A Performance Packed Weekend: Reviews, Wrecks, and Top Speed

Shove over, Mopar fans. The new Porsche 911 GT2 RS is finally here and vying for headline attention. And 700 horsepower with 553 lb-ft of torque is enough turbocharged rear-engine performance to get everyone talkin’. “The engine is a 3.8L unit taken from the current 911 Turbo S, upgraded with bigger turbochargers and a titanium exhaust. For the first time ever in a Porsche road car, there’s a system that sprays water onto the intercooler to cool air temperatures, allowing the engine to make even more power,” reported Road and Track. It achieves 0-60 status in 2.7 seconds, with a top speed of 211 mph for a bargain MSRP price tag of $293,200, not including a $1050 destination charge. Oh, and if there’s some loose change burning a hole in your pocket then tack on an additional 31K for the Porsche Weissach package.

Best Car to Buy in 2017

For those of us in need of a more affordable performer, Motor Authority named the BMW M2 the Best Car to Buy in 2017. “The M2 is proof that despite its big-selling SUVs, plug-in hybrids, and the i3 electric car, BMW still knows how to build a great driver’s car. A car that sings, a car that begs to be pushed hard. A car that makes you want to rev it all the way to redline just to hear its inline-6 at full blast,” said Motor Authority.

“A 3.0L inline-6 with a twin-scroll turbocharger pumps out 365 horsepower to the rear wheels, which are wrapped in sticky Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires. Stout performance is the M2’s calling card. It sprints from 0-60 mph in 4.4 seconds with the manual, or 4.2 seconds with the dual-clutch,” continued Motor Authority. Its brilliant powertrain will have adrenaline junkies begging for more when they top out at a respectably-fast 155 mph. Beemer owners, just do yourselves a favor and “phone-a-friend” for a ride the next time your travels require parking it for even a few days: Man’s BMW Is Now Bursting With Cockroaches After Parking At Airport.

Professional Performance

It appears as though Mazda and NASCAR’s Kyle Larson are experiencing a Ho-Hum week. Nearly 228,000 vehicles were recalled by the OE manufacturer for a faulty parking brake. As for Larson, well, it seems like a few extra parking brakes would have come in handy at Daytona International Speedway this weekend. Jalopnik reported, Daytona NASCAR Race Paused In Final Laps After Larson’s Car Became A 190 MPH Hovercraft.

“A big crash among the front of the field at tonight’s NASCAR Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway sent Kyle Larson’s No. 42 car up into the air at 190 mph. Eight cars got caught up in the chain reaction of wreckage that followed, forcing the race to be red flagged for cleanup with only six laps to go. Several other cars sustained hard damage as a result of the crash, including Kurt Busch and Danica Patrick.” After cleanup and another minor incident resulting in a flag, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was deemed the winner in overtime; it’s only his second win ever in NASCAR’s top-level Cup Series.

Pikes Peak

In other important performance-related news, “the 2017 running of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb saw new cutting-edge entrants and more class records broken,” said Motor Trend. Romain Dumas secured his third overall victory at Pikes Peak, recording a time of 9:05.672 in an Unlimited-class Norma MXX RD Limited prototype racer. And just a week prior, the hotshot finished 10th overall at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Not a shabby month, Dumas…not a shabby month at all.

Hats off to the winner, but the real story might be Acura. Yeah, you heard that right. Not only did the highly-modified TLX GT race car with a twin-turbo 3.5L V6 finish second overall at Pikes Peak, but the badge received a round of applause in a few areas. Driver Peter Cunningham ran a record in the Open class and was also named Rookie of the Year for the feat. “Another TLX, the 2018 TLX A-Spec, won the Exhibition class in its maiden race. That car features a turbocharged 3.5L V6 tuned to 500 horsepower, but retains the front-wheel drive layout of the production car. Meanwhile, a production-based Acura NSX placed third in the Time Attack 1 class with a time of 10:03.433, behind the Porsche 911 Turbo S of David Donohue and the Hyundai Genesis Coupe of Rhys Millen,” continued Motor Trend.

Until next week, we leave you with this short clip that will have you behind the driver’s seat navigating Pikes Peak like a pro!

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