Nearly Better Than the Real Thing: Porsche Taps Video Game Tech to Break New Ground in Automotive Design

Porsche has grown rather chummy with the video game community of late. In 2017, the automaker used North America’s largest gaming expo as a platform for the debut of the 911 GT2 RS. You can attribute that to a relatively recent marketing push that resulted in its vehicles appearing in interactive media after a long-standing absence. Porsche, for whatever reason, spent years being exceptionally choosy about which developers can license its vehicles for their games. This usually results in blockbuster titles using “RUF” as a placeholder or simply abandoning Porsche vehicles entirely.

The last five or six years have been different, however. Automakers want to broaden their marketing approach and get away from the big industry trade shows. For Porsche, that means video games, and the relationship is only getting stronger.

This week, Porsche Epic Games and the graphical processing wizards at NVIDIA gathered to showcase what they claim is a major breakthrough in computer design rendering. While we can’t say with any authority that this will forever change automotive design, what they’ve managed to accomplish certainly looks impressive.

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  • Make_light I like Subarus, and I often think they don't get enough credit for how they drive. Lots of people say it's the faux-rugged image that accounts for their popularity, but they also drive with a solidity and plantedness that's absent from a lot of the Japanese competition. That being said, this thing is ugly. I never felt that Subarus were as ugly as commenters claim they are. Boring, sure, but not necessarily ugly. But between this and the refreshed Legacy, it's like they're trying to make their vehicles look as incohesive and awkward as possible.
  • SCE to AUX I think the 2.2 was a pretty durable engine.
  • Rochester We'll probably be trading in our 2018 Touring Edition Forester for the next model, and are waiting to see what the Hybrid is all about. Would be nice if they disclose whether or not it will be a plug-in Hybrid.
  • CEastwood I have a friend who drives an early aughts Forrester who refuses to get rid of it no matter all it's problems . I believe it's the head gasket eater edition . He takes great pains regularly putting in some additive that is supposed prevent head gasket problems only to be told by his mechanic on the latest timing belt change that the heads are staring to seep . Mechanics must love making money off those cars and their flawed engine design . Below is another satisfied customer of what has to be one of the least reliable Japanese cars .https://www.theautopian.com/i-regret-buying-a-new-subaru/
  • Wjtinfwb 157k is not insignificant, even for a Honda. A lot would depend on the maintenance records and the environment the car was operated in. Up to date maintenance and updated wear items like brakes, shocks, belts, etc. done recently? Where did those 157k miles accumulate? West Texas on open, smooth roads that are relatively easy on the chassis or Michigan, with bomb crater potholes, snow and salt that take their toll on the underpinnings. That Honda 4 will run forever with decent maintenance but the underneath bits deteriorate on a Honda just like they do on a Chevy.