Seven new Porsche models reportedly due over next four years... could there be more?
It doesn't seem that long ago that Porsche was a two-car company. But since then, the German automaker has come out with the Cayenne and the Panamera, taking it into new territory – for better or worse. Now that it's part of the Volkswagen Group, sources expect Porsche to begin expanding its lineup even more, and British rag Autocar has what they're calling a comprehensive outline for seven new models in the works at Stuttgart that will arrive over the course of the next four years.Starting with next year, we should see V6 engines on offer in the Panamera, including gasoline and – in certain markets anyway – diesel-burning sixes. The same year should bring the new Cayenne, the third-generation model, with a more curvaceous body to look even more like a 911 on stilts.
Two years from now in 2011, we should be seeing a hybrid version of the Panamera coupling either a V6 or V8 engine to an electric motor for green propulsion. An all-new 911 is due by the summer of 2012, and is expected to be a significant departure from the existing model, both longer and wider with an all-new design – but don't expect the rear-engine set-up to go anywhere.
2013 could see the debut of the so-called Roxster, a baby brother to the Cayenne likely to share its platform with the Audi Q5, as well as the anticipated successor to the 928, based on the Panamera and arriving in both coupe and convertible body-styles. To Autocar's list we'll add the electric sportscar currently under development, the Boxster Spyder that we previewed earlier this morning, and the rumored RS Spyder-based supercar to succeed the departed Carrera GT, giving the Germans a more grandiose expansion plan than we've seen in over 60 years.
[Source: Autocar]
Get a WordPress.com Blog
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Davin Black 9:57AM (11/05/2009)
They need to simply delete one.
Reply
ichime 10:08AM (11/05/2009)
They really need to delete 2; the Panamera (saw one last week, and it's actually UGLIER in person) and the Cayman (just call it the boxster coupe).
I would also say axe the Cayenne, but apparently it's making some good money for Porsche...
PCNA 10:33AM (11/05/2009)
They need to axe Mauer and get a real Porsche designer in there. The recipe he's using on the Panamera is just not working. The guy just doesn't understand proportions! And judging by the next Cayenne we saw, he isn't improving either!?!
Cypher09 11:45AM (11/05/2009)
If anything they need to add one. I'll take a 914 successor please.
sparrk 3:46PM (11/05/2009)
@PCNA , it was Wiedeking who messed with Panamera's proportions when he insisted on more headroom in the back for people above 1.90m.
http://www.autoblog.com/gallery/porsche-2010-calendars/full/#3
DiRF 10:02AM (11/05/2009)
It's amazing how simple greed can turn a car manufacturer known for making one or two lines of cars brilliantly into one that makes many different lines of cars that just get lost in the mix and dilute the meaning of the whole brand...
Reply
zamafir 11:01AM (11/05/2009)
Dilute? I find it entertaining that companies like ferrari, who's brand can be found on everything from toothpaste to toilet paper are still doing just fine, but the moment porsche decides to grab some more organic growth to continue to fund the cars we love, everyone screams bloody murder.
Driven a Cayman? The new 911 Turbo? GT3? Do they feel any less Porsche now than models 5 or 10 years ago? No? Driven a Panamera? Does it feel more porsche than anything else with four doors? Yes?
It's 2009, get over it. Porsche's not air cooled anymore and they're not going to limit themselves to a model which will not allow them to thrive. Building their SUV kept them alive and gave us the cayman. We all know this, and the cayman, the most driver focused and greatest porsche bang for the buck proves all this sky is falling hoopla is based purely in fantasy.
Clippy 6:55PM (11/05/2009)
VAG fanboy too much? Cayman - yes. Decent driver's car for affordable money. 911 Turbo - yes. Feels bland and is a step back, just trying to impress with whoring numbers which do not deliver for the price. GT3 - no. Good reviews, but looks like a pig with lipstick. Still trying to get a test-drive. Panamera - yes. I'm not sure what you mean by feeling "more Porsche than anything else with 4-doors". Feels pretty disappointing to drive. It's still too heavy for any serious driving, it's not comfortable thanks to its huge rims and stiff suspension even in comfort setting, and generally feels like a mess. Neither a sports car, nor luxury cruiser. But i can see the appeal in Middle East with their silky smooth roads and long straights, where power figures, price tags and badges are the only deciding factors.
And while asking about the feel of Porsche cars, did you omit Boxster and Cayenne on purpose? I could understand why. Boxster is being annihilated by cheaper cars like 370Z or Z4, and does Cayenne feel any more Porsche than any other SUV? Umm, actually feels like Touareg driving-wise, just that VW looks better! Give me Q5 or X5 instead, thanks.
RG 10:16AM (11/05/2009)
Jeez, and I didn't even see mention of Porsche's Baby Boxster!
Reply
Art 10:18AM (11/05/2009)
I can see it now: Passat-sourced Porsche Panamera budget maybe?!
Reply
BigDumbFace 10:25AM (11/05/2009)
I'm kinda curious what use a longer and wider (and likely heavier) 911 can offer that a 928 can't, other than the engine placement.
Seems redundant.
Reply
sparrk 3:50PM (11/05/2009)
there is a special thing about driving a 911. and then there is that feeling when you begin to master the car. it's a beautiful feeling.
BigDumbFace 4:21PM (11/05/2009)
I'm not arguing how popular it is.
But mirroring gefinley's comment below:
Why a larger 911 when the reason sports car people like it is.... it's not larger?
JimmyD 10:26AM (11/05/2009)
A Porsche pickup truck, econobox, cargo van, hybrid and unicycle. And they'll all be ugly as hell.
Reply
SnakeBite_4.6 10:44AM (11/05/2009)
And the slow death of the 'true Porshe' continues. Hopefully they can refocus themselves. All the models are cool, but I can't help but think of this is as a bad move for people who fell in love with the 'old porshe'. It really used to mean something, but now see them all over the place everyday...
Reply
sparrk 3:51PM (11/05/2009)
i guess you don't know that Porsche used to build tractors and there was a time when those were considered true Porsches too.
Kattleox 11:18AM (11/05/2009)
Everyone is complaining about all these "new porsches diluting the brand" but it seems to me like they are just trying to go back to the era with the 924, 944, 924, 928, 959, 911, and 928S. That happened to be my favorite era of porsches, personally. Out of that lot there were cars for the commonfolk (stuff WE could afford) and cars that held the record for being "fastest". There were aces and duds, but in general it was a good era for them.
I really have nothing against them trying to widen their lineup again. I was glad when they came out with the Cayman (the S is my favorite Porsche in general) and I don't really mind the Cayenne. But what they are trying to do here is make money, because don't forget this is a business. If having a wider variety of cars on the market will allow their employees to EAT, I'm not going to complain. No matter what they change the 911 is here to stay; the heart of Porsche is going nowhere, so don't cry so much. If they kept it through the last energy crisis and economic recession they will keep it now.
Reply
Soul Shinobi 12:20PM (11/05/2009)
I hope you're right, it'd be nice for them to be a widely varied sports car company. Still need to drop the SUV though.
sparrk 3:53PM (11/05/2009)
Kattleox , your statement has a truth value of over NINE THOUSAND !!!
Moose 1:14PM (11/05/2009)
I thought that the Piech/Wiedeking battle being over that this trend was purportedly to reverse with Porsche reverting back to sports cars alone and losing the Cayenne and Panamera... That rumor appears to have been too good to believe.
Reply