What do you want Porsche AG to do?
Discussion
With all the money they're earning?
According to a thread in General Gassing Porsche is making around €22k profit per car sold. Not necessarily discussing the relative merits of them making all that money (€2.1b) but now they've got it what would you, as Porsche owners, want them to do with it?
Add an Elise type car to the line-up?
Add a hot hatch(!) S3, 135i rival?
Add a four door M5/E55/Q-porte/Rapide rival?
Add a mini-Cayenne X3-type rival?
Make a 928 replacement (proper tourer)?
Make a "proper" Cayman (full engine range and lsd)?
Make a ltd run Veyron "beater"?
Buy Jaguar?
Go racing?
Reduce the price of their cars and make the same profit by making more?
Keep bailing out VW?
Buy Ruf (or another) and keep it in-house a la AMG, M, Quattro etc.?
Any other thoughts?
According to a thread in General Gassing Porsche is making around €22k profit per car sold. Not necessarily discussing the relative merits of them making all that money (€2.1b) but now they've got it what would you, as Porsche owners, want them to do with it?
Add an Elise type car to the line-up?
Add a hot hatch(!) S3, 135i rival?
Add a four door M5/E55/Q-porte/Rapide rival?
Add a mini-Cayenne X3-type rival?
Make a 928 replacement (proper tourer)?
Make a "proper" Cayman (full engine range and lsd)?
Make a ltd run Veyron "beater"?
Buy Jaguar?
Go racing?
Reduce the price of their cars and make the same profit by making more?
Keep bailing out VW?
Buy Ruf (or another) and keep it in-house a la AMG, M, Quattro etc.?
Any other thoughts?
Like craigw says, a modern take on the 550 spyder...
...I guess this then approaches the OP's list with the "Elise" variant of sportscar, but I dont mean like the RUF Boxster version, more something thats a complete ground-up new car, so bespoke with no "common-platform" BS, just a beautifully engineered, extra-lightweight, small, sportscar, not overpowered (eh?...how does "that" work??!), perhaps a boxer-4 to save weight and keep CoG low.
In essence, a car thats much like an Elise really!...but no bought-in engine/trans, and no customer field-testing, just something simple and exquisite....wouldnt be cheap, mind!
Oh, and go racing again properly...LMP1 category...petrol too, no oil-burning
...I guess this then approaches the OP's list with the "Elise" variant of sportscar, but I dont mean like the RUF Boxster version, more something thats a complete ground-up new car, so bespoke with no "common-platform" BS, just a beautifully engineered, extra-lightweight, small, sportscar, not overpowered (eh?...how does "that" work??!), perhaps a boxer-4 to save weight and keep CoG low. In essence, a car thats much like an Elise really!...but no bought-in engine/trans, and no customer field-testing, just something simple and exquisite....wouldnt be cheap, mind!
Oh, and go racing again properly...LMP1 category...petrol too, no oil-burning
It seems perhaps ridiculous to suggest it given Porsche's roots as a small, family-owned sports car maker, but with a saloon on the horizon, a fairly hefty 4x4 already in the line-up, a smaller 4x4 probably on the cards at some stage and overall production numbers set for 100,000 and above - could Porsche do with a Motorsport wing a la M-Division/Quattro GmbH? This division could offer a limited number take on each model in the range - such as a proper lightweight 997, a Boxster Spyder (as suggested above), a Cayman RS and so on. Call the new division Rennsport and give all its output the coveted RS designator - not the Cayenne, obviously, as that would just spoil everything. Firms like FF, Techart, Ruf, Manthey and others make a fortune doing this - why doesn't Porsche Ag get in on the act? I haven't included Gemballa, because that guy doesn't so much fettle Porsches as put gold taps and marble flooring in them. If set up, the new division should be kept seperate from the parent company and left, to as great an extent as possible, its own devices. A bit like Lotus Sport. Equally, given its task as a halo-generator, it shouldn't be given a brief to make a fortune, so much as left to wash its face so-to-speak. God forbid, with a few quid in its pocket, the Rennsport division might even be able to field a works race car - fancy that. We-Da-King would never allow any of this, of course, the tight-arsed baldy auld misery; but it's a nice notion to think that a smaller and less mercenary division of the Porsche empire could be set up to cater for the sort of loonies that made Porsches the thing-to-have in the first place.
I personally think they should have a go at developing a small two seat jet powered Helicopter. About the size of an R22, but more refined, certainly smoother, and more luxurious.
R22
As it is I reckon they'll end up spending it over the next few years supporting the VW manufacturing capacity that may not be required!
R22
As it is I reckon they'll end up spending it over the next few years supporting the VW manufacturing capacity that may not be required!
Edited by dilbert on Friday 26th January 05:27
davyboy said:
Cayman CS - Rollcage, buckets, light, stiffer suspension, LSD
craigw said:
proper 550 spyder replacement. stripped down slightly restyled boxster with speedster style windscreen, make it supercharged for good measure. Similar to the ruf jobbie.
I like these two suggestions. Not too radical and perfectly within the scope of the market. I reckon the 550 replacement should be called the 'Speedster' like the ones of old.
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