Porsche, not Audi, will build sports car platforms for VW

There was said to be some tussling going on between Porsche and Audi over which brand would provide the platform for the Volkswagen Group's future sports cars. A report in Automobilwoche declares that Porsche is the winner. No one should be surprised at Porsche, now a Group company, winning such a competition.

The real coup, however, is in what Porsche plans to provide: a Modular Standard Platform that will place the engine directly over the front axle and fit both longitudinal and transverse engine arrangements. The MSB, as it's called, will be put into use for the next Porsche Cayenne and Panamera as well as a future Bentley, and its flexibility could quickly see it spread throughout the Volkswagen portfolio of brands. Group CEO Martin Winterkorn called it an advantage that would put VW "years ahead of the competition." But let's get to the real question: Does this get us any closer to the BlueSport? Bueller... ?

On another note, the same report states that Porsche has fast-tracked development of the 918 Spyder, with plans to produce 918 of them and have them appearing at the end of 2012, not 2014 as previously reported.

[Source: Automobilwoche (translated) via TTAC]