I’ll give you a hint, it has wings and a much bigger trunk… If it wasn’t official before, it certainly is now; The Porsche Panamera is on its way to the US. While not officially on sale until later this year, the first large batch of Panameras is making its way stateside for the official debut at the Rolex Monterey Historics and other venues during this year’s automotive extravaganza on the Monterey Peninsula.

Unlike most cars that travel via transport ships across the oceans blue, Porsche has lifted the Panamera to new heights, literally. With only a few weeks to go before the big debut, 31 Porsche Panameras were loaded onto a Boeing 747 for a quick trip across the pond.

The Panameras will make appearances at historic and high-profile events that include the famous and elegant Quail Lodge, the 36th Rolex Monterey Historic Automobile Races at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca – where Porsche is the featured marque – and finally, at arguably the most famous councours in world, the Pebble Beach Councours d’Elegance (the PorschePurist team will be at all three).

PorschePurist.com will have lots of great pictures, stories and Porsche test drives to talk about during our trip to the Monterey Peninsula Automotive Week so be sure to stay tuned. If you want to follow our progress at the event in real time, be sure to check us out on Twitter.

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[Source: PCNA and special thanks to Harvey Yancey for the Parade Panamera Pic]

In Porsche’s last full fiscal year they reported more profit than revenue. A fiscal impossibility you say? Not so, if you’re playing in the world of high finance and derivatives. Then, as early as this past April it looked like Porsche was poised to do it again. In a statement released this spring, Porsche posted profits before taxes of EUR 7.34 billion (for the period of August 1, 2009 to January 31, 2009). In a feat of uncanny and liability lightening foreshadowing, Porsche said the following in that same statement:

“Porsche SE wishes to point out that this contribution to profits depends on the price of the VW shares. Thus, the amount could decrease again and could, by the end of the business year, be less than the half-year amount. The effect on the full-year results for the 2008/09 business year will depend on the development of the price of the VW shares in the period until July 31, 2009.”

Today, in a huge reversal of fortunes, Porsche announced that they would indeed reverse these gains and do so to the point of a EUR 5.0 billion loss. While not directly related to the “share price of VW”, the loss is a result of the overall derivative play put into motion by Wiedeking and eventually killed by VW’s Piech and today’s less than favorable market conditions.

Most interesting is a concept floated by Bertell Schmitt over at TTAC. He suggests a significant tax refund is due Porsche from monies paid on their “pornographic profits” from the previous year. This should only help to increase Porsche’s liquidity even more than the €1b, that was used to secure the options, being returned to them from the various banks combined with the Qatar investment still being discussed.

The full release from Porsche is below for your reading pleasure.

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[Source: PCNA, TTAC]

Stuttgart. Porsche Automobil Holding SE, Stuttgart, is in advanced talks on the sale of the cash settled options with respect to Volkswagen shares to one or several investors. Amongst these investors is especially Qatar Holding LLC (QH) with whom talks about an investment in Porsche SE also is underway.

The preparation for the sale of the options on Volkswagen shares leads to a devaluation resulting in a substantial book capital loss. Nevertheless Porsche improves its liquidity situation through the sale of the options structure as it would lead to an inflow of cash in a magnitude of more than one billion Euro, currently serving as cash collateral for the options structure.

Another non cash relevant book loss derives from the initial full consolidation of Volkswagen group. With the increase of the stake in VW to 50.76 percent on January 5 2009 Porsche was obliged to fully consolidate Volkswagen. This triggered a so called Purchase Price Allocation (PPA) under which all assets and liabilities of the part group Volkswagen had to be valued and compared with the price paid for the shares to get to the company’s valuation. This results in a substantial negative impact. Overall the two measures should lead to earnings before taxes for fiscal year 2008/09 of up to minus five billion Euro.

It is important, that the devaluation of the options and the consequences of the PPA are purely accounting related. They do not effect the valuation of the 50.76 percent stake in common shares in Volkswagen AG on Porsche’s balance sheet.

For Porsche SE the big advantage in the devaluation of the options lies in the improvement of liquidity available. Furthermore the equity ratio after these to steps still is a sound 23 percent.

With the North American launch of the Panamera just weeks away (slated for the Rolex Monterey Historics), Porsche took time in the month of July to introduce their dealer network to the new four-door flagship and they did so in style. Dealer owners, and/or their representatives, were treated to a five day excursion to the Cote D’ Azure (that’s the French Riviera to you and me).

After an introduction to the car (and presumably a roadmap and directions) the dealers were off on a two day drive along the French coast passing through St. Tropez, Nice and Cannes, arriving at their final destination in Monaco. At all times, the cruise ship paced the group and awaited their arrival for what I can only assume would be a comfortable and luxurious way to spend the evening.

Let’s see, four days in the French Riviera on both land and sea. Cruising aboard a top luxury liner. Driving one of the most sought after and highly anticipated Grand Turismos through some of the most storied and scenic destination in the world. Sounds like a good way to build up excitement and anticipation among dealers as they await the first Panamera(s) to find its way to their lot. Based on the fact that Porsche has pre-orders for more than 3000 of them so far and the dealers understandable desire to sell them, don’t be surprised if you might need to wait a bit before going for your first test drive.

Introducing Porsche of Hilton Head

The pictures above and the information for the narrative come courtesy of our newest site sponsor, Porsche of Hilton Head. I was first introduced to this dealership through their general sales manager Wallace Higginbotham. Wally and I became friendly when he started publishing his own Porsche blog and we reached out to each other for introductions. Since then, Wally’s site has grown to be the unofficial blog of Porsche of Hilton Head and provides everything from news, pictures and entertaining stories. What’s great, is because of Wally’s affiliation with Porsche and Porsche of Hilton Head, there are always a significant number of pictures and stories that the rest of us might not otherwise have access to.

With regard to Porsche of Hilton Head, after spending some time discussing it with Wally we decided they would make a great addition to our growing list of sponsors. Why? Simple. While a lot of people like doing business with their local dealer (understandably) they might not always have access to the particular Porsche you want. Specifically, Porsche allocates certain cars (Turbos, GT3s, GT2s, etc.) based on the number of Carrera 911s sold. Porsche of Hilton Head is a well run shop and geographically placed in an affluent area. This results in a large number of 911 sales which provides them with a higher percentage of special Porsches than normal. Combine this unique access and other new car inventory with a large supply of in demand, pre-owned Porsches and you can see why it makes sense to reach out beyond your local area.

Regardless if you’re in the market for a new or used Porsche or not, definitely take a minute to check out Wally’s Porsche blog (especially if you want to see more pictures about the Panamera dealer launch), welcome him here to PorschePurist.com and take a look through the Porsche of Hilton Head web-site.

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Here’s a headline that got my attention, “Woman attacks ‘ex-friend’ with his own Porsche!” Found in the Dayton Daily News, the article goes on to detail an account of an apparently jilted lover who didn’t like the fact that her married “ex-friend” was now in the company of another, younger woman.

Police were called to a parking lot in Piqua, OH around 12:45 a.m. on a report of an assault in progress. According to the victims, a 58 year old man and his 26 year old “friend”, they were heading from a sports bar to their truck when they saw a Porsche coming toward them, forcing them to run to the truck to avoid being hit.

Witnesses say they saw a woman in a Porsche repeatedly driving into the side of a truck containing two people. The man in the truck said he had a protection order against the woman (identified as Pamela Maher, 47) who he described as an “ex-friend.” He went on to tell police he had put the Porsche in Maher’s name while he was in the process of a divorce from his former wife. He said he tried to get the car back, but a judge awarded it to Maher.

According to the article, the 1990-model Porsche and the 2003-model truck both sustained heavy damage. Fortunately, no one was injured. Maher was charged with two counts of felonious assault along with misdemeanor violation of a protection order and driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Is there a separate, stronger charge, for destroying a Porsche?

Okay, let’s sum this up. Guy finds “friendship” with a woman 10 years his junior while still married. While undergoing divorce proceedings, from his then wife, he transfers ownership of his 1990 Porsche into the name of his “friend”. Presumably, the divorce goes through, he and his “friend” dissolve their “friendship”, he tries to get Porsche back and loses it in a court battle. That’s bad enough by itself. The guy then decides enough is enough, get’s himself another “friend”, this time 30 or so years younger and proceeds to be assaulted by his “ex-friend” driving his “ex-Porsche”. Darwin Award anyone???

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[Source: Dayton Daily News]

For what seems like months, stories have burned up the wires about the future of Porsche and Wendelin Wiedeking, its well paid CEO. Rumors of Wiedeking’s imminent departure became reality after nearly two decades of triumphant rule turned tragic through a series of financial missteps and market maneuvers. Had his plan worked, we would have seen “David” (Porsche) gobbling up and taking control of the much larger “Goliath” (VW). Instead, in a flurry of activity late last night (or early morning in Germany), the Supervisory board of Porsche SE announced their approval to recapitalize the debt laden company to the tune of $7.1 billion and at the same time green-lighted plans for an investment by the government of Quatar to provide the much needed capital. As what some might see as the coup de gras, Porsche CEO Wendelin Wiedeking and Porsche CFO Holger Harter were terminated from their positions effective immediately.

Wiedeking, credited for turning Porsche from the brink of bankruptcy in the early ’90s to the “most profitable car company in the world” is not leaving empty handed. While his reported severance package of 50 million Euros is a far cry from the numbers that have been floated over the last few weeks (I’ve read rumors of a package worth as much as 150 million Euros) it is still a very large and very gold Parachute.

Wiedeking has come under intense scrutiny in the past few years as the country’s (and indeed, the industries) best paid executive. Through a profit sharing clause in his contract, Wiedeking was entitled to .09% of the companies profit. As Porsche’s profits grew, so did Wiedeking’s payout; culminating in payments of more than 77.4 million Euros last year. Mindful of the ever growing backlash against huge executive compensation, Wiedeking released his own statement shortly after his termination pledging to donate more than 50% of his severance to various charitable trusts, with the largest portion (25 million Euros) earmarked for promoting “socially fair development” at Porsche facilities and another 1.5 million Euros spread evenly across three charities that benefit journalists.

Michael Macht to Replace Wiedeking as CEO of Porsche AG

Replacing Wiedeking at Porsche AG’s helm will be long time Porsche executive Michael Macht. Macht started his career with Porsche AG in 1990 as a specialist for engine planning. However, he is probably best known for his roles in the development and creation of the Porsche Cayenne and Panamera. Thomas Edig, the Board member in charge of Human Resources of Porsche AG will become Macht’s deputy. Furthermore Macht and Edig have been appointed as Members of the Board of Management of Porsche SE, Macht in charge of technology and products, Edig with responsibility for commercial issues and administration.

For more coverage on this event, you can read:
Bloomberg
The Truth About Cars
The NY Times

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[Source: PCNA: NY Times]

For anyone that’s ever participated in a DE (Driver’s Education) event or other High Performance Driving Event (HPDE) with your Porsche (or any car for that matter) you may or may not have been aware of the fact that your typical automotive insurance policy most likely has exclusions for these type of affairs. In fact, most auto insurance underwriters have very broad restriction on using your Porsche on a “surface used for racing”, “use at a racetrack”, “use in a high performance driving event”, etc. Hopefully, you are already aware of this and know the risk you take when you participate, or have not yet learned the hard way.

In the past, insurance for Driver’s Education programs, and other HPDEs, was difficult to obtain; if it could be had it was usually quite costly. Recently, the Porsche Club of America announced a new member benefit in the form of discounted HPDE Insurance through a partnership with Lockton Affinity.

This new program provides one-time insurance for each event at an agreed upon value. Obtaining a quote is as simple as visiting the Lockton web-site and entering an agreed upon value into the form provided. PCA members can deduct 10% from the quoted price. As an example, I looked at a policy with a face value of $50,000. According to the Lockton site, cost for this policy was $330 before the 10% member discount which translates to less than $300 for a PCA member.

Other Benefits of the HPDE Insurance Program:

• Limited Exclusions – unlike other plans, we will cover you for structured HPDE events.
• No Appraisal Required – you know how much your vehicle is worth, so we let you determine the value and save you the expense of an appraisal.
• Coverage for Vehicle Modifications – you can choose to list and insure the modifications you’ve made to your vehicle.
• Automatic Extension for HPDE Instructors – the policy follows your vehicle and is automatically extended when your HPDE Instructor is driving it. You can also add a 2nd driver for no additional charge.
• Small Deductible – when you do have a claim, only a small 5% ($1,500 min.) deductible applies.

By no means is this an endorsement for Lockton, as I have yet to use their services, and if I ever do hope not to have to put them to the test (nor am I affiliated with them in any way). However, I will assume that the PCA has vetted them as an underwriter and they are a solid company to do business with.

What I’m most curious about, is what other companies offer this type of service? I’m constantly being asked for recommendations about HPDE Insurance and up until now I’ve only had one other company to provide people. I would like to create a resource center here on PorschePurist.com, so if you know of other carriers or underwriters who provide this type of coverage, please let me know by commenting below?

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[Source: PCA]

It was an exciting, busy and frustrating few days for Porsche Motorsport fans this weekend here in the States. The ALMS North East Grand Prix at Lime Rock on Saturday and the Grand-Am Porsche 250 at Barber Motorsport Park on Sunday combined to provide more than five hours of live action racing.

The apparently unstoppable and dynamic duo of Patrick Long and Joerg Borgmeister won again, for the fourth time in a row, making it look easy as they continue to extend their lead in the race for the GT2 Championship.

If you just look at the final results from the last four races, it looks like we are running away with the GT2 championship, but the reality is that each race has been a struggle, and today was no exception. We ran as fast as we could during qualifying, yet the Ferrari grabbed the pole, and the BMWs were strong. We made a differential adjustment after qualifying, and it didn’t feel better during the final warm-up, but it was the right move as our Flying Lizard Porsche was perfect. The pass I made on Kaffer (62 Ferrari) was the result of hard, clean racing by both of us. I knew my car was faster, but, at this track, you have to pick your spots,” said Long, who, along with Bergmeister, lead the GT2 championship points with 100, while the Kaffer/Melo Ferrari combo has 75 points. great wins and disappointing losses.

Porsche’s results in Grand-Am, unfortunately, were not quite as positive. Despite capturing pole position on Saturday in the GT class, Leh Keen led for only the first 11 laps before falling back to a more conservative pace. In the end, Keen’s driving partner Dirk Werner brought the #87 Farnbacher Loles Porsche 911 GT3 Cup home in fifth. While the points-leading Farnbacher Loles Racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup had its three-race GT win streak snapped, they lost only four points off their Acxiom GT championship lead.

The Porsche racing Rileys of customer teams Penske and Brumos faired much worse in Sunday’s race. The #58 Brumos Porsche Riley team was the most disappointing. Overall race leader David Donohue fell to 10th position after contact on lap 37. A forced pit stop to repair tire and body damage from the unintended contact allowed teammate Darren Law his chance to takeover for a stint in the driver’s seat. Unfortunately, bad-luck continued to plague the pair (including more tire trouble) and 10th was the best finish they could muster.

“I went off at turn 11 and it blew a tire and I had to complete a whole ‘nother lap (before he could reach the pits). We had a top five car, and we were leading when David (Donohue) got hit from behind and punctured a tire.”

“We just can’t seem to get a break. We blew a tire four laps from the end. It’s freaky. We just can’t get a break.”

Porsche works drivers Timo Bernhard (Germany) and Romain Dumas (France), fared the worst of all the Porsche DP cars. After Romain Dumas had an accident during Friday’s practice, the mechanics at Penske Racing put in a night shift to repair the badly damaged Porsche Riley in time for the qualifying. Spare parts were even transported in from the Penske workshop in Mooresville/North Carolina. To no avail: their bad luck streak continued in the race. While trying to avoid a competitor in the first corner, Romain Dumas, who was determined to compete despite a badly swollen left ankle, had an off track excursion and damaged the front of his car. The extra pit stop relegated him to last position.

Buddy Rice (USA) and Antonio Garcia (Spain) narrowly missed out on a podium result with the Porsche Coyote fielded by Spirit of Daytona Racing. The overall winners of the 24 Hours at Daytona (with David Donohue and Darren Law in the Porsche Riley of Brumos Racing) secured fourth place. Joao Barbosa (Portugal) and JC France (USA) brought their Brumos Porsche home in ninth position.

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[Source: PCNA]