Back from trip to the Ring and Porsche factory.

Only did two laps at the Nurburgring. Was traveling Germany with my son and Mom and Dad so it was not the laps you might want but it was still pretty cool just to be there. Was in a BMW 750 and traffic was light due to light rain and 33 degrees. $19.00 a lap, 19km long. Very fun track. No, I was not fast. Yes, the Bimmer pushes like a pig in the wet. Get there early, just finding the gate was a bit of a hassle. Huge facility. Save time to see the museum there, most interesting, lots of history. The bar ("The Cockpit") at the track hotel is full of history and every square inch is signed by famous racers and fans (now including me). Also saw Spa and Hockenhiem. The Stuttgart factory tour was impressive. I learned quite a few things. All engines are individually hand built from start to finish by one person, looked like 5-6 six engine builders at a shift doing their own engines. They do not sign the motors anywhere. The motors are tested at the factory. Porsche is allowed +/- 5% off the stated hp for German certification but their goal is to produce every motor with 102.5% of stated hp. All Porsches are hand painted after the primer stage. A small group of guys spray by hand. The old timers sign their cars behing the right or left tail light, newer guys don't do this. 160 911's are made per day now, in two shifts. It takes 7.5 hours to build a Porsche. All the panel etc leather is hand stitched by maybe 10 women and sewing machines. 4 hides to a car. Seats are done elsewhere. Windshields are installed by robotics, the only ones I saw. They are glued in for rigidity, 1mm tolerance The production line is casually paced, they are looking to keep everyone stress free and precise, quality, not quantity. Workers can drink bottled beer out of the vending machines on break. I'm thinking the Ford/GM lines are quite a bit different!! The museum is right there (the new one will be too), a must see as well. Haven't transfered pics yet but will. Got home last night and flew to PHX today for work so I'm a bit behind. Was gone for 8 days over there doing WWII sites and river touring as well. If you haven't driven the autobahn it alone is almost worth going over there. At 200km/hr I was running with the faster cars and surprised something nicer didn't blow our doors off but still that was quick and a pure pleasure to drive. Getting back to NYC and a minivan on I95 to CT at rush hour was tourture. We did 1600km of touring covering ground starting in Frankfurt, north to Cologne, west to Aachen, south to Bastongne Belgium, on to Luxembourg, up to the 'Ring, south again to the Mosel and Rhine rivers and down to Stuttgart before flying out of Frankfurt again. Be happy to share more details with anyone considering going over there. Pics to follow when I get home and catch up on sleep. I was too tired to even look in on my 996 when I got home but knowing it has been hand built to such a level gave me new appreciation. I can't wait to get home and fire it up.

Sounds like a womderful trip. Can't wait to see soem pics

If I take off the taillight where should I look for the signature?

Not sure where exactly. Our guide said it was a practice all the old guys always did. Now that there are less and less of them the practice is starting to go away. He was not sure if it was the left or right tail light. I can only assume it is in the paint behind the light. I'd love to find my car signed too. I thought someone said something about the frame being signed too but I can't remember what that was about. Maybe someone else knows. I do remember while in the leather shop, him smiling and saying "no other car manufacturer in western Germany hand stiches their leather anymore". Clearly a reference to Benz, also in Stuttgart.

Sounds like you had a blast. Thanks for the write-up.

Sounds like fun and thanks for the info. Wish I could see it myself.

Fantastic! Thanks for sharing. Gotta find the time to do that......

Great write up thanks - cant believe they are still so built by hand... I thought all parts were built somewhere else and shipped in?

I appreciate my car even more...

Thank you. Great story and information. Wonder how many hides for "full leather"... :-) JB

great story...I have driven on the autobahn a lot...when I lived in Holland and worked in Germany.....it is a blast!! BUT during work hours...there are also a lot of traffic jams....all day and night....since the germans are always improving their highways. Great write up about the P factory...but by saying that porsches are build by hand...do you actually mean that they are assembled by hand? And that the parts are machine made elsewhere. Or is everything build and manufactured right there??

A great write up. Nice to know that my engine was hand built by one person. And the next time I sit in my leather interior I'll know that it was stitched by Germany's finest. I have to get to the Ring someday. Again thanks for story. Jay

great story...thanks for sharing.

that sounds waaaaaay to cool... wish you had vids to show....

To answer one of the above posts, the cars are all built by hand as far as I could see. I commented about that and our tour guide beemed with obvious pride. Can't recall his exact words now but they know there are building quality and rightfully proud. There are thirty or so subs making the parts but they are all in bins on the line and guys pull out a part and install it by hand. The only robot I saw was the windshield install (due to 1mm tolerance and it being a part of the structural rigidity) and supposedly the primer is done mechanically in a booth. The motor was indeed each made by an individual who walked along a line building it up from scratch. Very cool visit. They told me the final paint stage was hand applied but I mentioned this to a dealer yesterday and he was doubtful. All I can do is pass on what they said, we did not go to the paint booth area. The pics are the sign at the entrance to the "Ring" and one of our BMW 7er, the front stretch of the F1 track from our hotel and eye candy from the Porsche museum. 4 pics out of 198 I took. A sampler!!

inside the track no less. I guess you can fit a lot inside a 14mi track. Others, German tank in Houffalize, BE, where the Battle of the Bulge was pushed back. Memorial to "Easy Company" of the famous 101st Airborne "Band of Brothers" depicted in Bastogne, BE. Another classic castle. Enough for now, promised these a while ago but gotta go wax the new GT3!!

Made me think of a fun license frame text quote: built by hand where beer is on the line I know, probably not a good idea given the dui issues in the US, but I think this is the most fun post I have read in a long time. Thanks. JB

I too did the factory tour recently. I wonder if we were on the same tour? I was there on the 24th of March. I have a background in manufacturing so I understand more about what's going on in that factory than the casual visitor. Most of the work done at the Porsche factory consists of final assembly, including the body panels, which are stamped by an outside supplier. The single assembly line in Zuffenhausen can flex to do 1/2 911s and 1/2 Boxsters/Caymans but they are now running all out making 911s at a rate of 160/day because there is sufficient demand. (Head's up to Porsche investors Overall the factory seemed to have a very relaxed, clean, professional attitude with very little waste, but the manufacturing process is actually very simple because there is very little vertical integration. A normal high volume car factory starts with sheets of cold-rolled steel as a comparison. Do a tour of the Henry Ford in Detroit to see how F150s are built and you'll get a better idea of how high volume auto manufacturing is done.

In the old days, didn't Reuter and Karmann do the body stampings for 911s? Bill

Nobody passed you on the Auotboahn becuase they still have their winter tires on and most of those drivers do not exceed the tire limit of 160 km/hour or 210 km/hour depending on the tire type. I rented a 7 series from Sixt and returned it to Frankfurt 1 week ago. That was a 730D. How did you find a 750? That would be nice. Thanks! -Doug

What a great trip, and up there with the Great Wall on "Places I need to visit before I die"....

Excellent region for visiting WWII battle sites. Didn't know Patton was burried in Germany. Interesting! Glad I got a car with full leather! Wil have to check behind the tail light!!

My car was a Bimmer 7er on my paper receipt. That's actually all I know of it except the girl at the desk called it a 750 when I asked about upgrades. It was debaged and had no manuals. Never opened the hood. Ran on oil burner fuel. But it did run good :-) By the way, this car was twice as expensive looking into it before going over, 1200 vs 600ish. I could not justify it. But at the counter over in FRA I asked again. She said brand new "750" for an extra 120 for the whole six days. sign me up, I said. All euro's. My car also had the all seasons. 210 km limit and maybe that does explain why no one passed me doing 200- ever.

Those were not "all season" tires, they were "winter/snow tires". The faster cars usually get winter tires rated to 210km/h (I've never seen winter tires rated higher, although they may exist) while slower cars are usually 190km/h. In Germany if you get into a wreck during winter conditions without winter tires the insurance will pay NOTHING. So everyone would have had winter tires which does explain why no one was blowing past you. 200km/h is nothing special now days, so believe me, people would have been blowing past if they had summer tires on.