A long, long time ago in a land faraway, an engineer named Porsche designed and produced a sportscar. You may have heard of this fellow and his car. Porsche has become an iconic sportscar and it seems that no matter what they produce, it is darn near perfect. Ok, there have been a few missteps - the 914, the 924 and maybe the 928 - but overall their success rate has been enviable. Since 1964 their 911 design has evolved and evolved, they can do no wrong. Or can they?
The outcry from the traditionalists was deafening (and still is in some quarters), that this great sportscar maker would even for a moment consider doing an suv. And yet, their logic was sound. Many 911 owners also had an suv, so why not try to keep them in the fold? It worked.....they sell tons of their Cayenne model, just look at the worldwide August, 2012 sales - 1559 911's, 850 Boxsters and a whooping 6331 Cayennes. Pretty astute decision on Porsche's part (my neighbour with a new 911 Turbo also has a 4Runner, but that's another story). So what's next?
How about a new smaller suv to slide in below the Cayenne? Something to compete with the GLK, the X3 and the Q5. This pic is of a pre-production Macan which will be coming our way for the 2014 model year. Who would have thought? Now what else?
The Panamera was another idea resisted by diehard Porschephiles......a four door sedan (coupe?) Porsche? Sacriledge! Who would have thought that this, in my opinion, very ugly model (that back end!) would also find its way into such a huge number of garages? Not me, but go figure!
Just last month at the Paris auto show, Porsche once again took an astute, but brave step forward and showed a variation of the poor Panamera.........
What can you say about a car company like Porsche, who obviously know their brand and their clientele. Only a very few years ago, when one thought of sportscars, one thought of Porsche. Now one thinks of suv's and sporty sedans. Big change. Big sales increases. Smart moves.
Until next time.......
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