Porsche: Coverage from Paris

Yes, that's right; that's the Porsche 911 GT3 RS! Looks great in bright orange!

Porsche unveiled its GT3 RS in Paris. When in hits showrooms next spring, this 911 will be the first in North America with an RS designation since 1973. The 2007 RS is powered by the same 415-hp, 3.6-liter boxer six as the standard GT3, but it carries the light-weight theme a bit further, with more carbon-fiber body bits that trim another 50 pounds. It also features a lighter, single-mass flywheel and an adjustable single-plane rear wing. Porsche claims the RS package trims one tenth of a second from the GT3's 0-62 mph time--reported at 4.2 sec. for the RS. This is the homologation car for the GT3 RSR that will be offered to race teams for the 2007 season, though the street-legal RS will not include the roll-cage in the United States. U.S price is pending, but we should expect a premium of 15 to 20 percent above the standard GT3's $106,000 retail price.

Also, the 911 Targa made it's official public debut!

In Paris, Porsche introduced the eleventh and twelfth evolutions of the so-called 997 911 models: the Targa 4 and 4S. Like its 996 predecessor, this Targa features a full-area glass roof that retracts behind the backlight, though together the glass and operating mechanism are roughly 10 pounds lighter. The rear glass still opens, hatch-style, to expose storage space behind the seats (more than the space available in a 911 coupe). The big news, however, is that for the first time the Targa will be offered only in all-wheel drive. Both the Targa 4 (325-hp, 3.6-liter six) and 4S (355-hp, 3.8-liter six) will be available Nov. 18 at Porsche dealer near you Nov. 18, retailing at $85,700 and $95,900 respectively.