The Porsche Spyder - the only colour is green

Porsche is out to prove it is possible to be in the midst of a mid-life crisis, drive insanely fast and be ecologically sensitive at the same time with its new 918 Spyder concept car. It looks good from every angle, says the New York Times, except the back, where "you can see the face of Donald Duck".

Its drivers, one hopes, will be looking keenly ahead given that the 500-horsepower gasoline V-8 and electric motors on the front and rear axle produce a total output of 718 horsepower and will propel this beast to a terrifying top speed of 320 km/h.

Porsche won't say if they'll put the car into production; they will say that it completed a circuit of the famous 22.8 kilometre Nürburgring race track south of Cologne in less than seven-and-a-half minutes.

"This car goes even faster than the last super sports car from Porsche, the Carrera GT,” offered Porsche representative Walter Röhrl.

Porsche's central point is this: the Spyder uses just three litres of
fuel for every 100 kilometres - equivalent to 94 miles per gallon. And it emits an average of 70 grammes of CO2 per kilometer compared to the Toyota Prius's 89 g/km. By comparison, conventionally-powered Ferraris and Lamborghinis emit between 400 and 500 g/km.

"We are a sports car manufacturer and that means it's about driving fast – but at the same time about cutting pollution and conserving natural resources," explains Porsche chief Michael Macht. The car company, added Martin Winterkorn, chairman of Porsche's parent company Volkswagen, "is showing the future". ·