Porsche Unveils New 911 Cabriolet with Lightweight Roof Structure

Well, that didn't take long, did it? Only a couple of months after unveiling the all-new 911 Coupe at the Frankfurt Motor Show, Porsche today revealed the Cabriolet version of its most famous model series.
As expected, Porsche opted for a soft top instead of the folding hard top utilized by some of the 911's rivals. However, the new hood does not use the multi-layered fabric structure of the previous 997 model but composite materials that are supported by a new magnesium frame, which is said to reduce its weight.


In addition, Porsche claims that the design allows the typical 911 roof line to be "retained in its entirety" on the Cabriolet model.


Under its aluminum-steel skin, the new 911 Cabriolet is identical to its fixed-roof sibling. It rides on a new platform with a longer wheelbase with power coming from the same flat-six engines in 350HP, 3.4-liter and 400HP, 3.8-liter flavors for the Carrera and Carrera S respectively, and a choice of manual or dual-clutch PDK transmissions, both with seven speeds.


The new 911 Cabriolet will be launched in Germany on March 3, 2012. Prices will start (in Germany) from €100,532 (US$136,040) for the Carrera and €114,931 (US$155,515) for the Carrera S, including taxes.


In the States, sales start in spring of 2012 with the 911 Carrera Cabriolet priced at US$97,300, and the 911 Carrera S Cabriolet at US$108,000.


In the UK, the 911 Carrera Cabriolet is priced from £79,947, and the 911 Carrera S Cabriolet from £89,740.


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Helicopter Crashes While Installing Giant Christmas Tree

A chopper that was using cables to help install a seven-story Christmas tree in central Auckland, New Zealand, crashed down to the ground on Wednesday morning.
Miraculously, the pilot, Greg Gribble, escaped virtually unharmed with only minor injuries, while no one else was hurt, despite the fact that workers were very close by under the helicopter when the incident occurred.


Television crews captured the dramatic footage showing the helicopter descending towards the waterfront when all of a sudden it started jolting like crazy before hitting the ground.


While the circumstances of the accident are not yet clear, it appears that the helicopter's main rotor blades may have got caught in the cables.


The family company that owns the chopper, Heli-Sika Helicopters, posted a note on its official Facebook page that said: "Thanks everyone for their support and concerns, we are very lucky that Greg is all okay! Apart from being in Shock and having a very sore head!"

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Corvette Driver Slams into Curb During Autocross

So, you want to learn how to drive, do you? Well, we suppose learning by your mistakes is one way to go with it – albeit a very painful and costly one at that.

This video tells the bitter story of a Chevrolet Corvette owner that was doing just fine during an autocross event at a parking lot up until the moment he thought that he got the hang of it and pushed the car beyond his experience.

The result? A very nasty and ultimately, very expensive encounter with the curb…

The poster of the video on Youtube had this to say:

"This is the first time I've ever witnessed an accident at a speed ventures autocross. It was a pretty fast track and it was his first time up since his last break so the tires were pretty cold & so was the track. The driver was shaken up quite a bit, but he walked away."

You can watch the incident in the video after the jump.

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