RE: 911 R supply needs to be limited: TMIW

[Nohedes]

Thanks Dan, but it's easy to be so philosophical about it if you're not in the market for the car - you're unaffected, so well done for not being upset. I've bought new Porsches in the past, but won't be coming back for a cooking Cayman or Carrera, so whatever you might think, these halo cars actually only serve to make some loyal Porsche customers (those of us that actually buy the cars new) realise that the standard production models aren't all that special.

Nice to be told to move on and buy something else and then see the PH marketing team have placed a banner ad for a Hyundai Coupe in the very same thread. Great personalisation there guys

[SimonD]

PunterCam said:

Crikey, I hadn't realised the people on these forums were such a self-entitled bunch.

Porsche can do whatever they want, it's their business. Making limited runs of cars like the R is a great thing - it keeps the brand special. Not being able to buy whatever you want is important. The customer isn't always right, he/she's usually a prick.

Said Porsche UK's marketing man...

[sisu]

"Not since the 2006 Cayenne S Transiberian has Porsche so openly kissing the ass of corruption. Which is why this 911R is being launched here in Switzerland, the spiritual home of unethical money laundering.
Now people will be asking themselves when they see a driver of the 911R - I wonder WTF they did to get that? Something that no suspicious neck tattoo or black AMG 6.3 G-wagen with tinted windows can do today. "

[Gary C]

But is it any good ?

[DARREN-ta783]

that image doesn't look like a GT4!!...shame on you PH

[Ozzie Osmond]

Gary C said:

But is it any good ?

I'm not sure that's the point of these things.

[blueSL]

The question for me is when are Porsche going to produce a driver-focussed car which is not production limited? It's certainly not the cooking Carreras with their horrid sound symposer, it's not the GTS which is largely an options bundle with the mildest of tuning. It's also definitely not the turbo/turbo S in which the needs of the driver are largely an after-thought.

They have at least got one thing right. Chasing ever higher levels of performance which are inaccessible on normal roads is a waste of time. Lower weight, manual shift, less is more.

Edited by blueSL on Thursday 24th March 15:41

[Sam All]

blueSL said:

The question for me is when are Porsche going to produce a driver-focussed car which is not production limited? It's certainly not the cooking Carreras with their horrid sound symposer, it's not the GTS which is largely an options bundle with the mildest of tuning. It's also definitely not the turbo/turbo S in which the needs of the driver are largely an after-thought.

They have at least got one thing right. Chasing ever higher levels of performance which are inaccessible on normal roads is a waste of time. Lower weight, manual shift, less is more.

Edited by blueSL on Thursday 24th March 15:41

A lightweight Cayman that sells for less than £50k.

[sisu]

Sam All said:

A lightweight Cayman that sells for *more than £50k.

• Corrected

[DonkeyApple]

mrclav said:

Muzzer79 said:

It's becoming an increasingly common business model that to make something premium, you build less of it and make it limited supply.

With limited numbers comes exclusivity and £££ in years to come - look at GT3 4.0's and several other examples.

Ferrari do the same thing, as do several other manufacturers. As long as there is demand, they won't give a stuff where your (hypothetical) money goes.

It's not taking the mickey - it's good business sense.

^^^This.

Plus, the Board has spoken in the past of the worry of the Starbucks problem of the Cayenne diesel on the global perception of the brand as aspirational and premium. And catagorically defined the problem of a cheap Porsche on every street corner as one of the core problems preventing them from moving the 911 further upmarket (price wise) to follow the likes of Ferrari etc. To counter this they have discussed either dropping the non performance vehicles such as the base model diesels from their ranges or restricting supply of the 911.

It looked old like they are having their cake and eating it by using these halo models to create exclusivity and keep the brand elevated while also still being able to churn out the non performance vehicles.

[Sam All]

DonkeyApple said:

To counter this they have discussed either dropping the non performance vehicles such as the base model diesels from their ranges or restricting supply of the 911.

With Cayman production moving to Stuttgart, and production capacity limited at Stuttgart, I wonder if we see the brand moving higher in every sense.

[DonkeyApple]

Sam All said:

DonkeyApple said:

To counter this they have discussed either dropping the non performance vehicles such as the base model diesels from their ranges or restricting supply of the 911.

With Cayman production moving to Stuttgart, and production capacity limited at Stuttgart, I wonder if we see the brand moving higher in every sense.

There was a big article a few years back where the Board wanted to produce fewer cars but with higher price tags and stated that they would not replace the Panamera and even mentioned dropping the low performance diesel products. But I suspect they have found a solution while not having to cut production.

[DonkeyApple]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

Yup. And Porsche haven't cut production or dropped products that don't match the brand's ethos to date. But I'll see if I can find the article as it was quite interesting and showed their concern over not being able to elevate the price of the 911 and at worst the brand damage from lesser models.

[Sierra Mike]

DonkeyApple said:

Yup. And Porsche haven't cut production or dropped products that don't match the brand's ethos to date. But I'll see if I can find the article as it was quite interesting and showed their concern over not being able to elevate the price of the 911 and at worst the brand damage from lesser models.

The 911 does have a ceiling above which it struggles. When the 991 was released, discounts of £10k were common place but it was a struggling market and an expensive car. Even their halo cars will struggle to sell at higher prices if it not for the cushion of lower residuals. Porsche have long explored the option of bringing out another sports car at the £200k level but I think they'll struggle with it. That car was the 960 but I don't know when we'll see it if ever.

[Gary C]

Sierra Mike said:

The 911 does have a ceiling above which it struggles. When the 991 was released, discounts of £10k were common place but it was a struggling market and an expensive car. Even their halo cars will struggle to sell at higher prices if it not for the cushion of lower residuals. Porsche have long explored the option of bringing out another sports car at the £200k level but I think they'll struggle with it. That car was the 960 but I don't know when we'll see it if ever.

Dare I say it (as a 911 owner) but it's not special enough to support a £250k + model.

I would really like to see Porsche do a gt1 type car as the top model, and drop the 911 range down a bit and do some really nice light weight models, but then it would bite the Cayman, is that's not going to happen.

[Sam All]

Gary C said:

Dare I say it (as a 911 owner) but it's not special enough to support a £250k + model.

I would really like to see Porsche do a gt1 type car as the top model, and drop the 911 range down a bit and do some really nice light weight models, but then it would bite the Cayman, is that's not going to happen.

They need to sandwich McLaren in performance stakes. And do need a good looker.