William S

I, like most of you, hate the idea of Porsche diluting their brand by making an SUV, but I did hear a plausible explanation to this madness:

You may have noticed that Porsche has been streamlining their distribution process (which accounts for around 20% of the cost of a typical automobile) -- both getting rid of redundant and/or unsuccessful dealers AND getting as many of these remaining dealers to be Porsche-only dealers (rather than Porsche+Audi, or Porsche/Mercedes, etc). In order for the remaining dealers to have adequate revenue, they had to broaden the product range. The SUV was (or so it seemed when the decision was made) a profitable and complementary offering.

If you think about it, what else could they have done? Sedans? Too much established competition from BMW, Mercedes, etc. It seems they made the best decision given the parameters. But I still don't like it.

DonW-Cape Cod

I agree with your thought re the Cayenne, but I also think Porsche wanted an AWD platform that holds 4 people....for future use. Even tho they deny any attempts at a sedan or "station wagon" type, with this platform they are 3/4 the way there. What business does not like to spread their investment as far as possible.

deni durrell

speaking of which.. william.. re: new dealerships, do you see the new porsche dealership going up in tiburon along side the 101? it is where the old mill valley bmw delaership used to be. is that sonnen moving or someone else? nevertheless, vw is sharing that cayenne chassis and coming out with their own, ferget the name for the moment. can't let good r&d go to waste, i guess.

William S

I just got a flash of the 924 project when you said that...

Jessa

It's Sonnen. Don't know if they're pulling the porsches out of the San Rafael dealership or are just adding one further south. Wonder if Marin can sustain two porsche dealerships so close?

M. Schneider

Its Sonnen Motorcars Porsche operation which is moving out of the San Rafael location. Ya know the drill.. Bigger, better facility, specificaly a single marque appearence.

As an aside, For Porsche OE parts, try Greg Arteche at the Sonnen Porsche parts department. Greg's service and discount is tier one. Tell'em the guy from Colorado sent ya. Standard disclaimers apply.

Kaz

William, I have heard much the same thing about Porsche's decision and it does in fact make perfect sense. I think my objection comes from the fact that I object to all SUV's regardless of manufacturer but people keep buying them so manufacturer's are going to build them.

K

robertinla

That's right - it's all about the Benjamins! And Porsche has been doing great in that department over the last decade as it's the most profitable auto manufacturer from a profit margin standpoint.