cool conditions on the day had PB’s being set everywhere, but it was those that stuck around for session 5 (afternoon practice) that were rewarded with the quickest session of the day; nearly the whole group laid down their fastest times just before the rain rolled in…

Congratulations should go to: Adam Wallace 992GT3 - Fastest Porsche (unofficial)

Tim Williams Lotus Exige 410 - Fastest Associate (unofficial)

The Club is back at the East track of The Bend again on the 21st August, and look out if Adam and Jed turn up on something better than worn road tyres. We know the boys are closely matched so that says a lot about how much of a leap the new 992 GT3 is vs the 991.2

B Wortley

C Thompson

M Rapaic

J Wallis

D Goes

N Goodall

L Bosman

G Washington

P Jaquillard

M Coupe

J Breckwith

A Wallis

A Whyment

Photos: Porsche

Article: Joe Kucinski

(by kind permission)

16 June 2022

20 Years of the Cayenne: How the ‘Third Porsche’ Came to Be the High-Performance SUV We Know Today

With just the Boxster and 911 there needed to be a third Porsche model to make the company profitable. The Cayenne was announced in 1998.

The Porsche Cayenne is a model that a lot of folks like to hate. But the fact is that it saved the Porsche company and provided funds for projects like the GT2 RS, GT3, and all the other sports car models we love. And with automakers such as Aston Martin and Ferrari making SUVs now, the cries of Porsche should not make an SUV should be much quieter at this point. If you are still one of the hold outs that hates the thought of a Porsche SUV, consider this. In the mid-1990s Porsche knew it needed a third model to be profitable. And it nearly chose a luxury minivan as that third Porsche. So, we should all consider ourselves lucky that we got a highperformance SUV instead.

It might be hard to believe but the Cayenne made its debut 20 years ago at the Paris Motor Show in 2002. After two decades of seeing the Porsche SUV on the road we may take it for granted. However, it has

quite an interesting origin story. Not only was the third Porsche almost a minivan, but once it was decided it would be an SUV, it was nearly a Mercedes M-Class offshoot. Let’s take a quick look back at how the Cayenne came to be.

Sports Car Limits

Porsche had the legendary 911 and the recently introduced Boxster in the second half of the 1990s. Even though the Boxster was a huge hit it was not going to be enough to save the company. In 1992 the company reported a loss of 240 million Deutschmarks. Sports cars alone would not be enough to turn a profit. “It was apparent that the sports car had its limits on the market,” recalls Anton Hunger, head of communications for former Chairman of the Executive Board Wendelin Wiedeking. “The sales division had clearly demonstrated this using market research. In the long run, Porsche would have ended up on a downward slope again.”

Third Porsche

Realizing a third Porsche model was needed the company developed five alternative vehicle concepts. The two finalists were a performance SUV and a luxury minivan. At the time the U.S. was the biggest market for Porsche and a luxury minivan was not going to work in America. “At the time in America, minivans were especially popular among families with many children and low incomes,” Hunger recounts. “But large SUVs were doing well across all income levels even back then.” This set Porsche on the SUV path. Now they just needed a partner. Turns out they had one just down the road.

Cayenne Standards

One thing made clear at the outset was the third Porsche still had to behave like a Porsche even if it was an SUV. In addition, it needed to handle the rough stuff as good or better than its competition. Wolpert had a brilliant idea to drive this point home to the engineers. All division managers had to turn in their beloved 911 company cars. Instead, they were to rotate through driving a series of competitive SUVs such as the M-Class, BMW X5, Jeep Grand Cherokee, and Ford Explorer. This allowed them to experience the strengths and weaknesses of each vehicle. No one was happy about driving a Ford Explorer over a 911 but it provided valuable information that made the firstgeneration Cayenne as good as it was.

Mercedes Partnership

Mercedes was going to launch the M-Class SUV in 1997 and they were willing to join forces with Porsche. The idea was that the Porsche SUV would be a highperformance offshoot of the Mercedes. The Porsche would share a lot of the M-Class technology. But the Porsche would have a unique exterior design and engine and chassis components. In the summer of 1996, the agreement was struck. However, it turned out to not be much more than a summer fling. By the end of that year the two companies had a falling out over the economic details of the deal. Now a new partner was needed.

Enter Volkswagen

This was back in the days before Porsche was part of the VW group, but the SUV collaboration made sense to both parties. “Porsche presented the concept to Volkswagen, and Ferdinand Piëch decided that they could also use a car like this,” explains Klaus-Gerhard Wolpert, the first Vice President for the Product Line Cayenne from 1998 to 2010. In June of 1997 the companies decided to join forces. The Cayenne and Touareg would be developed on the Porsche platform as part of the project known internally as ‘Colorado.’ About a year later the SUV project was made public to the shock and horror of many Porsche faithful.

Cayenne Breaks Cover

In September 2002 at the Paris Motor Show the Cayenne was shown to the public. Porsche enthusiasts may not have been happy with what they saw but the model was and continues to be a smash hit for the company. 276,652 examples of the first-generation Cayenne were sold, and over one million in total have been sold to date. Just last year more than 80,000 Cayenne SUVs were sold. Folks may have laughed at the idea in 2002 but no one is laughing now.

22 May 2022

Foggy Dew Run

Article and photos: Chris Baldwin

On a lovely clear brisk Adelaide Sunday morning, post a federal election, a new government and maybe some late Saturday night celebrations, some 17 Porsche Club members set off at 7.50 from the Feather’s Hotel carpark for an invigorating and enthusiastic (read spirited according to Lee Fulton’s description) run through the Adelaide Hills. It was good to see some new faces and cars, including a Victorian couple ex PCVIC (Steve and Kirsty Page) recently settled in Adelaide, and their 964.

The 78km run took us up Greenhill Road for the twisty run past Norton Summit, through the sleepy town of Uraidla towards Balhannah. There was the occasional cyclist to navigate around but generally it was a clear and twisty road to open the throttle at times as well as test the brakes and handling around numerous tight corners. By the time we got to the Mt Barker roundabout heading towards Mylor we struck some light fog which fortunately cleared soon after. It was then down River Road towards Strathalbyn and Hahndorf before heading back along

Mt Barker Road towards Littlehampton, Balhannah and Uraidla. Finally, we passed through Summertown and down Greenhill Road back to Feather’s where everyone settled in for a lovely breakfast, coffee and camaraderie amongst like-minded porschephile’s.

The run was organised by Lee Fulton who did a great job, both with organising the run, ensuring the splendid and impressive group of porsches (and one Ferrari) could stay together throughout, and then with the breakfast arrangements. Thank you, Lee.

These Club Run’s are a fantastic way to meet up with other Porsche lovers of all marques, enjoy spirited driving (there’s that word again) and remind ourselves how fortunate we are in Adelaide to have such easy access to great driving roads in the countryside so close to the city.

Look forward to seeing more Club members on the next Club Run, in whatever Porsche marque (or Ferrari) you care to be driving.

The Ray Pank Winter Cup Round 2 Hillclimb

It was wet, windy and wild weather for the running of the Sporting Car Club of SA Hillclimb at Collingrove on Sunday 5th June. Members of the PCSA joined the event. Despite the weather the competitors made the most of the conditions. A special thanks to the competitor who gave me a lift down the hill during a really bad rain storm, It was very much appreciated. Thanks to Melissa Rees for all her help and encouragement.

Article and Photos: Wayne Hough Motorsport

Photography

The 2022 Porsche 911 GT3 has one analog gauge: the tachometer. It's huge, dead ahead through the steering wheel. And if you spec a GT3 with the six-speed manual transmission, it's a vital instrument. That's because, unless you own an early Honda S2000 or some type of Hayabusa-powered Ford Festiva, you're probably not accustomed to shifting gears at 9000 rpm. Shift by ear in the GT3, and you might grab the next ratio at 7000 rpm—which is, preposterously, short-shifting by a wide margin. So, you keep that tach in your peripheral vision, and when the yellow lights alongside it start to flash, that's when your left foot goes to the clutch and your right hand to the shifter. At 9000

rpm, it sounds as if the 502-hp 4.0-liter flat-six is trying to overtake the car itself. It sounds like a GT3 Cup car's engine back there. Which, of course, it mostly is.

The GT3's six-speed manual is a different animal than the seven-speed stick in other 911s, tracing its lineage back to the 2016 911 R model. While the seven-speed unit uses Porsche's clever "mechanically converted shift actuator" (MECOSA) to translate its PDK dual-clutch-automaticderived guts into an H-shift pattern, no such system is needed on the six-speed, which is gloriously easy to slot into the proper gear. It feels somehow frictionless until the soft crunch of engagement tells you you've hit the next cog. Revs climb—

and fall off—instantly, as if the 4.0-liter has a fidget spinner for a flywheel. Mundane chores like parallel parking inevitably attract lookie-loos, so keep those revs up. Stalling a GT3 is almost as bad as stalling an airplane, in terms of embarrassment, if not consequences.

A manual gearbox suits a machine that's so thoroughly devoted to an unfiltered driving experience. Our $197,935 USD test car's limited selection of options was almost all related to speed or performance: $10,110 for carbonceramic brakes, $5900 for fixed-back carbon bucket seats, $230 for the extended-range 23.7-gallon fuel tank that maybe ought to be standard, given

Porsche's new benchmark for manual-transmission 911 greatness is aimed at its most hardcore fans.

2022 Porsche 911 GT3 Manual

that the GT3 drinks fuel like a four-wheeldrive Chevy Tahoe (16 mpg combined, per the EPA). The GT3's $164,150 base price does include a single cupholder, positioned directly in front of the shifter. Do not use the cupholder.

In the GT3's Normal drive mode, you can try to rev-match downshifts yourself. In Sport and Track modes, the car does it for you. Reverse is up and to the left of first gear, and its detent—pushing down on the shifter—is not exactly a seven-foot-tall bouncer with brass knuckles. Tip: If you think you're in first gear but the backup camera is on, best check your work before dropping the clutch.

Grab a perfect launch and the six-speed GT3 will hit 60 mph in 3.3 seconds and run the quarter mile in 11.5 seconds at 124 mph. Those are great numbers, but far in arrears of the automatic car's 2.7-second dash to 60 and its 10.9-second quarter-mile pass at 129 mph. The manual GT3 weighs slightly less than the PDK car (3199 pounds versus

3222 pounds) and manages to improve on the automatic model's skidpad grip (1.16 g's compared to 1.11 g's). But there's a reason that Porsche sent an automatic GT3 to represent the car at our Lightning Lap event—the dual-clutch gearbox makes for quicker lap times. In choosing the manual transmission, you're deliberately surrendering performance. And why would you do that?

Well, because you can spare a half-second here or there in the name of glorious mechanical involvement. And because, with a manual, this car draws a straight line back to the first 911s, except it's so much better. Plus, there's the snob appeal. The GT3 is its own exclusive club, and the manual GT3 is the roped-off VIP area inside that party. No poseurs allowed. This is like the GT3 versus 911 Turbo debate distilled to an intra-GT3 rivalry. Do you prioritize raw emotion or raw speed? While the manual option costs zilch, it ought to be a statement credit. But that is an accounting oversight we can stomach, especially when the GT3 feels like a bargain.

Article by: Ezra Dyer (Car and Driver)

Bore and Stroke, there is no substitute for horsepower! Part 1.

I have owned my 1989 928 S4 since 2004 and always love driving it, back then it was my daily driver. The flat six society may argue not a real Porsche, but the 928 for me is a well balanced drivers GT, one of those cars you just want to get back into and drive again.

Hamish McKendrick introduced me to track days in 2005 and I was hooked. Since then, I have driven this 30 year old 5 litre V8 hard, once a month on a Sunday. I think the odometer displays over 200,000 miles and in true Porsche style, it is check the oil and add petrol, ready for next month’s track day. Certainly, a bucket list item for me was to run around the Bathurst race circuit, which we have managed 5 times so far thanks to PCNSW Regularity and Sprint events.

Easter 2019 having the time of my life https://youtu.be/ k0UlPikUsic or google (Porsche 928 at mount panorama) the evening that destroyed the bearings.

The more you enjoy the sport the more you push the limits of the car, and with additional braking, tyre grip, exhaust mods, suspension mods and a lot of track time, I finally found the weak link in the 30-year-old 5litre, quad cam V8, 4 speed auto GT classic.

The weak link is oil starvation, aeration after several hard laps at full rev’s for 15mins, combined with hard lefthand cornering, there goes the big end bearings. A very nasty rattle heading up mountain straight the next morning. Found some metal in the sump!

I knew what I had done, and sadly had to put my beautiful car in the back corner of the shed waiting for inspiration and confidence to pull the motor and rebuild it.

With so many hot hard miles under her belt, I expected some

badly worn internals so I planned to do a full crank, rods, piston rebuild at least, so the sourcing and financial deliberation began. So……… if you must buy a crank, pistons and conrods then why not live the teenage years of bigger is better? Bored and stroked with increased compression, sounds a treat.

There are a lot of induction kits to increase power in the 928 and other similar marques but I wanted to maintain the makeup of the car with a quad cam normally aspirated set up.

In today’s money, 310hp from a quad cam 5 litre, German V8 is disappointing, but this is a 30-year-old car. And we are told, good for 1 million miles!! So, the investment in major items was made and the removal began. This motor only just fits in this car…….. no space each side in fact you must manipulate it on the way out, but wow what a piece of engineering when it comes out, a beautiful big chunk of motor.

Thank goodness for digital photography, a careful library of all connections, hoses, wiring, etc, etc, etc. 18 months before this baby goes back in.

So strip me down and get ready for some surprises!

An awesome piece of engineering, just got to remember how it all goes back together.

A shame the bores had to go for new pistons as they were still in a very serviceable condition, pistons and valves were a bit crusty though.

Bore out the block and fit the new cylinder sleeves

I bought a house for $78,000 in 1990, similar time the 928 GTS was released for $240,000

As I mentioned 30 years old, and a few years of hot hard work is not what she was expecting. Not everything was in good serviceable condition, at some points it felt like the end of the blues brother’s movie when the Caddy falls to pieces. Undo a few bolts and see what falls out.

A couple of examples.

1. The drive plate, not sure how many more track days this had in it, but it fell to the floor in pieces when I unbolted it.

2. The cam chain tensioners, some of the pieces were blocking the oil return channels.

Constructing the short motor was relatively simple, with several dry runs at assembly and the inclusion of crank scrapers and oil management baffles required the biggest effort with trimming, fitting, removal, trimming, fitting 4 or 5 times to ensure clearances were suitable and managed the best possible crank scrape to reduce oil misting, and aeration.

So, the Block assembly aimed for a 6.5litre capacity, strokedhollow crank with knife edge counterbalance, Oliver race conrods, connected to Wiseco ceramic topped race pistons. Custom crank scraper and baffle system and dropped sump. To achieve this the original cylinders had to be completely removed and replaced with steel liners. I hate to mess with German engineering, but I wanted the cubes.

So now what to do with the cylinder heads?

Well, there is not much room to increase valve sizes, but you can squeeze in 2 x 968 intake valves, port and flow the heads and skim a little off the surface to support at least the best air flow possible with the original casting and manifold set up and just north of 11:1 compression ratio. Happy days. Oh, and did I mention camshafts are expensive, but one of the best engineering shops in Australia took care of that for me. Tighe Engineering, manufacture new cams or re-engineer existing. Adding higher lift and more duration to really extend the opportunity to consume lots of fuel!

So with the bottom end sorted and 4 new wild cams, nut much left to do or spend….ha,ha,ha.

And then the shopping list really starts, replacing those 30-yearold accessories, belts, chains, sprockets, valves x 32, cam followers x 32 and heads to strip and machine Adelaide Cylinder Heads did the machining and testing, definitely the best job in town. Awesome work and know their stuff. Now comes the scary job of assembly, line everything up and bolt it together.

The engine design is one that gives an interference condition if operating out of sync, ie. The valves will hit the pistons if this is not correct. If you are one tooth out on the chains or belts, everything will seem fine but won’t run perfectly, if at all. So first prep all the parts including the intake plenum and cam covers below and spend a lot of time on the internet watching and reading all the documented experiences.

Crinkle paint gives up to 2 times more surface area for heat exchange, something I’m going to need :) Experience, something you get immediately after you really needed it!

CUSTOM TILT SLIDE TRAYS • CRANES • AXLE, ENGINE AND CHASSIS STANDS • PRESSES • VEHICLE TIE DOWN EQUIPMENT

Global quest for Porsche Penske Motorsport with the new 963

The Porsche Penske Motorsport team sends the new Porsche 963 to hunt for overall victories in the world’s greatest endurance races. From 2023, two of the hybrid LMDh-spec prototypes will be fielded in both the FIA World Endurance Championship and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

Article and Photos by: Porsche AG

The racing vehicle that was unveiled Friday 24 June at Goodwood in England flies the typical Porsche motor racing colours: white, red and black. In the cockpits of the 500 kW (680 PS) racers, experienced and championship winning prototype drivers are paired with seasoned specialists from Porsche’s works driver squad. Porsche Penske Motorsport prepares for these missions at two locations: The branch in Mannheim (Germany) is responsible for the FIA World Endurance Championship, with the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship vehicles prepared in Mooresville, North Carolina, USA.

“After 7,889 test kilometres during the first half of 2022, we’re on a very good path but there is still work to be done before the start of next season,” outlines

Thomas Laudenbach, Vice President Motorsport. “Our new Porsche 963 should continue the legacy of legendary models such as the 917, 935, 956, 962 and the 919 Hybrid. I’m positive that we’ll be wellpositioned when it comes to technology, and we’ve also created the relevant team structures to set us up for wins in the thrilling competition between many manufacturers and different concepts.”

The official race debut of the Porsche 963 is planned to take place in January 2023 at the 24 Hours of Daytona in the USA. In the meantime, the FIA WEC has opened the door for testing as part of the upcoming world championship races this year. Porsche Penske Motorsport is aiming for a non-competitive dress rehearsal at the final round of the season in Bahrain this November.

Test drives of the LMDh prototype on the Circuit de Catalunya

“Over the past few months, our people at Porsche Motorsport and Team Penske have grown into an efficient and committed squad – the Porsche Penske Motorsport Team,” acclaims Urs Kuratle, Director Factory Motorsport LMDh. “We’ll have powerful driver crews in the four factory cars. The collaboration with our long-standing tyre partner Michelin and the chassis manufacturer Multimatic works flawlessly. The Porsche 963 should be homologated this autumn. Until then, we want to make further progress with test drives and gain additional insights. We can hardly wait for our first outing.”

The drivers selected for the races in the World Endurance Championship

and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship include the experienced works drivers Kévin Estre (France), Michael Christensen (Denmark), André Lotterer (Germany), Laurens Vanthoor (Belgium), Matt Campbell (Australia), Mathieu Jaminet (France) as well as the accomplished sportscar drivers Dane Cameron (USA) and Felipe Nasr (Brazil). In the initial development phase, Frédéric Makowiecki played a key role: during the rollout at Weissach in January, the Frenchman drove the first metres in the Porsche 963 and also turned the first laps in the simulator. Other driver announcements, including those for the endurance races at Daytona, Sebring and Road Atlanta (Petit Le Mans), will be made at a later date.

Porsche Penske Motorsport prepares a total of four 963s for the world’s most important sports car races at its bases in Mooresville (North Carolina) and Mannheim (Germany). The WEC facility in Germany’s Baden-Württemberg is a former Porsche Centre of Penske Automotive, built to state-of-the-art standards. The exchange of data between the three high-tech centres of Porsche Penske Motorsport occurs almost in real-time. The WEC team will move into the Mannheim premises this autumn.

Jonathan Diuguid is the Managing Director of Porsche Penske Motorsport: “Expectations are extremely high,” acknowledges the American. “Not only from the public but also from Porsche and Team Penske, who have written great motorsport chapters together in the past.” Diuguid and Travis Law (Competition Director) will guide the global Porsche Penske Motorsport Team, with direct oversight and management of both the FIA WEC and IMSA programs. Daily operations of the FIA WEC team will be led

by Bernhard Demmer (General Manager) and Francis Schammo (Team Manager). Joel Svensson (Team Manager) will be responsible in the IMSA championship in North America.

The design hails from the victorious 956 and 962 classics

In compliance with the LMDh regulations, the Porsche 963 is based on an LMP2category chassis. This newly developed vehicle chassis is supplied by the Canadian high-tech company Multimatic. Bosch, Williams Advanced Engineering and Xtrac contribute the standard hybrid components. At the heart of the powertrain lies a 4.6-litre V8 Biturbo. The engine is based on the high-performance 918 Spyder hybrid sports car. Its DNA goes back to the RS Spyder racing car, with which Porsche and Team Penske notched up many victories between 2005 and 2008. The design of the new Porsche 963 hails from the victorious 956 and 962 classics from the 1980s. A continuous strip of lighting at the rear echoes the distinctive feature of the latest 992-generation 911. The white-red-black vehicle design is a salute to Porsche’s successful racing cars. And another tradition lives on: The new Porsche 963 will be available to customers from the first year of competition.

For its envisaged campaign in the FIA World Endurance Championship WEC and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship (IWSA) – the world’s two most long-distance racing series including the Le Mans 24 Hours, the Daytona 24 Hours and the 12 Hours of Sebring classics – Porsche Penske Motorsport joins forces with strong and proven partners. The tyre manufacturer

Michelin continues its close alliance, as does ExxonMobil with its Mobil1 brand. In addition to the software specialist Ansys, which supports the global team with cutting-edge simulation solutions as the official technology partner, the Penske Corporation, which will highlight a number of subsidiaries and brands, is also on board as an official partner. With its expertise in development and engineering, Multimatic joins the project as a technology partner. The luxury watchmaker TAG Heuer also joins the global team as the official timing partner of the Porsche Penske Motorsport team. The fashion brand Hugo Boss as the team’s clothing partner and outfitter as well as the sports lifestyle company Puma as the technical partner for fireproof race clothing complete the portfolio of top-level partnerships of Porsche Penske Motorsport.

How the Taycan Recovers Energy While Driving

The

Article by: Heike Hientzsch

Photos by: Rafael Krötz

How does the Taycan do that?

“We incorporate the electric motors we produce in Zuffenhausen into the brake system for the purpose of energy recovery,” explains Ingo Albers, Head of Chassis Development at the Porsche development center in Weissach. “Electric motors can generally be controlled in four-quadrant operation.” In other words, an electric motor can work with both the rotation speed and torque running in the same – positive – direction. But each electric motor can also function as a generator, in which case the motor continues to turn in the same direction but is now powered by the wheels rather than powering them itself. It ¬generates electrical energy, rather than consuming it. And because it takes a lot of energy to power the motor and thus turn the rotor against the ¬magnetic ¬resistance, this negative torque can be used to brake the vehicle.

Double the power: The two electric motors at the front and rear axles of the Taycan are incorporated into the brake system.

The control units and power electronics of the electric motors in the Taycan are therefore intelligently connected with the controls and logics of the brake control system. The conventional hydraulic wheel brake and electric motors can slow down the vehicle together. The experts in Weissach have developed a complex recuperation strategy. Within milliseconds, the electronics decide what percentage of the braking will be electric and what percentage will be hydraulic. While the driver cannot feel the difference, they can see it in the power meter in the instrument cluster.

Around 90 percent of everyday braking is 100 percent electric, allowing the Taycan to recover energy. “But in extreme situations, such as full braking from a top speed in a fully loaded Taycan, a maximum braking capacity of more than two megawatts must be applied,” says Albers. “The electric powertrain cannot do that alone. The conventional wheel brake is then applied to a higher degree.” It may also activate because the battery is already full and can no longer recharge through recuperation. Just in case – take, for instance, downhill driving – the hydraulic wheel brake is designed for high performance. Thanks to the design of the electric motors and the electronics in conjunction with Porsche’s signature intelligent control, the Taycan can -recuperate with up to 290 kilowatts. “That’s at the ¬absolute top of the field,” says Albers. “And we plan to increase this value.”

The autobahn is empty and you’re driving 200 kmh, until a small delivery van changes lanes to pass a truck. No problem – you’re maintaining a safe distance and slow down to 100 kmh. But a great deal of energy is consumed in the blink of an eye, as vehicles with an internal combustion engine convert kinetic energy into heat when the brakes are applied, which they’re unable to use. Electric vehicles, on the other hand, can recover a large portion of this energy, using the electric machines as generators when slowing down and ¬storing the power generated in the ¬battery.

For example, the Porsche Taycan can use a significant amount of the ¬braking energy for propulsion, which is referred to as recuperation, based on the Latin ¬recuperare. Recuperation has established itself as a technical term. Kinetic braking energy increases twice as fast as speed – double the speed means four times the recuperation. When ¬braking from 100 kmh, the Taycan -generates four times as much energy as when braking from 50 kmh. This ¬recuperation and the propulsion itself both play a key role in the efficiency of electric vehicles.

Coordinating recuperation: In combination with the electromechanical brake booster, Porsche Stability Management (PSM) ensures that the Taycan always maintains the same pressure point in the brake pedal.

Some car manufacturers have the electric drive’s recuperation system activate automatically the moment the driver removes their foot from the gas pedal, which is referred to as one-pedal driving. “We made the decision to go a different route with the Taycan,” says Albers. “You apply the brakes to slow down, which is a learned behavior and it’s authentic. The driver receives consistent, predictable feedback. We also offer full integration of systems such as ABS and PSM.” ¬Technically speaking, it would be much easier to apply the ¬electric motor braking to the gas pedal, rather than integrating it into the brake ¬system. “But we incor¬porated ¬limited recuperation into the gas pedal, which the driver ¬perceives to be ¬efficient, smooth coasting particularly in rural areas,” explains Ingo Albers.

Taycan generates new energy when braking. This becomes possible with a unique recuperation management system. How does it work?

DRIVE TO AUBURN AND LUNCH AT THE RISING SUN

• Left out of the car park onto Greenhill Road heading to Uraidla

•Travel 13km on Greenhill Road to Uraidla

•Turn left into Basket Range Road towards Lobethal

•Travel 3 km and then turn right onto Lobethal Road B27 towards Lobethal

•Travel 18 km on Lobethal Road B27 to Lobethal and then turn left into the main street

•Travel 2km on the main street in Lobethal and turn left into Kenton Valley Road towards Gumeracha.

•Travel 9km and turn right into B10 the main street of Gumeracha towards Birdwood

•Travel 8km to Birdwood and then continue for another 10 km to Mt Pleasant B10 Torrens Valley Drive where we stop for a 10-minute break

•From Mt Pleasant we travel to Angaston for 35km where we drive on the outskirts of the town and head straight ahead towards Truro.

•Travel 14km to Truro then head towards Kapunda for 23 km

•In Kapunda turn right at the intersection towards Marrabel for 24km

•In Marrabel turn left towards Saddleworth and drive for 12km

•From Saddleworth we travel for 12km to our destination at THE RISING SUN HOTEL in AUBURN

Super Sprint 4 The Bend

Article contributed by: Doug McPherson

Photos by: Ray Clements and Peter Withersohn