Porsche AG, the famous car-maker that produces the GT 911 and the highly-praised Cayenne SUV, is going environmental friendly with a new hybrid engine that will power its cars by the end of this decade.

Bowing to the pressure coming from both the political and economical environment, Porsche decided to build more eco-friendly cars by 2012, hoping to reduce the total amount of CO2 emanated by its cars in the atmosphere by 20%.

Cayenne’s next engine will be a half-gasoline, half-electric combination by the end of this decade, and it will be the result of the collaboration between the Stuttgart-based car manufacturer and Audi and Volkswagen. According to company officials, the engine will increase the fuel efficiency of the Cayenne by as much as 36 percent over a conventional model. The Cayenne currently guzzles 14 miles a gallon in the city and 20 miles a gallon on highways.

CO2 emissions will also be reduced by 20 percent compared to a normal, gas-powered machine.

The Cayenne Hybrid packs an engine whose hybrid module (clutch and electric motor) is positioned between the combustion engine and the transmission. The new engine design will improve acceleration and engine flexibility compared to a conventional Cayenne and Porsche is targeting average fuel consumption figures of 9.8 liters/100 kilometers in the New European Driving Cycle and about 24 miles per gallon in the US FTP cycle for the Cayenne Hybrid, and hopes future developments may allow it to push towards a consumption figure of 8.9 liters/kilometer (approximately 26 miles per gallon).

At the heart of every Cayenne Hybrid will be the Hybrid Manager, which, besides coordinating the car’s combustion engine, the electric motor and the battery, will also oversee more than 20,000 data parameters, making it one of the most powerful technologies included in a hybrid vehicle. Normally, a conventional engine sends some 6,000 data parameters towards the car’s central “brain”.

According to Reuters, Porsche will post a record profit for the fiscal year 2006-2007, which will be significantly "and I mean significantly" (Porsche Chief Executive Wendelin Wiedeking ‘s declaration) better than the 2.1 billion from fiscal 2005/06. Estimates indicate that this profit could reach 3 billion euros ($4.10 billion), most of it coming from the rise in value of Porsche's 31 percent stake in Volkswagen as well as derivative transactions such as with warrants, with only one-third generated from the sale of sporty vehicles like its 911 Carrera or Cayenne SUV.