London today acknowledged that its groundbreaking congestion charge, in place since 2003, has been a failure. Traffic levels in London are the same today as they were five years ago when the city’s controversial congestion-charge (c-charge) was first introduced. This has prompted officials to admit that the scheme is a failure as it has not significantly reduced traffic levels or journey times as promised.

The mid-cycle refresh of Porsche’s 911 models is about half complete with the release of the new Targa 4 and 4S models. So far the company has released details for the Carrera and Carrera 4 models, but the updated versions of the Turbo and specialty models like the GT3 RS and GT2 are still waiting in the wings. With the latest announcement, Porsche reveals its most free-spirited 911, the Targa, intended for fun and sun more than serious motorsport.

The European Commission has finally given permission for Porsche to acquire control of the Volkswagen Group, something the German sports carmaker previously confirmed it would do before the end of the year. Porsche’s supervisory body authorised the purchase of a majority stake in Volkswagen, about $15.73 billion worth of shares, as far back as March. The purchase would take Porsche’s current holding of about 31% beyond the 50% mark, giving it almost total control of the entire Volkswagen Group.

While American carmakers are intent on slashing their duplicative and excessively diverse product lines, European companies are issuing a new proliferation of models. Porsche, having established its Cayenne SUV line against strong opposition from brand purists, will be adding its first sedan - the Panamera - soon, and now our spy photographers have captured the next-generation Cayenne in testing. The new, smaller Cayenne will be a more performance-oriented model while also offering more fuel-efficient options.

Porsche's 911 is the company's all-time best-selling model, with one of the richest histories in all of motoring. The current 997 generation of the 911 is in the middle of its product cycle, part way through a facelift updating it with the latest dual-clutch and direct-injection technology. The next-generation 998 model, shown here in testing, is already being developed by engineers to take the car to new technological and performance heights.

The venerable 911, in many ways unchanged for nearly 40 years, but in others almost completely different to the original, is in the process of a mid-cycle update, and with the 911 Carrera and Carrera S already refreshed, the latest models to get the new mechanical upgrades include the all-wheel drive Carrera 4 and Carrera 4S variants. Very few appearance modifications have been made, with engineers instead focusing on improving performance while also reducing fuel consumption.

The bulk of Porsche’s vaunted 911 range will be getting updates through the end of the year as the German carmaker works to keep pace with new competitors from Japan and the United States. A range of new technologies and new engines will be the focus of the updates but, as these spy images show, exterior styling changes will be minimal, even for the potent 911 Turbo and Turbo Cabrio models.