Just in time

Yesterday I had the chance of doing the factory tour. The tour is fascinating. I was surprised to see how smallish the factory looks in comparison to other car plants I have been to.

While touring (it takes about one hour and 45 minutes ) I saw at least eight GT3s.

Three of those were finished and parked at the exit ramp, apparently ready to be loaded on the transports. A red one (looked like GR), a white , and one that looked like black. On the production line itself I counted another five. One Miami blue with black wheels that was just about to be finished. I think I saw a black or very deep blue with the red stripe while /tire combo that was very close to completion, a guards red one that was in the process of getting the wing installed. Also saw a white one and another black in very early stages of assembly.

I saw all these cars in a little over 100 minutes. The tour guide said the factory is currently working two shifts per day. If I saw so many .2 3s in such a short time to me it means that GT3 production is in full swing.

BTW he indicated Cayman demand is through the roof and they are unable to keep up and have contracted for more parts from vendors to meet demand.

Those waiting will soon see their cars!

An interesting nugget that did I not know about is that of all motors produced each day only a handful are pulled out and tested. He said, however, every single GT3 engine is bench tested. IIRC the test is live and for about 30 mins.

The myth that every car produced is road tested was dispelled. The guide stated only a few cars get to the road per day.

Raven 666

Factory tour is certainly something I wish to do in the near future ........

pitt911

"The myth that every car produced is road tested was dispelled"
Agree with that
My spyder came off the truck with 54 miles, I called PCNA and the explanation I got, is it was one of a few that was road tested , which make sense as every other car I ordered came with 6-8 miles

CAlexio

Thanks OP.. which color combo did you like the most?

I'm thinking that "black almost blue" colo was jet black which under certain light has a blue tint to it. Seeing these in real life makes such a difference.

How were those red stripe wheels?

Just in time

Your question is interesting. The Miami blue car certainly makes a statement. While personally I would not order it did stand out in a sea of of white, black, silver , and gray cars that I saw in different stages if assembly. There was a slate gray cab w/red interior that was close to completion that looked really neat. Same for the GR that was having its wing attached.

As to the "black almost blue," I have a jet black one and this one did look different. The factory lighting is probably a big factor in how I perceived the color. It showed some deep blue in it. Way deeper than mid night blue, maybe closer to BMWs carbon black. Maybe it is fact jet black. I am just accustomed to seeing it under the sun while the factory lighting is quite muted.

The red stripe wheels looked interesting, reminded me of tires that Uniroyal sold a good 45 years ago under the Tiger Paw name. They do make a statement. At the risk of overkill I could see a combo of black car, with standard calipers, and the red stripe wheels. That would certainly differentiate the car. The same for a white car.

As an aside, I just spent some time in Bellagio. I must vouch that your statement about lake Como is entirely correct. It is indeed very pretty. Worth visiting regularly.

CAlexio

Considering that we believe no PTS has been produced yet.. I wonder what that deep blue car was?

Todd B

It could be a feasibility test run of PTS. I wouldn't be surprised it the tail supplier is painting the tail, since front/rear bumpers are painted by those suppliers.

LnC993

This is interesting, I thought Cayman sale took a dive when they introduced that turbo 4.

Was expecting the poor sales of other model will free up some factory capacity to build more GT cars, oh well.

bronson7

Thank you for reporting back from your factory tour visit. When I was there a few years ago, I thoroughly enjoyed it and was very impressed. Certainly a must visit for any Porsche purist. Now lake Como, wish I was there now.

CAlexio

You don't even understand how hard it was to leave... especially when family and friends are there. I am looking for excuses with myself to head back in late summer but as my fiancée works for an employer who isn't herself and doesn't have vacation let over.. she might pre-divorce me.

We're going to head up to Lake Tahoe for July 4 weekend and hoping to replicate some of the magic… Lake Tahoe really looks like what Lake Como might have looked like many thousands of years ago before humans started building there

Larry Cable

Como is stunning and well worth a visit, although a lot of the roads are *very* narrow and get busy during the summer ... so it can be quite challenging to
navigate them (in your shiny new ED 911)...

Also the Villa D'Este Concourso (usually in May) is worth a (well pre-planned) visit for any petrolhead...

Larry Cable

its a must do bucket list - factory, museum, spend a day, then drive north to the Ring and Spa ... DONE!

Todd B

I thought the cayman sales here were also slow. But they could be doing well in other markets due to the smaller engine.

Just in time

The tour guide said current production in Zuffenhausen stands at 250 cars per day. That takes two shifts. Apparently the orders that Porsche placed with its suppliers for the Cayman fell short of demand. Thus they have gone to third parties in search of additional components.

I asked about additional GT production. The answer was that some cars take longer to assemble. Thus if you add GT production that would be at the expense of volume. If I understood correctly that means less cars overall and potentiallty reduced sales. I asked about a third shift but got no answer.

Right before the tour I took the time to visit the museum. The abundance of important cars is overwhelming, look at this beauty.




On the subject of travel.This is was the view out of my hotel windows. Very similar to the one Calexio posted.




A dream trip, at least for me: Paris, LeMans, Nurburgring, factory tour and museum, autobahn driving, Zurich, Bernina Express train over the Alps, lake Como.

the-missile

The answer is NO because the factory is on the ''city side'' of the road and it is not allowed by law to run the factory during the night time. nothing can be done for this particular point. same apply for the sunday if I remember correctly.