Porsche 911 2013 News

The giant aero addition on the back of the latest Porsche test car can only belong to the extreme GT3 RS model.Carparazzi says the wing is unlikely to make production but it promises up to 50 per cent extra rear downforce and could be part of a track pack. Other keys to the RS package are wider tracks and a 0-100km/h sprint in about 3.5 seconds. 

THE Audi A3 small car -- which owes much of its DNA to the Volkswagen Golf -- has won the 2014 World Car of the Year, as voted by 69 jurors from 22 countries. The luxury hatch toppled the widely-tipped favourite, the Mazda3 from Japan, in the awards announced at the New York motor show today.The Audi A3 was among five German cars that took out a cleansweep of the 2014 World Car of the Year categories, and it was Audi’s second win in 10 years, having won the inaugural award. Indeed, German cars have won seven of the past 10 World Car of the Year awards, Japanese brands have won the remaining three.Accepting the award on behalf of the company, Audi's North America president Scott Keogh said: “The Audi A3 has only been on sale three weeks and already it’s off to a flying start.”Rupert Stadler, Chairman of the Board of Management of Audi, said: “This major award win is an achievement that the whole company can celebrate.”The Audi A3 was among 24 finalists that included the BMW i3 electric car, which won the Green Car of the Year and the Car Design of the Year. The Mercedes-Benz S-Class was the Luxury Car of the Year while the Porsche 911 GT3 was awarded top performance car honours.But the Mazda3 had emerged as an early favourite for the outright World Car of the Year award following rave reviews globally since it went on sale late last year. The previous generation Mazda3 has been Australia’s top selling car for two of the past three years, and was the vehicle that ended the Holden Commodore’s record 15-years as the market leader, in 2011.The Mazda3 is returned to the top of the sales charts so far this year -- after being overtaken by the Toyota Corolla in 2013 -- and is likely to take out top-seller status this year buoyed by the new model which went on sale in January.World car of the year winners2014 – Audi A32013 -- Volkswagen Golf Mk72012 -- Volkswagen Up2011 -- Nissan Leaf2010 -- Volkswagen Polo2009 -- Volkswagen Golf Mk62008 -- Mazda22007 -- Lexus LS4602006 -- BMW 3 Series2005 -- Audi A62014 World Car of The Year category winnersGreen car of the Year -- BMW i3 electric carCar Design of the Year -- BMW i3 electric carPerformance Car of the Year -- Porsche 911 GT3Luxury Car of the Year – Mercedes-Benz S-ClassThis reporter is on Twitter: @JoshuaDowling 

The New York motor show in April will see the announcement of which vehicle has won the 2014 World COTY, and there looks to be a tough -- and very varied -- field of finalists.Last year's winner was the Volkswagen Golf, which also took awards in pretty well every country on the globe. But this year it could be anything from the little electric BMW i3 to the offroading Jeep Cherokee and even the Citroen C4 peoplemover, judging by the shortlist.A panel of 69 motoring experts from around the world -- including Carsguide's Paul Gover and National Motoring Editor Joshua Dowling -- will choose the winner from: Audi A3, BMW 4 Series, BMW i3, Cadillac CTS, Citroen C4 Picasso, Ford Fusion/Mondeo, Infiniti Q50, Jeep Cherokee, Lexus IS, Mazda3, Peugeot 308 and Skoda Octavia.The 10 finalists for the 2014 World Luxury Car are the Bentley Flying Spur, BMW X5, Cadillac ELR, Cadillac Escalade, Maserati Ghibli, Maserati Quattroporte, Mercedes-Benz S-Class, Porsche Macan, Range Rover Sport and Rolls-Royce Wraith.Due to a tie, there are 11 finalists for the 2014 World Performance Car: Alfa Romeo 4C, Audi RS 6 Avant, BMW M6 Gran Coupe, Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, Ferrari 458 Speciale, Ford Fiesta ST, Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4 Roadster, Mercedes-Benz A/CLA45 AMG, Porsche 911 GT3, Porsche 911 Turbo and Volkswagen Golf GTI.A separate panel of five 'green' experts will choose the 2014 World Green Car from Audi A3 Sportback e-tron (+ Audi e-gas), BMW i3, Honda Accord Hybrid, Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV and Volkswagen XL1.Similarly, a panel of five design experts will decide on the 2014 World Car Design of the Year, from among: BMW i3, Cadillac CTS, Citroen C4 Picasso, Mazda3, Lexus IS, Mercedes-Benz C-Class and Volkswagen XL1.This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott 

A Porsche 911 owner has crashed his car into a deep lake in China's Jinan region, but managed to get out of the car relatively unscathed. He had reportedly crashed through the guardrail and speared into the water, although the initial cause of the accident isn't known.The driver was able to climb onto the bonnet of the 911, which was hooked by emergency services and eventually pulled back onto dry land, but after the accident damage and subsequent bath it's unlikely to be repairable.This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott 

Fast and Furious' star Paul Walker died in a Porsche crash in Valencia, north of Los Angeles on Saturday.The 40-year-old actor's death was confirmed on his official Twitter account and Facebook page.Watch the desktop version of the Paul Walker Fast and Furious supercut video here. He played Brian O'Conner in the 2001 original Fast and The Furious film and at the time of his death was working on Fast & Furious 7. Also watch: Fast and Furious 6 final trailerWalker was a keen motoring enthusiast performing many of his own stunts.Also watch: Fast and Furious 6 extended trailerHe is survived by his 15-year-old daughter Meadow Walker.Also watch: Fast and Furious 6 trailer 

Paul Walker, the 40-year-old star of  the Fast and Furious films was killed when the driver of a Porsche Carrera GT he was a passenger in lost control and hit a telegraph pole in Valencia, California.  Watch the desktop version of the Paul Walker crash video here. Also watch: Fast and Furious 6 final trailer Also watch: Fast and Furious 6 extended trailer Also watch: Fast and Furious 6 trailer

The star of Fast and Furious films, 40-year-old actor Paul Walker, was killed when the driver of a Porsche he was a passenger in lost control and hit a telegraph pole in Valencia, north of Los Angeles, his publicist confirmed.Watch the desktop version of the Paul Walker crash video here.The Santa Clarita Signa l reported that the red Porsche crashed into a telegraph pole and tree and burst into flames, killing Walker and the driver.The actor's death was confirmed in a statement posted on his official Twitter account and Facebook page.Also watch: Fast and Furious 6 final trailerThe statement on the star's Facebook page read: "It is with a truly heavy heart that we must confirm that Paul Walker passed away today in a tragic car accident while attending a charity event for his organisation Reach Out Worldwide."He was a passenger in a friend's car, in which both lost their lives. We appreciate your patience as we too are stunned and saddened beyond belief by this news. Thank you for keeping his family and friends in your prayers during this very difficult time. We will do our best to keep you apprised on where to send condolences."Also watch: Fast and Furious 6 extended trailerBorn and raised in southern California, Walker started off as a child actor and model before getting his big break in 2001 in the original Fast and The Furious film. He played Brian O'Conner, the rev-head in the franchise's four highest-grossing films.An avid car enthusiast, he performed many of his own stunts. Walker was working on Fast & Furious 7 at the time of his death. He also starred in the suspense drama, Hours, which is set for release this month. He is survived by his daughter Meadow.Also watch: Fast and Furious 6 trailerVariety is reporting that authorities responded to the crash and found the car engulfed in flames. Walker and the driver were pronounced dead at the scene.There was initial confusion over news of the star's death, with some claiming it was a hoax. But his publicist confirmed the tragic news shortly after the reports.Hollywood star Paul Walker pictured with the Porsche Carrera GT before the crash that claimed his life.  Source: Splash MediaRead full story at news.com.au 

Newly-retired Formula 1 driver Mark Webber says he'll contest his first Bathurst 12 Hour endurance race in 2015, sharing his Porsche with Australian movie star Eric Bana. Barely two days after his final F1 grand prix in Brazil, Webber revealed his intention to compete in Australia's longest motor race via Twitter on Tuesday.Asked by a fan whether he will be driving for Porsche at the growing sportscar race at Bathurst's Mount Panorama track in February next year, Webber replied on Twitter: "15 with @EricBana67 @jamestomkins65" Bana responded "Sounds like a plan".It is likely the 37-year-old Webber will drive a Porsche 911 GT3 at the sportscar endurance event, having just signed with the German sports car maker.Bana, best known for his roles in Chopper, Black Hawk Down, Hulk, Munich and Troy, is a renowned car enthusiast, producing and starring in the feature-length documentary "Love the Beast".He has previously raced in the Bathurst 12 Hour as well as the Targa Tasmania rallies and the Porsche GT3 challenge.Webber quit Formula 1 after 12 seasons in the category to switch to sports car racing with German manufacturer Porsche.The Australian will link up with his new team in January and is yet to reveal his 2014 schedule, but has confirmed he will be attending the Australian F1 Grand Prix on Porsche's behalf.The Bathurst 12 Hour has been rapidly building its reputation internationally, with exotic sportscars from Porsche, Ferrari, Mercedes and Audi contesting this year's race.www.heraldsun.com.au 

Porsche has created a unique rendition of the time-honoured 'Happy Birthday' song for the iconic 911’s 50th anniversary, with this new video of the 911 singing Happy Birthday to itself.The German sports carmaker arranged an ensemble featuring each of the seven 911 generations to date, where the timeline of 911's produce an admittedly synthesised version of the song.Filmed in an empty aircraft hangar, the video is worth watching just to see each example of the 911 powerslide its way into line on the smooth concrete surface. Watch the Porsche 911 sing Happy Birthday here. This reporter is on Twitter: @Mal_Flynn 

The maxim that real drivers shift gears manually is outdated, with automatics now better for both sports driving and economy according to the proponents of 'sheer driving pleasure': BMW."In the past if you want to be sporty and fuel-efficient, go for a manual one, and the auto was for comfort. And now it is the other way around," BMW's head of production for large vehicles Peter Wolf tells Carsguide.  "You're faster with an automatic, you have less fuel consumption, If you go to a race track ... with a manual shifted car and an automatic, you are faster with an automatic."Wolf cites this reasoning behind the ongoing evaporation of manual transmissions from the sports end of not only the BMW range but also its competitors. "For the 6 Series car we have in the future only automatic, and our M models we also have the double-clutch with a special application with seven gears and only for a few markets make a few  -- a very few -- hand-shifted cars," he says."And also have a look at Porsche 911... it's almost all PDK automatic. Nearly no-one (buys) hand-shifted. Because not so fast acceleration as well. The fuel consumption is higher, the acceleration is slower. The more time to put in the next gear, you lose so many time in acceleration by doing it manual."His colleague, BMW product communications manager Bernhard Ederer points out that the automatic invasion has spread to the territory of models in which anything but a manual would previously have been considered sacrilegious."One of icons of manual gearboxes, the (Porsche) 911 GT3, is no longer offered with a manual gearbox. And I think it was not an easy decision for Porsche to make that way either. They got of course a lot of (media) criticised them for that. The PDK in that one is so good, that even a really good driver could not shift faster manually ... the driving fun would not be more with a manual gearbox."Wolf also says the moves beyond eight gears in automatic transmissions -- to nine or even 10 -- will mean diminishing returns.  "If you look what are the steps with a gearbox, if you have this high figure -- eight -- if you go to nine, it's small steps," he says. "If you start with four gears and go to five, it's a huge step. But (as you add more gears) the steps are smaller and smaller. The effect gets lower and lower."In addition, Wolf says, BMW is not seeing customer demand for any more than eight speeds in their automatics. "I know of not a single customer request to have nine or 10 gears," he says. "At the moment we are very happy with where we are with automatics. The take-up rates are very good and the gearbox, especially with Aisin combined with the BMW engines ...  we are top of the line here."This reporter is on Twitter: @karlapincott