A bi-weekly round-up of automotive news, good, bad and just plain weird:
Porsche plans to stop speculators
The first re-sale at auction of the Porsche 911R was covered here previously, as it was notable for the way the car had increased 10-fold in value. The 911R is extremely rare, and thus well-monied collectors were determined to have it. As the only way you could get Porsche’s peak-performing naturally aspirated engine with a manual transmission, it was certain to be valuable forever.
And then Porsche made the announcement that their GT3, heretofore only available with the PDK transmission, would be available with the same six-speed manual transmission as the 911R. This made more than a few 911R owners a little unhappy at their investment.
The response from Porsche seems to be: they’re cars, not investments.
“I personally like to see my cars being used,” Andreas Preuninger, the head of GT road-car development, told Car and Driver at a recent event. “That’s what we build them for. They are too good just to be left to stand and collect dust.”
Well good. One can only hope that the current mania over air-cooled models has the same correction, as things have been ridiculous for years.
Honda Civic Si is tuned to go the distance
The revelation that Honda’s new Civic Si makes just 205 horsepower has caused more than a few people to turn up their noses at the once-mighty Si badge. You can get more power from a Golf GTI or a Focus ST.
However, the Si is relatively value-priced, undercutting the competition while still packed with plenty of features. Also, I’ve driven the car, and while an extra 30 h.p. or so wouldn’t go amiss, it’s plenty quick as-is. As with all Honda products, the chassis is there to make the most of what power you have on tap.
Further, Honda product planners have been quick to point out that maximum speed wasn’t the sole purpose for the Si brand – that job’s left to the wilder Civic Type R. Instead, the Si is meant to offer hundreds of thousands of trouble-free miles. I fail to see how the complexity of a modern automobile with thousands of components is going to be as long-lasting as the simplicity of one of those mid-1990s shoeboxes, but I will say this: the Si is pretty good as-is (particularly in the sedan). Maybe wait a little while before you crank up the boost.
First Civic Type R auctioned for charity
Speaking of the Type R, the first one delivered in the U.S. is being offered up for auction, with the proceeds to go towards the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation. It’s painted blue, and comes with the same manual transmission and 306 h.p. turbocharged 2.0-litre goodness we’ll be getting over here soon.
To be blunt, the Civic Type R’s styling is not sitting very well with me. It looks like two anime artists got in a pencil-stabbing fight near a large sheet of paper, and then somebody built a car based on the resultant scribbles and arterial blood spray. To say that it’s aggressive is the understatement of the year.
But perhaps it looks better in person. And we should be happy to finally have the R this side of the Pacific.
Focus RS gets special edition model
Normally, Canada gets little consideration on the world automotive stage. Where production is limited for a vehicle, we often only get the scraps, while the much larger U.S. market gets the meat.
However, in the case of the final edition of the feisty little Focus RS, Ford is giving Canadians a fair chance. Just 1,500 of these cars will be made, with 1,000 earmarked for the U.S. and 500 for Canada. Since our market is roughly a tenth the size, I like those odds.
The nameless special edition RS comes in either red or blue, with black accents on the wing, mirrors, and roof. It also gets a Quaife limited-slip differential, which should improve acceleration out of the corners.
I spent two wonderful weeks with the regular Focus RS not that long ago and am happy to report that it is a wonderfully deranged car. If you can fit in the ridiculously over-bolstered seats, run out and buy one immediately.
Global electric car fleet hits two million
Since all this week’s news has been performance-based, let’s end with a look at something greener. The International Energy Agency has just released a report indicating that the number of electric vehicles on the world’s roads has just hit two million.
To hit greenhouse gas emissions targets, we’re going to have to drive a lot more EVs. Current projections show that the fleet should be 600 million by 2040 to limit rising temperatures.
Certainly electrification is the way forward in the future, but don’t be dismayed by the slow growth of adoption. What’s likely to happen is a leap forward in battery technology that’ll suddenly eliminate the usual complaints about range and charging times. Until then, two million EVs is a minor milestone to celebrate.
Watch this space for all the week’s best and worst of automotive news, or submit your own auto oddities to mcaleer.nsnews@gmail.com.
