Whoopsy:
Through the 911R, Porsche sees there is a demand for lightweight manual 911s. Sort of like a proper weekend toy for the mountains.
They made the GT3 Touring. Which is still sort of hard to get, but more possible than a 911R.
Now they made the 911T. Even easier to get. And cheaper too.
For that price point , Porsche can't quite go all out and use really lightweight stuff, but it does proper rear wheel steering to improve the response.
Added bonus? The 911T can be had with PDK, something that cannot be done with a 911R or a GT3 Touring.
The interior is also restyled to be more sporty look than a standard 911.
Yes it's a parts bin car, all 911s are parts bin car for that matters. That's the beauty of the 911 range, most of the stuff can be interchangeable across the range, it doesn't take Porsche a lot of effort to do a car for a specific niche. It's how Porsche became the most profitable car company by a wide margin, they have come a long way since the time they almost died.
The 991 range is greater than ever, can't be bothered to count but I believe it has more offerings than 996 and 997 series added together.
Perhaps some see it as a betrayal of the Porsche purists, but I disagree, this is what happened when Porsche listens, listens to their customers' want. The profit they rake it means they have more money to spend on doing research to make better cars for us.
When is the last Porsche not the benchmark for their segment?
Cayenne? It is the SUV that everyone else trying to measure up to, and failed. Nothing else handles better. Nor faster.
Panamera? It is also the best driver's sedan, it used to be the M5 but not anymore. Panamera trumps it by a mile. The fact that I think Porsche made a mistake on sizing doesn't quite matter. IMO they chased the wrong segment, they should have entered the A6/5 series/E-class and not the A8/7 series/S class. But even then they have made a full size limo out handle a mid-size sports sedan like M5 is amazing.
Sports car as in 911? Nothing beats a 911 for daily usage, practical, not too flashy, reliable and fast. May not be the fastest but damn close. Everything else that are after have a compromise somewhere when compared to the 911 package.
Junior sports car as in Cayman/Boxster, up until the 718 it was still the benchmark, the 718 is a big let down but still, apart from the sound, it is a great handling car.
Junior SUV as in the Macan, it may not be as good as the bigger brother Cayenne, but nothing else in that junior segment can out handle the Macan.
I agree with some points you made but not all of them. Over all, I think that Porsche made the mistake of "allowing" the competition to offer alternatives for diehard old Porsche customers and potential new customers.
McLaren is the best example, without Porsche "messing" up, this company would have never survived the 12C.
Nothin can out handle the Macan? Let's see how the new GLC 63 S AMG does. The car has been delayed mainly because they weren't happy with the handling and according to rumors, it will be the hell of a SUV once it drops at dealerships around the end of the year. Mercedes also introduced the GLC 63 earlier than planned to make the "switchable" sport exhaust system happen (old certification). Brabus will offer a 600 hp kit for the GLC 63, a kit which can be easily installed (software only! Plug'n Play) and my dealer even said it could be possible to get approval for the leased car, which would be amazing. The GLC 63 S AMG already does 0-100 kph in 3.8 seconds and 0-200 kph in rumored 14 seconds. The Brabus kit would propel the 0-200 kph performance to under 13 seconds. For a SUV, this is amazing.
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