Porsche Panamera Turbo Allegedly Laps the Nurburgring in 7:56 , Beats the CTS-V by 3 Sec

If the report on German magazine Sportauto is true and rally legend and Porsche test driver, Walter Röhrl, did indeed lap the Nordschleife track in 7 minutes and 56 seconds with the new Panamera Turbo, then there goes Cadillac's claim for having the fastest sedan on the block. We remind you that the 556HP CTS-V's 7:59.32 run of the Nurburgring Nordschleife in May 2008, was thought to be the fastest-ever lap time for a production sedan.

To refresh your memory, the Turbo is the fastest and most powerful version in the Panamera range. Fitted with Porsche's all-wheel drive system as standard, it is powered by a 4.8-liter turbocharged V8 that makes 500HP at 6,000 rpm and 700Nm or 516 lb-ft of torque from 2,500 to 4,500 rpm (770Nm or 567 lb-ft with overboost in conjunction with the Sports Chrono pack).

The Panamera Turbo reaches 100km/h (62mph) from rest in 4.2 sec or 4.0 sec with the Sports Chrono package, and can go on to a top speed of 303km/h or 188mph.

Aside from stirring fiery conversations on forum boards and websites as well as offering Porsche some bragging rights, we can't see any other use for these lap time records. Our opinion is that, as in the case of the Nissan GT-R and the Corvette ZR1, the Nordschleife lap times shouldn't be taken seriously by the majority of people that are actually interested in buying of one of these cars.

Via: Sportauto , Hat tip to Marcus!

2010 Cadillac SRX Crossover Priced from $34,155

Cadillac has revealed that it's all-new and more compact sized 2010 SRX Crossover will hit U.S. dealerships this summer with pricing starting from $34,155, which is about the same as the entry-level RWD Mercedes GLK 350 ($33,900) but undercuts the BMW X3 xDrive30i by around $5,000. The 2010 SRX will be offered in North America with two petrol units, a new 260HP 3.0-liter direct injected V6 and a 300HP 2.8-liter turbocharged V6 that are both matted to a 6-speed automatic transmission. The SRX gets front-wheel drive as standard and all-wheel drive as optional.

Latter in the summer, the compact crossover will be joined by another new Cadillac, the CTS Sport Wagon. GM has yet to announcing pricing but expect it the Sport Wagon to be priced a little higher than the sedan variant of the CTS. The new Sport Wagon includes the same 260HP 3.0-liter Direct Injection engine that serves as the standard engine in the new SRX, returning an estimated highway fuel economy of 28 mpg.

Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon: Updated Photo Gallery

General Motors gave the members of the press a second (or was that a third…) chance to check out the new CTS Sport Wagon during a media preview event at its Detroit central offices. The snazzy looking CTS Sport Wagon will make its (fourth or fifth) official introduction at the Paris Motor Show next month, and will be available at dealer showrooms in spring 2009. Powertrain options will include a 263 HP 3.6-liter V6 and a 304 Hp 3.6-liter direct injection V6 matched to a 6-speed manual or an electronically controlled 6-speed automatic. -Continued