Zhao

Little chat with fellow instructors at a PCA event on the weekend and I don't think anyone really wants this car or likes the direction in my world. One cup car driver said he thinks his spyder is literally the last new Porsche he'll probably ever buy. Him specifically was looking at going back to a 997.2 for his next Porsche.

I'm not sure what the target market is for this car, but I'm guessing it's new people to the brand who won't know what they're missing and people who buy them for the brand not the experience. I still think it'll sell more units than any other boxster/cayman gen previous, but it will also go down in history as the worst gen to date.

Denny Swift

That’s not surprising about no deposit necessary. And the game will definitely change, but I’m not playing…

UncleDude

most of the dealers around me no longer take deposits because it implies a place in line / order which is not actually the case (to a certain degree I think)….

greatfox315

There was also no deposit required for my GT4 RS at this dealership. That’s just their way of handling pre-orders. From what my dealership GM told me, the list is already “long”.

ttcbj

For me, I think I might be interested in an electric backroad sports car, or an electric track car, if the range worked and the handling was good (not too heavy).

My favorites backroads rides are 300 miles into rural Missouri (no charging). For track, it would have to do 4 20 minute sessions in a day.

I doubt the track use is viable. Maybe the backroads.

Perhaps someone will build a high speed charging network focused on enthusiast roads in remote locations. still, I just planned a 4 day trip in July from St Louis to tail of the dragon, down to Atlanta (pec) and back home. Hard to see doing that in an electric.

sanderabernathy

Every single person who grew up dreaming of owning an electric Porsche has already put down a deposit.

Xxyion

I think the target market for these vehicles are not current Porsche or sports car enthusiasts. I think the target market for these will be the current generation of teens who grew up with Tesla's being one of the most common cars you see on the road nowadays (at least here in CA). But also with this massive push towards EV's be the majority of companies, this is what most of the kids growing up nowadays are seeing. Supercars dont have the same flare as they did in the past. I dont know many kids that have like a Ferrari GTB or a McLaren 650 LT on their wall or are dreaming of those cars. However i know plenty of kids who want a Model S Plaid.

And i think this all comes down to marketing. Tesla has done a very good job of giving people the illusion that anyone can afford the top trim Model S. It's not a flashy car and looks like it should only cost 40k, however the plaid is their top of the line trim and has a better 0-60 than the majority of supercars out there. And as much as we like to say things like "i care about handling", let's be honest, 0-60 is basically what most people talk about in general.

So now you combine the fact that most of these kids think Teslas are cool, never grew up dreaming of that new Ferrari or Porsche (and if they are its either a hybrid or an EV like a Taycan), and seeing that the world is heading in the direction of an EV, it only makes sense that a Sports EV is something that they would want to buy once they are old enough and have the money.

Again, these new cars aren't for us. That's what the 911s are for.

josephr25

Maybe once my HOA has the electric chargers completed I'll consider it. Or maybe a electric Macan. I do think the Mission R concept is interesting.

ipse dixit

911's are going hybrid.

Xxyion

which dont detract or take away from what we all fundamentally love about cars. There are plenty of hybrid super cars out there with the sound and response that we crave. Not to mention you could still keep the manual transmission. I personally wished that the 718 lineup would become hybrid instead. It would have appeased the "save the planet" crowd while at the same time giving us a high performance sports car that maintains its mid-engine configuration.

greatfox315

I'm not sure who "us" is in your post. There's no reason to be so one dimensional, in my opinion. I can have a GT4 RS and and EV 718 and enjoy the merits of both.

ttcbj

Totally agree. I am open to the idea that an electric sports car could be a different but enjoyable experience worth having, especially as battery tech improves.

I love the sound of a flat 6 on backroads. But I can’t rule out the possibility that a quieter experience might end up seeming more “pure” or focused over time. Either on backroads or track. It might really force you to focus on the driving experience itself.

Above all, I’m glad someone is trying. I heard somewhere they are replicating a similar weight position with the e718, by placing the battery behind the driver. That means Porsche cares about driving dynamics in this car. I will absolutely go try it at PEC when it comes out.

RedCarrot

EV will be made for years and years to come, and its battery tech will likely advance exponentially (a la solid state) over the next few. So there's simply no urgency to own a new EV sports car when 1) the economy is iffy over the next year 2) interest rate is high 3) cost of everything is high 4) no discount from MSRP.

dnimi123

The naysayers are in vogue at the moment. They said the same thing about, well, everything. Porsche may get the first gen wrong but they will get it right as they usually do. Consider for a moment if they get the weight down and suspension and steering feel right... with the torque and low center of gravity this will be a slot car and out perform numerically almost any car in the line up (please dont bore me with 'but it lost its soul' gibberish like you all did back in 1999-996 or 2019-992). They will sell a lot of these cars and to many NA customers and in a short period of time say a decade after these are out and there have been a couple generations and GT and GTRS versions of an electric Cayman/Boxster - the naysayers will be signing a different tune. I for one at the tender age of mid sixties will be first in line for a GT4E!

MaddMike

While I agree with you, most electric cars have not not held their value like Porsche sports cars have.

I know there are plenty of people on here who claim that they don't care about depreciation and that when they buy a car they essentially build a bonfire and throw stacks of Benjamins into it. However, those same people will sell you their ten-year-old GT3 for $50k over MSRP.

The truth of the matter is that most Porsche sports cars have a lower total cost of ownership than a Kia sedan. Although the initial sticker shock takes a lot of people out of the market, we all know we can sell in a few years and recoup a large percentage of that money.

However, as technology advances, a ten-year-old electric vehicle is not going to be competitive or as desirable as that ten-year-old GT3. So, at least for me, that puts me out of the market. I can justify spending $200k on a GT3 as I know that the total cost of ownership will be low. $200k on an electric vehicle that is not the family SUV or used for towing etc. and I can only get maybe $60k back is not a good value proposition as I don't have that type of money to burn.