Porsche Roxster back in development?

Waves from Porsche's takeover of Volkswagen continue to send ripples through the corporate structure, and models once put on the back burner may finally see production. One such vehicle, Porsche's long-rumored Roxster mid-size SUV, could be the first trophy of Porsche's purchase.

For several months in 2007 speculation of a possible cooperation with Audi to use the Q5 platform for the Roxster made the Internet rounds. Tipped as a hard-core performance crossover that might share powertrains with the much larger Cayenne, the Roxster was officially denied in May of last year. However, those plans may have existed and were simply cancelled because of Audi's fears that the Roxster would steal Audi's Q5 market.

A report from AutoWeek is now claiming that the purchase of a controlling interest in Audi's parent company VW - and the corresponding seats it will receive on Audi's board - will pave the way for Porsche's use of the Q5 platform, and the Roxster will once again be green-lighted for development. This news comes just as Audi is set to release its revamped Q5, replete with a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox capable of handling 405lb-ft of torque.

Critics of Porsche's Cayenne as a brand-diluting atrocity will likely pan the adoption of the Q5 platform into the Porsche family as yet another bad move. On the other hand, Porsche needs a vehicle in the segment if it hopes to compete with rivals Mercedes and BMW.