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Lars996 said:
I visitied my dealer yesterday. He told me that the 997 sale is not that good as required, as expected. He said, that lots of 996 clients are hesitant to go for a 997.
If ordering a car now, you can get it like you want within 2 months. But he said, its also possible to get and stock car, as he has some already on stock, but also will get some more during the next couple of weeks.
[Email]L@rs[/Email]
My german dealer has his next "free" car around December as far as I remember. So yes, 2 months aren't much but shouldn't we actually be happy about it?
There are various "problems" why 997 sales in Germany might not be "euphoric". I can't exclude that this is valid for other markets (like the US) too.
1. there are still no 997 on the street. There are a few dealer cars driving around and I even saw ONE SINGLE customer car a short while ago but the streets are still full of 996s. From pictures in car magazines, most people can't really tell that the 997 looks much different than the 996 does. And only a minority of current 996/993 owners visited the dealer presentations.
2. the economic situation is pretty bad, especially here in Europe and especially in Germany. Buying a new car, even if there is money, wouldn't be "appropiate" or "politically correct". You can't buy a new Porsche while at the same time you fire employees or cut their salaries, bonuses, etc.
It is the time of "whining", not the time of "showing off" what you have. I know this is absurd but this is Germany, the land of the "poor" rich or "rich" poor.
3. Porsche made a huge mistake from a marketing and strategical point of view: I understand that they didn't want to make the 911 look completely different and this was a wise decision because making it looking spectacular would surely make even more people to refrain from buying it right now in the current economic "mood". But they should have understood that they can't attract new buyers from other brands in the current economic situation where even rich or wealthy people look twice before they spend their money. So in my opinion, the only potential buyers of the 997 right now are 993 owners AND 996 owners. For some 993 owners, the 997 is too expensive and some don't like the "too stylish" interior and the electronic "gimmicks".
For most 996 owners, the 997 is not different enough compared to the 996. A lot of 996 owners I talked to LOVE the 997. But they don't see any reason to loose a lot of money by selling their 996 and go for the 997 instead.
So if the 997 would have had 380 HP from the start, it would have been much more productive for sales figures because 60 HP difference would have really meant something to 996 owners.
4. Porsche and Porsche sales staff always argued that power isn't that important for customers. It seems this has changed. To my knowledge, the Carrera with 325 HP is already a "flop" over here in Germany, most customers go for the 997 Carrera S. I heard that Porsche planned a 1:1 parity between 997 Carrera and Carrera S sales but it seems it is more likely 1:2 or even better in favor of the Carrera S.
5. the advertisement for the 997 in german car magazines is horrible, absolutely HORRIBLE. They want to sell passion and tradition, all they do is to trigger a "soon vomiting" feel .
Also if I read Christophorus or the german Porsche Club Magazine, I wonder if they really care that the 997 is here. All is very strange indeed.
6. problems with certain options don't make potential customers happy and some even refrain from ordering a car if they don't get a certain option like for example the tire pressure monitor. There is a rumor that some options were delayed due to supplier problems. Some suppliers in Germany and probably worldwide too are at the brink of being bankrupt and maybe this is one reason.
7. the policy of "secrecy" towards dealers and customers doesn't create many friends. I remember one guy who asked a dealer when the 997 is coming and how much power he should expect. The dealer wasn't able to tell him anything...3 months before the official press info. This guy went for a SL 55 AMG instead because he didn't want to order/buy the "cat in the sack" as we say here. His local Mercedes dealer provided 17%(!!!) rebate for a brandnew SL 55 AMG which has been put on the dealer's name just for a few days.
Now somebody asked me what would have I done different if I would have been responsible for marketing/distribution/development. Well, here is my "plan":
1. 997 Carrera with 335-340 HP and almost no standard options for a VERY attractive price way below 996 C2 entry price tag as an "entry 911".
2. 997 Carrera S with 380 HP and more standard options like full leather, chrono sport (without that dumb looking stop watch) and maybe a radio at the current price tag of the 997 Carrera S base model. Some customers don't want the PCM and are desperate because they're real audiophiles or just want to install their own Nav/Sat Radio/MP3 stuff. Some want the chrono sport package but they hate the stop watch.
The 20 mm chassis with LSD should also be available in the US. PCCB option should cost less than 5000 Euro/USD to attract buyers.
3. sport exhaust option should have been available from the start.
4. the interior of the 997 looks nice but if I go for retro on the exterior, I would have gone for some retro on the interior too.
5. front lights are slightly too big, a size smaller would have been fine and of course LED rear lights.
6. pointing out the technical improvements and changes compared to the 996 in ads and car magazines would also make people to better "understand" the 997.
7. making the 997 Turbo/GT3 presentation timeline public to avoid too much "hopes" of potential buyers who refrain from buying a Carrera S because they think the GT3 and/or Turbo come soon. I know a lot of potential buyers who refrain from buying a 997 Carrera S because they think the 997 Turbo comes out very soon.
I would also change Exclusive/Tequipment department strategy: Exclusive should stay with leather stuff, etc. but Porsche Motorsport (the "internal" Porsche "Tuner") should be responsible, at least on the paper from a marketing standpoint of view, for sport exhausts, suspension kits, aerokits, wheels, powerkits, etc.
Well, I'm not working for Porsche and I can imagine that my above "plans" even made some Porsche employees feel "uncomfortable" or even furious but as a long-time Porsche customer, this is how I feel. I might not be the "typical" Porsche customer but people like me who are "faithful" buyers are actually the people Porsche can rely on during bad times. But of course only if I get the feeling that they try hard. Right now I'm pretty much confused, especially when I look at the Boxster.
Porsche shouldn't be surprised if Boxster sales will stay at the same level or even lower compared to the "old" 986.
Time will tell if I'm right and I think 2005 will be a very interesting time, for Porsche, for dealers and of course for us customers.
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. I just need to see what it really looks like out in the open.
