Porsche opened its first United States Experience Center in Atlanta last year, and the facility’s combination of vintage race cars, modern technology showcases, and high-octane driving thrills offered a unforgettable day out for Porsche fans. Now, it’s the West Coast’s turn.
The brand’s Los Angeles Experience Center celebrated its grand opening this week ahead of the 2016 L.A. Auto Show, and Digital Trends got a sneak peek. The $60 million complex is quite stunning, and between its suite of racing simulators and a 4.1-mile driver development track, it has just about anything a gearhead could want.
When you walk into the facility, the first thing you’ll see is an expansive hall riddled with highlights from Porsche’s 85-year history — a legendary Gulf Oil 917K, a slew of modern 911s, and to the right, a workshop where Porsche Motorsport North America tunes and restores purpose-built race cars and select customer vehicles. There’s plenty of history to be seen in the 53-acre complex, but for the most part, people visit the Experience Center to drive.
Just like in Atlanta, Porsche owners, guests, and corporate groups can visit the facility to refine their driving skills in a safe, controlled environment. There are a total of eight modules designed to focus on particular aspects of driving, including two handling courses, a short off-road section, a launch control and acceleration straightaway, and a variety of low traction circuits. These sections are designed to hone a driver’s reflexes in slick conditions.
A particular highlight is the hydraulic kick-plate, which has moving sections that shove your vehicle’s caboose out at a steep angle, requiring the driver to countersteer and regain control. Porsche says these exercises are vital to developing good habits (and squashing bad ones), and there are a bevy of professional instructors to help you do just that.
As you might imagine, visiting the Experience Center isn’t exactly cheap. A 1.5-hour session behind the wheel of a 718 Boxster will set you back $385, but the price rises to a steep $950 for track time in a 911 Turbo or 911 GT3.
Is it worth it? There are few facilities in the world that offer this type of education, excitement, and historical interest in one place, so if you live and breathe all things Porsche, the Experience Center is a can’t-miss attraction. If you don’t, it’s probably still worth consideration for special occasions, as this really is a playground for those who love driving.
Porsche’s also has Experience Centers in Le Mans, France; Leipzig, Germany; and on the Silverstone Circuit in England. The next Experience Center is currently being built in Shanghai, China.
BYD has launched the third-generation Qin Plus DM-i in China, and the first thing that caught my eye is its price. According to CarNewsChina, the plug-in hybrid sedan starts at 79,900 yuan, which is about $11,980. That’s an incredibly low price for a brand-new car, especially by US standards.
What’s even more impressive is the range. The Qin Plus DM-i can drive up to 137 miles on electricity alone, which should cover most people’s daily commutes without using a drop of gas. Once the battery runs out, the 1.5-liter engine takes over. Thanks to its 17-gallon tank and roughly 91 mpg with a drained battery, the combined range reaches up to 1,423 miles.
Apple won the PC market’s worst quarter, but that’s not the entire story. It won the race by stumbling less than everyone else.
PC makers shipped just 57 million computers worldwide in Q3, which might look good, but it’s a 21% year-over-year plunge (via Counterpoint Research). And despite Apple’s Mac shipments falling by 11%, to 5.6 million, its market share rose from 8.7% to 9.8%. How did that happen?
Update (October 22 23:54 PT): In response to our query, GM clarified that offline recording support is already available on eligible vehicles. Like Tesla's Sentry Mode, it requires owners to connect a USB drive to save incident recordings, which can be viewed on the vehicle's infotainment screen. The upcoming Connected Cameras feature will build on this by giving owners remote access to these recordings via the revamped OnStar app, allowing them to check footage without walking out to their car.
General Motors has announced plans to add a new Connected Cameras feature to its OnStar service starting next year, giving drivers a way to monitor parked vehicles remotely and capture footage of certain incidents.