Boxster 3.4S Factory Collection Experience
We used just about every form of transport; taxi collected us from our home at 08:30hrs on Thursday 28th September and delivered us to Southampton Central Railway Station. The train was on time but unfortunately felt that the wheels were hexagonal rather than circular. However, we arrived at London's Waterloo station, black cab across London (no underground - SWMBO is claustrophobic) - to London City Airport. We were then in the hands of Porches appointed travel agants, DER Travel. The Lufthansa flight to Stuttgart again left dead on time and arrived in Stuttgart 10 minutes early. Report to the appointed taxi desk iin the arrivals hall and whisked away to the four star Stuttgart Maritim Hotel, in the centre of the city. Vast, Hilton - like very modern complex, nice comfy room and an excellent three course meal. Few beers in the bar for a nightcap and off to dream about the days to come.
After breakfast mini-bus arrived to deliver us and two other couples to The Factory. Turned out we were the poor relation; one couple were collecting a 997 turbo tiptronic in arcti silver, complete with PCCB etc and the other a black 997 C2S with black / tan bicolour leather. We checked in, our guide arrived and the tour of the production line followed, unfortunately strictly no photographs. Only 997's are made at Zuffenhausen, (160 cars per day) all Boxster / Cayman production is at Valmet (120 cars per day) and Cayenne at Leipzig (130 cars per day). The factory is turning out the maximum 160 997's per day, with two shifts operating from 0500hrs to 2200hrs. Paintshop is working three shifts per day. The tour started with the engine assembly, two lines, one building the 997 engines and the other the Boxster / Cayman. All variants of the 997's are made on the same line, 3.6, 3.8, GT3, turbo. (Cayenne engine assembly has been transferred to a separate building recently vacated by the demise of the Carrera GT). Each technician builds the complete engine from start to delivery to the "hot room" sound proofed test facility, where each engine is tested for 35 minutes, power tolerance is +/- 5%. An engine is selected at random by the quality department, dismantled and checked down to the smallest detail. Engines are then delivered to the transmission area where the two components are mated. A digital stop watch on the wall counts down from 5 minutes, to time the two completed engine gearbox assemblies that have to be completed in that time for delivery to the assembly line. Boxster / Cayman engines are packed here for shipment to Valmet. We then moved to witness the "wedding", where engine /transmissions are married to the bodyshells. "Jumpers" are employed on each station, ready to fall in if one of the workers needs a comfort break to ensure no interruption of production. We then moved on to the trimming area, here it was explained that everything delivered by suppliers is not only "just in time" but even in the correct order for produaction. For instance, suppliers delivering carpets deliver on the right date and also are packed in the right sequence for the production lines. We then witnessed the only automated robot outside of the welding areas (which like the paintshop we did not see) fitting the front and rear windscreens. The final stop in the tour was the leather shop where the hides are laid out, meticulously inspected for defects, digitally mapped before being delivered to the cutting area. The hides are cut by ultra high pressure water jets using the digital map to ensure the best use is made of the hides. The leather shapes are then delivered to the upholsterers that stretch, fit and sew the hides. Boxster / Cayman interiors are also trimmed here for shipment to Valmet.
Tour over, we returned to the Customer Car Collection Area and taken by a representative to greet our cars. As much explanation as required is given during the handover procedure, photograph taken and silver key fob presented. Once documentation completed, we were invited to drive our cars down the ramp to the visitors parking area, then to partake in an excellent lunch in the guest restaurant, finally a look round the small museum (new, bigger one under construction for 2007) visit to the shop, in the car and drive home.
Then it all began to fall apart. Unbeknown to us at the time we booked, it was the start of a German Public Holiday weekend (Tuesday 3rd October is Reunification Day), and most people were taking the opportunity of a long weekend. The autobahn north of Stuttgart was virtually gridlocked all the way to Sinsheim, where we had a good if very sad view of a decommissioned Air France Concorde mounted at take off angle on the roof of the Air and Space Museum, alongside a Tupolev TU 144 "Conkordski". We eventually arrived at SWMBO's daughter living in NATO's JHQ in Rheindahlen, for a few days, before driving home, but not before a super evening out with porsche-jeck in Dusseldorf.)Once again, many thanks for your hospitality).
The factory collection is a great experience and thoroughly recommend it. It's a great way to see first hand the workings of Porsche - but just make sure it is not a Public Holiday Weekend!