Get, Set, Go Forth And Multiply: Porsche Chases Volume
Porsche and Volkswagen are the typical German couple: Not married, with children. Formally, the two want to say “Ja” once the pending lawsuits are taken care of. In the meantime, the couple cohabitates happily. CEO Matthias Müller is made from Audi-DNA. He is a confidant of Martin Winterkorn, who is Piech’s man. Müller runs Porsche like a full-fledged Volkswagen division, down to doing his share to fulfilling Winterkorn’s grand “Strategie 2018,” the plan for world domination by Volkswagen. Under Müller, Porsche doesn’t chase Nordschleife lap times. Porsche chases volume.
Yesterday, Müller told the Swiss newspaper Neue Züricher Zeitung: “By 2018, we want to more than double our sales to 200,000 units.” In the grandiose scheme of the “Strategie 2018,” which will require more than 10 million cars annually to succeed, 100,000 Porsches more is a drop in the bucket. But everybody is doing his part.
And this is how Müller wants to pull off the miracle:
- The currently four series (911, Boxster/Cayman, Panamera and Cayenne) will be expanded to six or seven.
- The three new ones are the Cajun, a re-release of something like the 550 Spyder, and a super sportscar which will compete with Ferrari (at homeopathic volume.)
- Müller wants to sell an additional 30,000 units primarily in “Asia” (= China). The Panamera is planned to add 25,000 units, the Cajun is budgeted at 50,000 units. There you have your 100,000 more.
- The number of dealers will grow from 700 to 1,000 – globally.
That was easy! Müller has big hopes for China, which he thinks will replace the U.S.A. as Porsche’s largest market as early as next year. In China, the dealer network will grow from currently 40 to 100.
The true porschephile is close to a heart attack after reading these lines and worries about the watering down of his beloved slotcar. Not to worry, says Müller. Asked by the Swiss paper what will set a Porsche apart from the rest, Müller answered that it’s a panoply of things, such as the design, the position of seat and steering wheel, the sound, the bite of the brakes.
Now, porschephiles are REALLY worried.
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
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Volume? We see how well that worked for Mercedes=Benz.
I don't agree with the position that 'all of the lame Porsches make the good Porsches viable.' We've been hearing this for years, and look what has happened - Porsche is no longer independent. The money that came in from the SUVs, the Pan-whatever went to stupid finance schemes that completely backfired. The Porsche 911 is not the wonderful car it used to be - hot RS mdodels, etc aside - and even those look ridiculous compared to the timeless air-cooled designs of earlier. If these lame cars are financing the 'good', why do these good sports cars evolve at such a glacial pace? The SUVs, the Pan-whatever, are for people that don't know any better, and are also-rans in their segments. The 911 is in danger of becoming that as well. The Pan-thing has crap steering, bad feedback from its air-suspension, and possibly the worst looks of any modern sedan. And throwing 500 bhp at a car to generate astounding acceleration is not very clever - how many manufacturers are now doing that? Last I read MB's hot AMG E-class was faster, better handling, and far less expensive, etc. and Jag's XFR, XJR are other alternatives... How can any of that be good for Porsche? People might buy them, but they are cynical products, that have already affected the rest of the line. (Anyone who doubts this can go and read a back issue or two of Car and Driver, Evo, Car, Road & Track, etc and find plenty of evidence) Take for example CD's 'Hot Lap' (or whatever they call it) where they pit a bunch of performance cars against each other on the same day. The previous version of the 911 Turbo, was no faster around this high speed course than the previous version of the Ford Mustang with the 500 bhp supercharged engine -- yeah, a live rear axle, 3800 lbs Ford lapped the same time. Its no wonder the GT-R scared the living hell out of Porsche and made them take notice. Anyway, rant over....