BRAND EXPANSION: Porsche to double its car models

BRAND EXPANSION: Porsche to double its number of car models October 20, 2005 BY MARK PHELAN FREE PRESS AUTO CRITIC Porsche will double the number of car models it builds over the next three years. You'd think that would be good news to the brand's aficionados, but they've got issues. They're afraid the cars won't be true Porsches, that the contagion will spread throughout the company and the next thing they know their beloved 911 will turn into a pumpkin or -- even worse -- a Jaguar. That kind of angst goes with the territory when you've got a small, fanatically loyal fan base, and Porsche-philes are among the most fretful. Many of them still aren't sure about the Boxster, the delightful and relatively affordable little roadster Porsche introduced nearly a decade ago. With a base engine that produces 240 horsepower pushing 2,855 pounds, many don't think it's powerful enough to be a real Porsche. Don't even mention the Porsche Cayenne SUV to them. It's been on the market for two years now, but they still avert their eyes and make hex signs when one drives by. Porsche has no business building a mundane SUV, they'll tell you. Pay no attention to the fact that building those vehicles helped assure the 911's survival. Porsche used to be a feast-or-famine company, totally dependent on one model. When the 911 sold well, Porsche prospered. When the 911 caught a cold, Porsche went on life support. The company's management looked around and figured that if three models are good, five is better, and here come the Cayman S and Panamera. The Cayman S is a rivetingly beautiful two-seat coupe based on the Boxster. The Cayman's 3.4-liter flat-six engine produces 295 horsepower, and the car's performance is so good that Porsche has repeatedly had to quash rumors it circled the legendary Nurburgring race track faster than the sainted 911. The Cayman goes on sale in America early next year. Prices will start at $58,900. Three years from now, Porsche will add its first four-door car, the slinky Panamera. Porsche has only shown sketches of the Panamera so far, but it looks low, graceful and obscenely profitable. Sales begin late in 2008, and the car will feature a modified version of the Cayenne's 4.5-liter V8 engine. The company plans to build about 20,000 four-seat Panameras annually alongside the SUV at a plant in Leipzig, Germany. The 911 fan club cringes at the idea of a four-door Porsche, but the Panamera is not nearly as big a stretch for the brand as the Cayenne was, and it's likely to be a hit. Available at: http://www.freep.com/money/autonews/phelan-bar120e_20051020.htm Edited by - mpollard on 10/20/2005 08:29:51 AM