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Set Your DVR to Record CNBC’s Investigation into alleged Market Manipulation by Porsche

Pepper Girl — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 00:40:10 +0000

Remember the headline, “Porsche’s Profit Exceeds Revenue”? After reading it we wondered if 2 + 2 still equaled 4. After-all, how can a company’s profits be greater than their revenue? Did the basic rules of ~~business~~ math not apply to Porsche?

Back then, we did some research and answered readers questions about Porsche’s finances and their attempt to purchase VW as best we could with this post, “An Idiot’s Guide to Porsche’s Financial Troubles”. Not too long after this there were rumors of possible market manipulation by Porsche that quickly materialized into real-life law suits with the German sports car maker as defendant. Apparently, over the course of two days in 2008, Porsche’s bid to take over the much larger VW caused Volkswagen shares to soar – briefly making it the most valuable company in the world – resulting in billions and billions in losses for the hedge funds that were shorting VW at the time.

CNBC Investigates Porsche

This coming February 16th, at 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time (and then again at 12:00 a.m.), CNBC will air “Fast Bucks: How Porsche Made Billions”. The 30 minute show promises an “investigates allegations that the iconic automaker manipulated the market in an all-out bid to acquire its rival”. Be sure to set your DVD! I know I will.

[Picture Source: Google Images via http://mississaugalife.ca]

Porsche adds third shift and builds 100,000th latest generation Cayenne

Pepper Girl — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 10:36:28 +0000

It wasn’t all that long ago that Porsche celebrated the production of the 250,000th first generation Cayenne. Today, they announced a similar milestone for the latest generation Cayenne as the 100,000th unit was assembled and completed at their Liepzig plant.

This special 100,000th Cayenne, resplendent in “pure white”, is being delivered to a customer in Brazil complete with a V8 engine (the 250,000th first generation Cayenne was also done in white, but was of the diesel variety).

Strong Demand for Porsche Cayenne and Panamera Spurs Expansion

“Ten years ago the success story of Porsche Leipzig startet. What was a greenfield site, today ranks among the most modern car plants in the world. In addition to the Cayenne, Leipzig is also where Porsche produces the very successful Panamera luxury saloon, approximately 70,000 units of which have now rolled off the production line. That is why more than 93,800 vehicles left the Porsche plant in Leipzig in 2011, more than in any year before”, says Wolfgang Leimgruber, Member of the Executive Board of Production and Logistics of Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG. “Because of the consistently high demand for the Cayenne and Panamera we will be introducing a third production shift in Leipzig at the end of January. With the new production sequence, 500 vehicles on average will be produced each day,” Leimgruber adds.

The introduction of a three shift operation is only one of many challenges in the near future. Building work for a major expansion of the plant is currently underway. A paint shop and body assembly line for an entirely new model line that will start to come off the Leipzig production line from the end of 2013 onward are among the facilities being built on a 17 hectare site. Porsche is investing a total of 500 million euro in the production site in Saxony for assembly of the Cajun, creating more than 1,000 new jobs.

Siegfried Bülow, President and Chief Executive Officer, explains:

“2012 will therefore be an eventful and exciting year in many respects. We are welcoming many new employees, holding topping-out ceremonies on the new site, celebrating the 500,000th Porsche “Made in Leipzig” and last but not least the tenth production anniversary.”

Dr. Wolfgang Porsche Appointed Honorary Senator of the University of Salzburg

Pepper Girl — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 13:32:45 +0000

Since 1966 the University of Salzburg conveys the title of “honorary senator” on major business, political and social figures “who play a particulary distinguished role in supporting the University of Salzburg and promoting its scientific and cultural work.”

This year, the honor goes to Dr. Wolfgang Porsche, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG and Porsche Automobil Holding SE.

“Dr. Porsche’s selfless contribution benefits the entire education system while at the same time signalling his close connection with the city and state of Salzburg,” said Prof. Dr. Heinrich Schmidinger, rector of the University of Salzburg in his laudatory address.

As part of his acceptance speech, Dr. Wolfgang Porsche gave thanks and gratitude for this great honor

“I thank the entire Senate from the bottom of my heart for this special honour, aware as I am of its significance and the obligations that attend it. In the course of my life I have become increasingly aware of the enormous value of education and knowledge in our society. There is no wiser investment than in the promotion of education.”

[Picture Source is New York Times via Google Images]

Porsche Reports Record Sales in 2011 WorldWide

Pepper Girl — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 18:39:57 +0000

Recession. What Recession? At least that’s what Porsche’s saying these days. With a 22% increase in overall sales from 2010, Porsche delivered 118,867 vehicles to their customers. Given that their target was 100,000 units for the year, I’m thinking bonuses all around.

A Record Year for Porsche

“With sports car sales of just less than 120,000, 2011 was a record year for Porsche,” said Matthias Müller, President and Chief Executive Officer of Porsche AG. “We are planning to continue growing in 2012 as well. The new 911 generation will galvanise the market.”

Porsche Sales Strong in all Regions

In 2011, Porsche sold more vehicles than the year before in all sales regions. Asia takes the top slot with 42,971 units delivered (+44%). While the Chinese market posted the biggest growth at +64.6%.

The most successful single market in 2011 was the USA: a total of 29,023 customers in the United States opted for a model from Porsche ( an increase of 14.6 %). In Porsche’s home market of Germany the 911, Cayenne, Panamera, Boxster and Cayman sports cars were very popular, selling 14,959 units (+13.2 %).

As with previous years, the model with the highest world wide demand in 2011 was the Cayenne, of which 59,897 were handed over to customers. With sales of the Cayenne S and Cayenne Turbo totaling 18,126 units, Porsche defended its leading position in the high-performance, off-road vehicle segment.

Winning Porsche Commercial – It’s a Magical Life

Pepper Girl — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 01:11:29 +0000

Ever since Porsche announced their contest inviting independent film makers to submit their depiction of how Porsche’s fit their slogan “Porsche Everyday” we’ve been waiting to see who the winner would be. Porsche quietly uploaded the winner in mid-December and we shared the news on YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.

For those of you who haven’t yet seen it, Michael Korbel’s winning video (shown above) chronicle the life of a Porsche 911 owner through the eyes of their Porsche. In addition to Korbel’s winning entry, two other finalist films are showcased on YouTube (“Sweet Dreams” and “The Ride“). Personally, I like “The Ride” the best, but I can see why Porsche chose “It’s a Magical Life“.

For even more fun, videos, testimonials and information, take a look at the Porsche Everday website.

How Many Porsche’s Were Sold in the US During 2011?

Pepper Girl — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 00:34:33 +0000

Porsche announced sales numbers today for December 2011 and the calendar year. December sales came in at 1,834 while year to date (YTD) sales rose to 29,023 from 25,320 Porsches sold in 2010 – a 15% increase.

“2011 represents a very positive step forward for Porsche and demonstrates the brand’s continued strength in the United States market,” said Detlev von Platen, PCNA’s President and CEO. “We are confident we will build on this momentum moving forward into the new year with the launch of the 7th generation 911, a new Boxster and several other new products.”

Porsche sales success strongly tied to the Cayenne

Much of Porsche’s 2011 sales success can be attributed to the continuing momentum of the Cayenne SUV. Sales of the Cayenne in the U.S. were 12,978 in 2011 compared to 8,343 in 2010 – a 56 percent increase.

Another highlight for Porsche last year was the continued success of the 911. With the all-new 911 Carrera and Carrera S due to go on sale in the United States February 4, 2012, sales of current models continue to be strong. Annual sales in 2011 were 6,016 compared to 5,735 in 2010, an increase of 5 percent.

CPO sales number on the rise too

Also in December, sales of Porsche’s Approved Certified Pre-Owned (CPO) vehicles rose to 538 versus 533 during the same period in 2010. CPO total sales in 2011 were 8,323 compared to 7,298 in 2010.

10 Most Popular Porsche Posts of 2011

Pepper Girl — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 00:58:18 +0000

To close out 2011, and make way for 2012, we looked back at our statistics to see just what topics interested you this year. We compiled our list from information about posts read via email and those read on our site.

Some of this year’s top 10 posts shouldn’t be a surprise, others seem to be perennial favorites. Some even took us by surprise with how many times they were read. We hope you all have a safe and Happy New Year’s celebration and we look forward to sending you more Porsche goodness in 2012.

10. Porsche 356 Turned into the Ultimate Car-BQ

9. A Masters Degree in Extreme Porsche Modeling

8. How to Change the Spark Plugs in Your Cayenne

7. How Far Would You Go To Save Your Porsche?

6. Rennsport Reunion Wrap-up. 500+ Pictures

5. 10 Tips to Carve Your Own Porsche Pumpkin

4. Did Mercedes Rip-Off Porsche?

3. Jerry Seinfeld’s 1997 Porsche 993 Turbo S

2. Can You Go Camping in a Porsche 993?

1. We Interview the “Floating Porsche”Owner and Learn its Fate

We have more than 1000 posts on our site, so if you’re new to us in the last year or two, be sure to visit and look through our archives. You never know what you might find!

The Best Private Porsche Race Driver in 2011

Pepper Girl — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 00:45:35 +0000

Is once again Italy’s Gianluca Roda. With a large point advantage, the 52 year old Italian native successfully defended his title from last year. The Porsche Cup has been awarded by Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, Stuttgart, since 1970. As the brainchild of Ferry Porsche, the company honors the best private Porsche race driver each year with this trophy.

Again in 2011, Gianluca Roda celebrated a large part of his success with the Autorlando Sport team, which has its headquarters in Pedrengo near Bergamo (northern Italy). The entrepreneur from Como earned most of his points towards the Porsche Cup in the International GT Open, which runs two races per weekend. Already at the season-opener, everything went smoothly with Roda and his team mate Fabio Babini (Italy) yielding a win and a third place in their Porsche 911 GT3 R. Over the course of the season, Roda achieved five victories in the GTS class as well as four other podium results. The highlight of the year: double victory on the high-speed circuit in the Royal Park of Monza. At the season final in Barcelona (Spain) a retirement put a spoke in the wheel of his campaign. In a repeat of the previous season, Roda, Babini and the team concluded the year with vice-championship honors in the fiercely-contested GT Open Championship.

In the Blancpain Endurance Series, Gianluca Roda launched into the season with a victory at the wheel of the Porsche 911 GT3 R fielded by Autorlando Sport – in Monza of course. Joining forces with his Italian teammates Paolo Ruberti and Raffaele Giammaria they secured podium results in Navarra (Spain) and Magny-Cours (France) as well as fourth in Silverstone (Great Britain). Only at the 24 hour race of Spa-Francorchamps (Belgium), which also counted towards the Blancpain series, did he come home empty-handed in twelfth.

The ambitious Porsche driver also competed for the German Proton Competition squad in the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR – with top results. At the Sebring 12 Hours in Florida, one of the world’s great endurance classics, Roda underscored his reliability and skill. Teaming up with Christian Ried (Germany) and Porsche works driver Richard Lietz (Austria), the Italian climbed the podium after twelve hours in second place. The Sebring race also counted as the season-opening round of the American Le Mans Series. Team owner Ried also signed up the experienced Roda for the races of the Le Mans Series in Imola and Silverstone. And again he finished both races second in the GTE Am class; in Italy with Porsche factory pilot Patrick Long (USA) providing back up and supported in Great Britain by works driver Patrick Pilet (France).

By again clinching the Porsche Cup, Gianluca Roda has secured a very special place in the long list of Cup winners. The only other drivers to manage the feat of taking the coveted trophy home two consecutive times was the current Porsche team boss Franz Konrad (Austria) and Frenchman Bob Wollek who died in 2001.

Second place in this year’s Cup goes to Paolo Ruberti, making it a one-two for the Italians. The 36-year-old from Legnano in the Veneto region predominantly earned his points with excellent results from the Italian GT Championship, where he yielded three wins and four second places. Alongside Gianluca Roda in the Blancpain Endurance Series, he harvested a stack of points for his excellent results.

After an extremely successful season in the American Le Mans Series, Bryan Sellers clinched third place in the 2011 Porsche Cup. The 29-year-old American was supported by Porsche works driver Wolf Henzler (Germany) competing for the Falken Tire team. The highlights of the year for the privateer and professional with the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR came in Mid Ohio and Baltimore. Both times the Falken-911 saw the flag in first against high caliber competition in the GT class.

On 17th December at the Porsche Night of Champions in the R&D Center in Weissach, Gianluca Roda received the Porsche Cup from Dr. Wolfgang Porsche, Chairman of the Supervisory Board at Porsche AG. In addition to the valuable challenge cup, the best Porsche private driver of the year takes home a Porsche 911 Carrera S. The Porsche Cup carries a total value of over 250,000 Euro, with positions two to ten receiving prize money. Drivers earned points towards this year’s traditional competition in 18 Grand Touring and prototype race series worldwide as well as at selected long distance races.

Related Porsche Posts
Porsche Motorsports Around the World: 2011 Volume 9

Porsche is Pooling Assets to Finance Future Expansion

Pepper Girl — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 21:24:25 +0000

Late last week Porsche announced they had successfully issued ABS (Asset Backed Securities) bonds worth nearly $600 million in the US market. This private placement, completed by Porsche Financial Services, Inc., showcases the credit worthiness of Porsche’s receivables (i.e. credit they provide to those customers that don’t make their purchase with cash). As a testament to the strength of Porsche’s assets (and their ability to make good on the notes from sources other than the underlying pool of loans), the coupon/bond was issued at a rate of just over 1 percent.

While Porsche’s release doesn’t discuss specifically how these funds will be used, it’s usually a safe bet to say they’ll be reinvested as working capital and help pay for ongoing operating expenses. As this is a site about Porsche (and not a financial one) we won’t go into depth trying to explain the ins and outs of how these transactions work (for a deeper explanation on ABS transactions check out this article). What’s interesting, and what makes it newsworthy, is how successful the transaction was given it’s only the second such offering Porsche has placed in the US.

“With both these transactions, Porsche has established itself as the benchmark for ABS bonds. Companies often require a number of years and several transactions to win the investors’ trust and achieve this success. Porsche has managed this with its very first two private placements,” said Lutz Meschke, Porsche AG’s Chief Financial Officer. “The strong investor demand again resulted in the bond being significantly oversubscribed, notwithstanding other major car manufacturer transactions being in the market at the same time,” Meschke added.

It’s safe to say we’ll see more of these transactions in the future as Porsche continues to work on their aggressive expansion plans.

Porsche’s World Wide Deliveries up 25% Year to Date

Pepper Girl — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 22:23:41 +0000

While November global sales were slightly weaker than same period sales in 2010 (9318 vs. 9708), their year to date sales are up by nearly 25% to 109,709 total Porsches delivered.

No surprise that the Porsche model in greatest demand worldwide is once again the Cayenne SUV, of which just less than 5,000 were delivered to customers. Over the past month, In addition, Porsche delivered slightly more than 20% more Panameras than in same month the year before. The top of the range Turbo and Turbo S versions exceeded all previous expectations with 228 units of the 4 door Porsche being sold. As a result, a third shift will be introduced in Leipzig, starting in January 2012, to meet the strong demand for the Cayenne and Panamera.

“In the current year, we have already set new customer delivery and order book records,” said Bernhard Maier, Porsche AG Board of Management Member for Sales and Marketing. “The results prove how highly attractive our brand is and the intense fascination our products enjoy. In the next few weeks, the new Porsche 911 Carrera will provide an additional impetus.”