Crown

Finally saw a Macan today while I drove past the local OPC. I didn't have time to stop and do a walk around but I gotta say it looked a bit undewhelming. It was an S in white. I'll try to stop by on my way back home this afternoon to take a better look. 

Our Macan Turbo "review" is online:

http://www.rennteam.com/forum/thread/20929662/Short_Macan_Turbo_Review/page1.html

RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Porsche 991 Turbo S, Porsche Boxster S (981), Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT (2014), BMW X3 35d (2013)

Every car in white or black is underwhelming.

SciFrog:

Every car in white or black is underwhelming.

The problem isn't the color...

RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Porsche 991 Turbo S, Porsche Boxster S (981), Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT (2014), BMW X3 35d (2013)

The basic Macan exterior was made to blend in the european market... It looks a lot better with the black sides and in bright colors which Porsche doesn't offer yet... I am also thinking of painting the mirrors flat black

I saw a silver one on PCH, very small!  So much shorter than cayenne.  It will be perfect for the dirt station roads on the South Island for the two of us.  Glad i got the black door panels done in silver, in black they looked poor.

A bit concerned about RCs comment on poor gas mileage in the turbo.....and lack of skid plates which are not available from factory

It must be the fastest small SUV but It must also be the first under-braked Porsche since I don't know when, perhaps from the time of the original 924. The wrong part was picked up from the VW parts bin 

"Form follows function"

reginos:

It must be the fastest small SUV but It must also be the first under-braked Porsche since I don't know when, perhaps from the time of the original 924. The wrong part was picked up from the VW parts bin 

They want to sell their (upcoming) PCCB, don't they?  

RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Porsche 991 Turbo S, Porsche Boxster S (981), Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT (2014), BMW X3 35d (2013)

reginos:

It must be the fastest small SUV but It must also be the first under-braked Porsche since I don't know when, perhaps from the time of the original 924. The wrong part was picked up from the VW parts bin 

Not that it matters too much. A SUV on a track is wrong on so many levels anyway  

2014 991 Carrera 4S | Dark Blue Metallic | PDK | S-PASM (-20mm) | PSE

2010 Audi S5 cabrio | Ibis White

bluelines:

reginos:

It must be the fastest small SUV but It must also be the first under-braked Porsche since I don't know when, perhaps from the time of the original 924. The wrong part was picked up from the VW parts bin 

Not that it matters too much. A SUV on a track is wrong on so many levels anyway  

True but so much fun...especially if you annoy the sports car drivers by keeping up with them...or sometimes even being faster. 

RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Porsche 991 Turbo S, Porsche Boxster S (981), Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT (2014), BMW X3 35d (2013)

RC:

bluelines:

reginos:

It must be the fastest small SUV but It must also be the first under-braked Porsche since I don't know when, perhaps from the time of the original 924. The wrong part was picked up from the VW parts bin 

Not that it matters too much. A SUV on a track is wrong on so many levels anyway  

True but so much fun...especially if you annoy the sports car drivers by keeping up with them...or sometimes even being faster. 

We all get our kicks out of different things 

2014 991 Carrera 4S | Dark Blue Metallic | PDK | S-PASM (-20mm) | PSE

2010 Audi S5 cabrio | Ibis White

bluelines:

RC:

bluelines:

reginos:

It must be the fastest small SUV but It must also be the first under-braked Porsche since I don't know when, perhaps from the time of the original 924. The wrong part was picked up from the VW parts bin 

Not that it matters too much. A SUV on a track is wrong on so many levels anyway  

True but so much fun...especially if you annoy the sports car drivers by keeping up with them...or sometimes even being faster. 

We all get our kicks out of different things 

True. I love surprises and "underdogs". 

RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Porsche 991 Turbo S, Porsche Boxster S (981), Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT (2014), BMW X3 35d (2013)

This might prove even more than like what I hinted, the Macan competition is the Panamera and not the Cayenne... Macan has no competitors in the SUV space... For under $100k loaded for a turbo, it is a bargain.

Macan has no competiton in SUV space? In USA maybe? Since I think that in Europe situation is different. NO other SUV in Macan class offers powerfull petrol engine-only Macan. 95% of X3, Q5 and GLK buyers in EU are ordering diesel engines. 

I am really wondering who is potential Macan Turbo buyer in EU?  Someone who wants best drive dynamics in car of this size/weight? Or someone who sstrictly wants Porsche?

For example Audi S6 Avant FL with 450ps is in EU around €10K cheaper then Macan Turbo and does (not only IMHO) everything better then Macan Turbo-be it interior space size, trunk size, straight line speed, track times etc.

I didnt see much unpaved routes in Europe but maybe that was ignorance.  I ordered macan turbo for off pavement on the south island.  If i was on pavement, like europe seems, id get an rs6 avant wagon. Faster on pavement but stuck or high centered off

KresoF1:

Macan has no competiton in SUV space? In USA maybe? Since I think that in Europe situation is different. NO other SUV in Macan class offers powerfull petrol engine-only Macan. 95% of X3, Q5 and GLK buyers in EU are ordering diesel engines. 

I am really wondering who is potential Macan Turbo buyer in EU?  Someone who wants best drive dynamics in car of this size/weight? Or someone who sstrictly wants Porsche?

For example Audi S6 Avant FL with 450ps is in EU around €10K cheaper then Macan Turbo and does (not only IMHO) everything better then Macan Turbo-be it interior space size, trunk size, straight line speed, track times etc.

 

This is indeed a problem. Especially since the Macan model line lacks a powerful Diesel (+300 hp).

A Macan Turbo with 450 hp and a Turbo S with 500 hp could have been something really special.

Still...you could use the same arguments you are using regarding the Cayenne and look how successful it is. Many people buy the brand too and this will be even more the case with the cheaper Macan.

RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Porsche 991 Turbo S, Porsche Boxster S (981), Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT (2014), BMW X3 35d (2013)

Spoke to my dealer about the Macan .

70 % of buyers in Switzerland are new Porsche customers  ( they never had a Porsche before )

 997.2 C2S, PDK, -20mm

Gnil:

Spoke to my dealer about the Macan .

70 % of buyers in Switzerland are new Porsche customers  ( they never had a Porsche before )

That's pretty much what I would have expected for a model which is a clear extension of the product range, rather than a direct or partial successor for a previously available line. It tends to justify the decision to build it.

fritz

fritz:

Gnil:

Spoke to my dealer about the Macan .

70 % of buyers in Switzerland are new Porsche customers  ( they never had a Porsche before )

That's pretty much what I would have expected for a model which is a clear extension of the product range, rather than a direct or partial successor for a previously available line. It tends to justify the decision to build it.

+1

2014 991 Carrera 4S | Dark Blue Metallic | PDK | S-PASM (-20mm) | PSE

2010 Audi S5 cabrio | Ibis White

fritz:

Gnil:

Spoke to my dealer about the Macan .

70 % of buyers in Switzerland are new Porsche customers  ( they never had a Porsche before )

That's pretty much what I would have expected for a model which is a clear extension of the product range, rather than a direct or partial successor for a previously available line. It tends to justify the decision to build it.

I expected the same but the big question still remains: Will the new customer hype keep on going or will it die down pretty fast after the cars are actually on the road for some while? Many new customers have high expectations of the brand Porsche and I'm not quite sure they all will be met. Also a majority seems to have ordered the Macan without actually driving the car before or even seeing it, so this will be another huge question mark too.

RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Porsche 991 Turbo S, Porsche Boxster S (981), Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT (2014), BMW X3 35d (2013)

Well, I would assume that most of these first customers are corporates (leases) anyway - you may care a bit more for your ride over 36 months, but I doubt that these leasing clients will do as well...and, speaking of which, the Macan - at least  in some corporate fleets - may be the first Porsche available as a company car...

 

70 % of buyers in Switzerland are new Porsche customers 

Spoke recently with new Macan S Diesel owner, a first time Porsche costumer. I ask him how much better is Macan then his previous car an X3 3.0d... Answers...

"It is Porsche, naturally it feels faster." 

"PDK is not as smooth as autobox in X3."

"It is a great feeling to own a Porsche."

and not so good...

"I was overtaken on the local highway by latest Golf R. How is it possible? Macan is a Porsche after all."

Hmm... New Porsche costumers expectations...

Porsche is always associated with performance but a couple of Cayenne/Panamera Diesel owners I talked to, actually couldn't care less about performance. They usually drive 160-180 kph at max on the Autobahn and the acceleration actually feels pretty fast (Turbo Diesel), until they actually "measure" the performance, which of course sucks. 

I never understood why someone would get for example a Cayenne Diesel for 80k EUR instead of a BMW X5 30d for much less money but to each his own I guess.  
Take the "old" Panamera Diesel for example, 250 hp at an average price tag of 115k EUR or so. You really need to be insane to spend that much money for a 250 hp Diesel car. 

--

RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Porsche 991 Turbo S, Porsche Boxster S (981), Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT (2014), BMW X3 35d (2013)

RC : they will because all of the comments mentioned by Kreso on the post just above . There is a badge, and people will '' feel'' fast and feel they have something special ....... better then the others . 

I know someone who bought the Cayenne Diesel . He is 74 years old . Took it in red . And each time I see him he tells me how unbelievably fast this car is and how special . Before he owned Mercedes for 20 yeas, last being a E500 , before that an S350 , before that an S500

I also think some people will be disappointed and are expecting to be in a '' different world'' because they now own a Porsche but will soon realize it is not much different then a BMW dealer .

 997.2 C2S, PDK, -20mm

Gnil, with this sound logic a BMW is not much different to a Skoda. But people feel good in a BMW, behind the wheel of a perceived fast sports saloon or estate.

We are not going to re-discover Branding today, because of the Macan.

"Form follows function"

reginos : When you entered a Porsche dealer 7 years ago, you only saw sports cars and it was '' different'' then a BMW garage . Today ,  when you enter a Porsche dealer, it feels  upmarket  ( but not so special anymore ) , as you can see Panamera , Cayennes , with huge price tags . With the Macan, it brings the upmarket feel a little closer to the others ( like BMW or MB , not Skoda  )

Some people think that by buying a base Macan they are now in the same league as the owner of a Panamera Turbo S, or TTS or GT3 .....  When they will realize that they are not, they will take Porsche off the high seat they have put the brand and consider it just like any other brand  .    Unless Porsche stops here and comes out with more sports models then mass products

 997.2 C2S, PDK, -20mm

You could have said that 11 years ago when the Cayenne was introduced. Porsche has kept most of its image no?

SciFrog:

You could have said that 11 years ago when the Cayenne was introduced. Porsche has kept most of its image no?

I agree. When the Cayenne was introduced, I actually hated it at first. It looked hideous but performance was just amazing for a SUV, so I didn't care and got used to the car and it's performance.

Things kind of changed though and I think that Porsche has gone too far (or actually not far enough) with their model policy. The top model of each Porsche model needs to be a performance king compared to the competition, I don't see that (anymore) I'm afraid but the prices have gone up at the same time.

RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Porsche 991 Turbo S, Porsche Boxster S (981), Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT (2014), BMW X3 35d (2013)

Gnil:

reginos : When you entered a Porsche dealer 7 years ago, you only saw sports cars and it was '' different'' then a BMW garage . Today ,  when you enter a Porsche dealer, it feels  upmarket  ( but not so special anymore ) , as you can see Panamera , Cayennes , with huge price tags . With the Macan, it brings the upmarket feel a little closer to the others ( like BMW or MB , not Skoda  )

Some people think that by buying a base Macan they are now in the same league as the owner of a Panamera Turbo S, or TTS or GT3 .....  When they will realize that they are not, they will take Porsche off the high seat they have put the brand and consider it just like any other brand  .    Unless Porsche stops here and comes out with more sports models then mass products

 

Personally, I wouldn't like the Macan to exist, but nobody asked me!

Anyway, since the Cayenne was introduced 12 years ago, Porsche sportscars improved greatly in terms of technology and quality and more than they did in the previous 30 years. So, producing two or three different type of cars doesn't  reduce the worth or the ability of the product. 

What remains is the question of the perceived image that someone might say is lessened by this diversification. True in some sense and in an ideal world, but nowadays things are not what they used to be in the car industry. Bentley and Lamborghini are planning SUVs, Maserati are entering the small saloon class and Mercedes make more small family cars than limousines. Different financial landscape that necessitates new moves and initiatives and Porsche cannot be immune.

The only pure sportscar company that remains healthy is Ferrari , if we believe their FIAT accounting. All the rest are struggling, looking for new cash all the time and changing hands. McLaren Automotive have a life of just three years and I expect to see if their fate will be any different to other small scale manufacturers.

--

"Form follows function"