bluelines:
Carlos from Spain:
Is This the End of Porsche as We Know It?
Predicting the demise of a beloved isn't a proud moment
https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a26898403/are-porsches-still-good/
Well written article from the heart.
Porsche is transforming into a different company and this is the only way they can survive. The reason? Actually, it is the cars which "saved" Porsche which actually puts them under pressure now...the Cayenne and the Panamera, maybe even the Macan. Why? They don't sell that well anymore with the current discussion of climate change, emissions laws changes and whatnot. It should be a hint for Porsche that they sell so many GT cars but I doubt they take the hint. Right now, it is VW Group who plans the future of the various brands they own and Porsche's future is, apparently, EVs. Unfortunately, the same strategy seems to apply to Audi, so I'm not quite sure where Porsche fits in.
Sportscars? VW Group has the Porsche GT models and Lamborghini. Enough to satisfy the sportscars markets.
It is going to be interesting to see how the GT models will evolve: Will they stick to basics or will these cars be hybridized and turbo charged in the end?
Fact is: Porsche will very likely become the company with the most "electrification" and hybridization in the VW Group at some point but the question here is: Why? Do Porsche customers really want this? Will they sell enough cars? Their Taycan pre-orders are impressive but will that be enough? Will people be disappointed with the Taycan since it diverts from it's sensational original design? Will Porsche be able to deliver the performance people expect from them?
Sorry but this is not the company Porsche I fell in love with and the fact that they decided not to put a 960 on the market (yet?) drove me completely away. I hate to say this but the article isn't wrong, even if it isn't perfectly correct. Porsche is in the transformation process of becoming a different (EV?) company but as long as they keep building/developing GT models, I'm fine with it. I just wish they would have sticked with their root business only, sportscars. I'm afraid however that these times are over. For good.
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RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Lamborghini Huracan Performante (May 2019), Mercedes E63 S AMG Edition 1 (2018), Mercedes C63 S AMG Cab (2019), Range Rover Evoque Si4 Black Edition (2019)