Porsche and Honda Debut All-New CarPlay Compatible Sports Cars

Porsche and Honda today each announced new sports cars that will be compatible with Apple's CarPlay infotainment system. In its unveiling, Porsche detailed the all-new 2018 911 GT3 street-legal sports car with a 4.0 liter flat-six engine that produces up to 500 horsepower -- an engine based on the one used in all of Porsche's 911 race cars.

porsche 911 gt3
Other than CarPlay, the Porsche 911 GT3 has a navigation system that can detail real-time traffic information, and the vehicle's diagnostics can connect to the Porsche Track Precision App [Direct Link]. On a connected smartphone, drivers can analyze and record various pieces of data, like steering angle and braking pressure.

The 2017 Honda Civic Type R, which the company referred to as "one of the most anticipated models in its history," has a similar sports car build and marks the first Type R Honda model to be sold in the United States. The new Type R shares the style of the automaker's 5-door hatchback with a boost in performance, including a 4-cylinder engine with peak ratings of 306 horsepower.

honda civic type r

"The fastest, most powerful Honda ever sold in America, the Type R caps off the incredible success story of our 10th generation Civic lineup," said Jeff Conrad, senior vice president & general manager of the Honda Division, American Honda Motor Co., Inc. "We're happy to inform our U.S. enthusiasts that the long wait for the forbidden fruit of Honda Type R performance is nearly over!"

The 2017 Civic Type R will come with a 7-inch Display Audio touchscreen that has Honda Navigation embedded in it, along with compatibility for both CarPlay and Android Auto. Honda also mentioned that the included 540-watt, 12-speaker audio system will be able to drown out the vehicle's engine.

In terms of pricing and availability, the 2018 Porsche 911 GT3 is scheduled to debut at U.S. dealerships in fall 2017 at a base MSRP of $143,600. The Honda Civic Type R is launching sometime in late spring 2017 with an MSRP in the mid-$30,000 range. Both suggested retail prices exclude the usual $1,050 delivery, processing, and handling fee.

Related Roundup: CarPlay
Tags: Honda, Porsche

Top Rated Comments

Juicy Box Avatar
105 months ago
Call my tastes juvenile but I really want that Civic.
I am not typically a Honda Fan, besides the NSX and S2000, I find the rest to be somewhat boring. But, considering the Type R Civic is coming to the US, it is hard not to be curious about it.

I am happy that Honda is starting to embrace turbochargers, hopefully more of their future line up will offer turbos.
I wouldn't call the Civic a sports car. Maybe to a 16 year old boy. :rolleyes:
Some might say the same about the car in my avatar photo. I have never been a fan of the Civic, but it is hard to dismiss the Type R with the things I have been reading about it.

Correct me if I'm wrong but 306 HP on the front wheels, no thanks. As for Carplay... good for them. Moving on with my day.
This part kind of sucks, as I would of rather have AWD, or RWD, but I would the RWD would ever happen on the Civic.

306 HP on a small, light weight car like the Civic would be very fun, FWD or not.

Also, the Type R only comes in manual trans. With so many car companies dropping the manuals, or reducing it to the just the base model, this is something to be happy about.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
OldSchoolMacGuy Avatar
105 months ago
I wouldn't call the Civic a sports car. Maybe to a 16 year old boy. :rolleyes:
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Return Zero Avatar
105 months ago
Call my tastes juvenile but I really want that Civic.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
69Mustang Avatar
105 months ago
Call my tastes juvenile but I really want that Civic.
Not juvenile at all. Type R's are great for spirited track day driving while maintaining the ability to DD with ease.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Bigsk8r Avatar
105 months ago
Not juvenile at all. Type R's are great for spirited track day driving while maintaining the ability to DD with ease.
I like where your head is here. Keep up the good work! lol
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
WestonHarvey1 Avatar
105 months ago

Bring back the Prelude! honda screwed up. Why was it killed?!
My first car was a 1985 Prelude. Memories!

The final model was just a beautiful, classy car.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)