Matthias Müller was given the keys to Porsche. Entrusted to move the iconic sports-car company forward. In a meeting on October 1, he said, “Give me 100 days.”
Well, Mr. Müller your 100 days were up two months ago! And I want the keys. I don’t like what you’re doing at Porsche. You’re fired!
So, you want to take prices to the stratosphere milking the public while offering nothing more than window dressing. Witness the obscenely priced Speedster. It’s not only “exclusive,” only because you charge double what a reasonable and respectably priced GTS cost, but it is fugly.
I have no confidence in you to do anything other than release other “limited editions” at obscenely high prices. That practice should be censored!
Indeed, release the Cajun and the Panamera successor to the 928, but making the porky 911 the icon perpetual is nothing more than hogwash. You may put a lovely necklace of pearls around the neck of a pig but it is, nonetheless, a porker. Fat, and now with your new checker board blue art, it is ugly. It’s tasteless and it’s time for a divorce!
We’ll see what you do with the new 911, but if it looks anything like the Panamera in its interior, it’ll be a loser. And the downturn in sales Porsche needs in order to “wake up” will have finally arrived.
Get real. The variations of the 911 render the new cars meaningless. However, those holding old 911’s are going to relish the exclusivity you manufacture into every real 911 in their hands: Values on the originals are going to increase because of your strategy.
So, you’ve inherited the tactics of your elders who have departed Porsche? Too bad. You look stodgy—just like them!
You have sentenced yourself with your own words (AutoWeek, October 25, 2010):
“As long as I’m in charge of Porsche, the 911 will be the icon.”
Fine, have it your way. Continue the tradition of more variations upon variants and derivatives upon every artificial copy of what was once the preeminent sports-car.
You want my advice? Hell no. But, you’re getting it anyway.
First, take better care of your customer base. That’ll pay dividends compared to the television advertising campaign launched last year.
Second, build them better. One thing I can say is Porsche really puts its quality into the 911. It’s too bad the other lines do not fare so well.
Third, stop hobbling the Cayman and accept the fact that particular platform is Porsche’s ticket to the future. That is, if Porsche still wants to build sports-cars and not expensive albatross’s—just like American auto makers about the time the 55 mph speed limit was imposed, engines choked off with regulation, and the sterility of trying to pretend you are what you once were yet you are no more.
Good stuff, we at Planet-9.com already know that the Cayman is the best… 😉
If Porsche keeps rolling out old race names and monickers, like the “R” series, without substance then we know the party is over. Porsche can’t or won’t learn new tricks and will continue to fade away. I can’t believe how far Cayman sales have dropped. I also can’t believe how much time my Cayenne Turbo spends in the shop. True, it’s better than most SUV’s but I think the build quality is best had in 911’s from the past.
The Cayman has the most potential; however, if Porsche doesn’t jump on that bandwagon soon, and I mean VERY SOON, Porsche won’t recover from the lost opportunities Porsche will have squandered. Porsche should have raced the Cayman long ago.
Took the words right out of my mouth. Porsche, are you listening? Anybody there?
CEO Mathias is merely milking the marque and milking the pubic. While I love Porsche’s, I think I’ll buy used. Far better value for the money and they appreciate for a reason–nothing Porsche makes today comes close to what they made in the past when it comes to small light weight two door sports-cars.