Planet 9

Just heard that Porsche was suscessful in their takeover bid of VW. Thought that I'd start a thread to discuss the ramifications for Porsche. How do you feel, good, bad, indifferent? Will this lower Porsche's operating costs if they combine their purchasing power? Or could in the future there be some parts commonality?

Does that mean my wife now drives a Porsche Jetta TDI? Will her dealer start charging $200+ for oil changes? Does it now require N-spec tires?

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'08 E90 M3 (replaced '07 Guards Red Cayman S, which will be fondly remembered)
'08 Miata GT
'08 Honda Ridgeline RTL
'07 KTM Super Duke 990
'07 KTM 300 XC-W

Sweet now I have 2 P-cars....

2008 Porsche GTI aka... VW GTI
2007 Porsche Cayman

I have 3... changing sig RIGHT NOW

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Tomasz

Apologies for spelling mistakes, most of them are keyboarding errors. To enjoy this forum I run out of time to proof read.
My garage: 2000 Audi S4 (not stock) | 2007 Porsche Cayman S (FabSpeed Headers, RS60 Tips, SRP 4.1, ATB, GT3 Ducts, GT3 RS Steering & Shifter, Custom Aluminum Look, ZR4)

I think it means great things for Porsche. It should lower Porsche's reasearch and development costs and now they have the resources of Europes largest automaker at their disposal. This should help them maintain their cutting edge technology for a long time. It should also make it easier for Porsche to comply with the new CAFE standards. It will be exciting to see what Porsche does with this.

Indeed I hadn't thought about the CAFE standards, with something that absurd it's tough to imagine. Does this mean V10s for everything? JK. Really the Stutgart folks may have been looking at that and not having a viable answer for the future. Very insightful my good man.

Ahhhh, a Porsche Gallardo...

Thanks! If VW can develop a car that gets 1000 mpg, Porsche should be fine. A Cayman with a V10 would be nice.

Hahaha. I now have an exceedingly rare Porsche Eurovan Camper in addition to the uncommon Cayman Cab.

I agree with LA Boy, it will help Porsche comply with emissions and CAFE requirements and still produce fun cars to drive.

With unionization in Europe, I suspect the major changes will take time to work through. But Porsche rarely makes hurried and careless decisions. This was a deliberate move to give Porsche a sound footing for decades to come. Plus the topping on the cake was the billions of Euros they got from stunned hedge funds speculators. Ed

It's hard to tell because many of the recent takeovers/mergers haven't been mind blowing successful e.g. Daimler Chrysler, Ford Volvo, Nissan Renault. Also, the timimg may not be perfect with the auto industry slump. I understand P was more financially successful than VW, there may be a bit of levelling down.


As a consumer, I hope it provides Porsche the tools for even more fuel efficient cars. My preference is diesel over hybrid.

At the end of the day, the answer lies with WHY did they do it. If it is for a clear strategic reason and if the people who made the decision will be there for the execution of the plan, then it could be positive. Otherwise, a merger/acquisition always causes distraction and it takes many years before the fruits harvest.

Porsche should set up an investment division to manage owners' funds. If they can pull off another quick one, we can all afford a Lambo from Porsche/VW.

Haha, the benefit of hindsight.

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987.2 Cayman S
Arctic Silver : Mechanical Diff Lock : 6MT Sports Shifter : Heated Sports Seats : PCM 3.0 : BOSE : Embossed Crests : Aluminium II lever/gear : Wheel Centre Set
Softronic

With change, and make no mistake this is change with a capital C, always comes uncertainty. A large VW conglomerate could leave Porsche largely alone or it could make significant changes in the marque by altering the product line for its own purposes. I have always viewed Porsche as an "approachable" sports car that is refined, not so exclusive you are afraid to park the vehicle, and one that comes with with a very established dealer network across the US. Porsche managed to do these things by offering products that offer a recognizably unique experience, and at a siginifcant profit for the company. Will they continue to do this? I think our changing world, from both a fuel economy and carbon economy point of view, make offering a unique and profitable product a much greater challenge than in the past. We'll see.

All is well!

- VM will leverage small cars to avoid CAFE problems at Porsche.
- Porsche will be left alone.
- VW is not so stupid as to make models that seriously compete with Porsche
- Porsche will still be sold at a premium (which will protect the base/resale values/exculsivity/brand)

What's not to like. Hey, maybe I'll replace my Porsche emblems with VW if it will lower my insurance premiums.

No worries.....