Porsche

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Porsche SE
Type	Public (Xetra: POR3) (FWB: POR3)
Founded	1931: by Ferdinand Porsche and Ferry Porsche
Headquarters	Stuttgart, Germany
Key people	Dr. Wendelin Wiedeking, CEO and President
Products	Automobiles
Revenue	€7.273 billion (2006)
Employees	11,910
Website	porsche.com

Porsche SE, or just Porsche, is a German manufacturer of automobiles majority owned by the Porsche and Piëch families. Porsche SE holds two chief assets, the first of which is Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, often shortened to Porsche AG, manufacturer of the Porsche automobile line. The second asset is a large stake in Volkswagen AG.

It was founded in 1931 by Ferdinand Porsche, an Austro-Hungarian engineer, born in Maffersdorf, Austria-Hungary (today Vratislavice, Czech Republic) who also designed the first Volkswagen. The company is headquartered in Zuffenhausen, a city district of Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg. They currently produce 911 (997), Boxster, and Cayman sports cars and Cayenne sport utility vehicles.

Contents 1 Reputation 1.1 Competitors 2 History 2.1 Relationship with Volkswagen 2.2 Corporate Restructure 3 Auto racing 4 Pronunciation of "Porsche" 5 Models 5.1 Consumer models 5.1.1 North American sales 5.2 Tractors 5.3 Racing models 5.4 Prototypes and concept cars 6 See also 7 References 8 External links

[edit] Reputation

In a May 2006 survey, Porsche was awarded the title of the most prestigious automobile brand by Luxury Institute, New York; it questioned more than 500 households with a gross annual income of at least US $200,000 and a net worth of at least US $720,000.^[1] The current Porsche lineup includes sports cars from the Boxster roadster to their most famous product, the 911. The Cayman is a hard top car similar to the Boxster in a slightly higher price range. The Cayenne is Porsche's mid-size luxury SUV. The Carrera GT supercar was phased out in May 2006. Future plans include a high performance luxury saloon/sedan, the Panamera.

Porsche was awarded the 2006 J.D. Power and Associates award for highest Nameplate Initial Quality Study (IQS) of automobile brands.^[2]

As a company, Porsche is known for weathering changing market conditions with great financial stability, while retaining most production in Germany during an age when most other German car manufacturers have moved at least parts of their production to Eastern Europe or overseas.^{[citation needed]} The headquarters and main factory are still in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen, but the Cayenne (and formerly the Carrera GT) is manufactured in Leipzig, Germany, the SUV also in Bratislava, Slovakia. Most Boxster and Cayman production is outsourced to Valmet Automotive in Finland. The company has been highly successful in recent times, and indeed claims to have the highest profit per unit sold of any car company in the world.^[3]

Porsche has for many years offered consultancy services to various other car manufacturers. Audi, Studebaker, SEAT, Daewoo, Subaru and Yugo have consulted Porsche on engineering for their cars or engines. The Lada Samara^[4] was partly developed by Porsche in 1984. Porsche also helped Harley-Davidson design their new engine in their newer V-Rod motorcycle.

[edit] Competitors

See also Auto racing, further down in this article.

In racing, Porsche's main rival has traditionally been Ferrari, though their production vehicles appeal to quite different personalities, if similar demographics. The rivalry is therefore primarily because of both companies' storied racing heritage and the fact that some of their vehicles are of comparable performance. Porsche has a reputation for offering equal or higher performing cars than the more expensive Ferrari models, while overall Ferrari sells far fewer cars at much higher prices (for example, there are no Ferraris under US $100,000, while several Porsches are priced below that figure).

In the daily-driver marketplace, Porsche's traditional rivals are its fellow German automakers Mercedes-Benz, Audi, and BMW (the Boxster competes directly with the BMW Z4 and the Mercedes-Benz SLK, for instance), as well as Lotus, Jaguar, and Maserati. Ferrari, on the other hand, competes more directly with firms such as Lamborghini, Bugatti and Pagani.

[edit] History

Professor Ferdinand Porsche initially started the company called "Dr. ing. h. c. F. Porsche GmbH" in 1931, with main offices at Königstrasse in the center of Stuttgart. The company offered motor vehicle development work and consulting, and did not initially build any cars under its own name. One of the first assignments the new company received was from the German government to design a car for the people, a "Volkswagen" in German.

The first Porsche, the Porsche 64, was developed in 1939 using many components from the Volkswagen Beetle. The Beetle was first called Type 12 in 1931 then Porsche 60. The name was not used until 1967 by Porsche/VW. During World War II Volkswagen production turned to the military version of the Volkswagen Beetle, the Kübelwagen, 52,000 produced and saw action in all German fronts and Schwimmwagen, 14,000 produced. During a contract bid for a new tank Porsche lost to Henschel & Son who subsequently produced the Tiger I. Ferdinand Porsche was hurt by this, knowing Adolf Hitler personally. Porsche would assist in the designing of the Tiger tank series and the Elefant tank.

After the war Ferdinand designs Beetle to the French as war reparations. Volkswagen factory fell inside the British occupied zone. Ferdinand lost ownership of Volkswagen and a British major, Ivan Hirst was put in charge. Ferdinand was not allowed at the reopening of the Volkswagen factory. December 15 the same year (1945) Ferdinand was arrested but was not tried for war crimes. During his 20 month imprisonment, Ferdinand Porsche's son, Ferry Porsche, decided to build his own car because he could not find an existing one that he would buy. The first models of what was to become the 356 were built in a small sawmill in Gmünd, Austria and had aluminum bodywork, hence the modern Porsche company was born. The prototype car was shown to German auto dealers, and when pre-orders reached a set threshold, production was begun. Many regard the 356 as the first Porsche simply because it was the first model sold by the fledgling company. Porsche commissioned Zuffenhausen-based company Reutter Carosseri, which had previously collaborated with Porsche on Volkswagen Beetle prototypes, to produce the 356's steel body. Porsche constructed an assembly plant across the street from Reutter Carosseri; that assembly plant is now known as Porschestrasse. The 356 was road certified in 1948.

Not long afterwards, on January 30, 1951, Ferdinand Porsche died from complications following a stroke.

In post-war Germany parts were generally in short supply, so the 356 automobile used components from the Volkswagen Beetle including its engine, gearbox, and suspension. The 356, however, had several evolutionary stages, A, B, and C, while in production and many VW parts were replaced by Porsche-made parts. The last 356s were powered by entirely Porsche-designed engines. The sleek bodywork was designed by Erwin Komenda who also had designed the body of the Beetle. Porsche's signature designs have, from the beginning, featured air-cooled rear-engine configurations (like the Beetle), rare for other car manufacturers, but producing automobiles that are very well balanced.

In 1964, after some success in motor-racing, namely with the Porsche 550 Spyder, the company launched the Porsche 911 another air-cooled, rear-engined sports car, this time with a 6-cylinder "boxer" engine. The team to lay out the body shell design was led by Ferry Porsche's eldest son, Ferdinand Alexander Porsche (F. A.). The design phase for the 911 caused internal problems with Erwin Komenda who led the body design department until then. F. A. Porsche complained Komenda made changes to the design not being approved by him. Company leader Ferry Porsche took his son's drawings to neighbouring body shell manufacturer Reuter bringing the design to the 1963 state. Reuter's workshop was later acquired by Porsche (so-called Werk II). Afterward Reuter became a seat manufacturer, today known as Keiper-Recaro.

The design group gave sequential numbers to every project (356, 550, etc) but the designated 901 nomenclature contravened Peugeot's trademarks on all 'x0x' names, so it was adjusted to 911. Racing models adhered to the "correct" numbering sequence: 904, 906, 908. The 911 has become Porsche's most well-known model, successful on the race-track, in rallies, and in terms of sales. Far more than any other model, the Porsche brand is defined by the 911. It remains in production; however, after several generations of revision, current-model 911s share only the basic mechanical concept of a rear-engined, six-cylinder coupe, and basic styling cues with the original car. A cost-reduced model with the same body, but 356-derived running gear (including its four-cylinder engine), was sold as the 912.

In 1972 the company's legal form was changed from limited partnership to public limited company (AG in German), because Ferry Porsche and his sister, Louise Piëch, felt their generation members did not team up well. This led to the foundation of an executive board whose members came from outside the Porsche family, and a supervisory board consisting mostly of family members. With this change, no family members were in operational charge of the company. F. A. Porsche founded his own design company, Porsche Design, which is renowned for exclusive sunglasses, watches, furniture, and many other luxury articles. Ferdinand Piëch, who was responsible for mechanical development of Porsche's serial and racing cars, formed his own engineering bureau and developed a 5-cylinder-inline diesel engine for Mercedes-Benz. A short time later he moved to Audi and pursued his career through the entire company, up to and including, the Volkswagen Group boards.

The first CEO of Porsche AG was Dr. Ernst Fuhrmann who had been working in Porsche's engine development. Fuhrmann was responsible for the so-called Fuhrmann-engine used in the 356 Carrera models, as well as the 550 Spyder, having four over-head camshafts instead of a central camshaft as in the Volkswagen-derived serial engines. He planned to cease the 911 during the 70s and replace it with the V8-front engined grand sportswagon 928. As we know today the 911 outlived the 928 by far. Fuhrmann was replaced in the early 80s by Peter W. Schutz, an American manager and self-proclaimed 911 aficionado. He was replaced in 1988 by the former manager of German computer company Nixdorf Computer AG, Arno Bohn, who made some costly miscalculations that led to his dismissal soon after, along with that of the development director, Dr. Ulrich Bez, who was formerly responsible for BMW's Z1 model and today is CEO of Aston Martin.

In 1990, Porsche drew up a memorandum of understanding with Toyota to learn and benefit from Japanese production methods. Currently Toyota is assisting Porsche with hybrid technology, rumored to be making its way into a Hybrid Cayenne SUV, as well as the upcoming four-door coupe, the Panamera.

Following the dismissal of Bohn, an interim CEO was appointed, longtime Porsche employee, Heinz Branitzki, who served in that position until Dr. Wendelin Wiedeking became CEO in 1993. Wiedeking took over the chairmanship of the board at a time when Porsche appeared vulnerable to a takeover by a larger company. During his long tenure, Wiedeking has transformed Porsche into a very efficient and profitable company.

Ferdinand Porsche's grandson, Ferdinand Piëch, was chairman and CEO of the Volkswagen Group from 1993 to 2002. Today he is chairman of the supervisory board. With 12.8 per cent of the Porsche voting shares, he also remains the second largest individual shareholder of Porsche AG after his cousin, F. A. Porsche, (13.6 per cent).

Porsche's 2002 introduction of the Cayenne also marked the unveiling of a new production facility in Leipzig, Saxony, which once accounted for nearly half of Porsche's annual output. The Cayenne Turbo S has the second most powerful production engine in Porsche's history, with the most powerful belonging to the Carrera GT.

In 2004, production of the 605 horsepower (451 kW) Carrera GT commenced in Leipzig, and at EUR 450,000 ($440,000 in the United States) it was the most expensive production model Porsche ever built.

As of 2005, the extended Porsche and Piech families controlled all of Porsche AG's voting shares. In early October 2005 the company announced acquisition of an 18.53% stake in Volkswagen AG and disclosed intentions to acquire additional VW shares in the future. As of June 2006, the Porsche AG stake in Volkswagen had risen to 25.1%, giving Porsche a blocking minority, whereby Porsche can veto large corporate decisions undertaken by VW.

In mid-2006, after years of the Boxster (and later the Cayenne) as the dominant Porsche in North America, the 911 regained its position as Porsche's backbone in the region. The Cayenne and 911 have cycled as the top-selling model since. In Germany the 911 clearly outsells the Boxster/Cayman and Cayenne. ^[5]

[edit] Relationship with Volkswagen

The company has always had a close relationship with Volkswagen Group, and as noted above, the first Porsche cars used many Volkswagen components. The two companies collaborated in 1969 to make the VW-Porsche 914 and 914-6, whereby the 914-6 had a Porsche engine, and the 914 had a Volkswagen engine, in 1976 with the Porsche 912E (USA only) and the Porsche 924, which used many Audi components and was built at an Audi Neckarsulm factory. Most Porsche 944s also were built there although they used far fewer VW components. In other words, Volkswagen was a cheap Porsche, but since 1924 they have risen up to be a leading car power. The Cayenne, introduced in 2002, shares its entire chassis with Volkswagen Touareg, which is built at the factory in Bratislava. Both Audi and Škoda are wholly owned subsidiaries of Volkswagen. In late 2005, Porsche took an 18.65% stake in the Volkswagen Group, further cementing their relationship, and preventing a takeover of Volkswagen, which was rumored at the time. Speculated suitors included DaimlerChrysler AG, BMW, and Renault.

On 26 March 2007, Porsche took its holding of Volkswagen shares to 30.9%, triggering a takeover bid under German law. Porsche formally announced in a press statement that it did not intend to take over Volkswagen (it would set its offer price at the lowest possible legal value), but intended the move to avoid a competitor taking a large stake or to stop hedge funds dismantling VW, which is Porsche's most important partner.^[6] Porsche's move comes after the European Union moved against a German law that protected VW from takeovers. Under the so-called "Volkswagen Law", any shareholder in VW cannot exercise more than 20% of the firm's voting rights, regardless of their level of stock holding. The European Court of Justice struck the law down on 23 October 2007, potentially paving the way for a takeover.^[7]

[edit] Corporate Restructure

With the Volkswagen stake acquisition, Porsche intends on reforming the company's format, with Dr Ing. h. c. F. Porsche AG becoming a subsidiary of a newly formed holding company called Porsche Automobil Holding SE, so as to separate the operating activities from holding activities of the company. There was an Extraordinary General Meeting for Porsche AG shareholders which took place on June 26, 2007 at the Porsche Arena in Stuttgart, Germany to discuss the change to the company structure. ^[8]

On 3 March 2008 Porsche set the stage for obtaining a majority stake in the fellow Volkswagen. Porsche sought on 4 March 2008 to allay fears it would attempt to force a merger with Volkswagen.^[9]

[edit] Auto racing

Main article: Porsche in motorsport

Porsche has been successful in many branches of auto racing, scoring a total of more than 28,000 victories. Porsche is currently the world's largest race car manufacturer. In 2006, Porsche built 195 race cars for various international motor sports events. In 2007, Porsche is expected to construct no fewer than 275 dedicated race cars (7 RS Spyder LMP2 prototypes, 37 GT2 spec 911 GT3-RSRs, and 231 911 GT3 Cup vehicles).^[10]

[edit] Pronunciation of "Porsche"

Porsche, a German proper name, is correctly pronounced PORSH-eh (IPA: /ˈpɔrʃə/).

Some tend to over-vocalize the e, which results in Por-SCHA (/pɔrˈʃʌ/). Others mistakenly treat the e as silent, a pronunciation rule that applies to most words in English and French, but not in German, producing the monosyllabic porsh (/pɔrʃ/). The most common pronunciation used in the United States is porsh (/pɔrʃ/). The correct pronunciation of "Porsche"

[edit] Models

See: Category:Porsche vehicles

[edit] Consumer models

[edit] North American sales

Annual sales

Model	2005[11]		2006[12]		2007[13]
	Units	% of total	Units	% of total	Units	% of total
911 (997)	10,653 (▲ 4%)	31%	12,702 (▲ 19%)	35%	13,153 (▲ 4%)	36%
Boxster (986)	8,327 (▲ 123%)	25%	4,850 (▼ 42%)	13%	3,904 (▼ 24%)	11%
Cayman (987)	—		7,313	20%	6,249 (▼ 17%)	17%
Cayenne (955)	14,524 (▼ 24%)	43%	11,141 (▼ 23%)	31%	13,370 (▲ 20%)	36%
Total	33,859 (▲ 2%)		36,095 (▲ 7%)		36,680 (▲ 2%)

[edit] Tractors

• Porsche Type 110
• Porsche AP Series
• Porsche Junior (14 hp)
• Porsche Standard (25 hp)
• Porsche Super (38 hp)
• Porsche Master (50 hp)
• Porsche 312
• Porsche 108F
• Porsche R22
• Porsche AP16

[edit] Racing models

64 360 Cisitalia 550 Spyder 718 787 804 904 906 907 908 909 Bergspyder

910 911 914 917 934 935 936 924 944

956 959 961 962 Porsche-March 89P WSC-95/LMP1-98 LMP2000 (never raced) RS Spyder (9R6)

Note: models in bold are current models

[edit] Prototypes and concept cars

• Porsche 114
• Porsche 356/1
• Porsche 695 (911 prototype)
• Porsche 901 (911 prototype)
• Porsche 916 (flat-6 914)
• Porsche 959 Prototype
• Porsche 942
• Porsche 969
• Porsche Panamericana
• Porsche 989
• Porsche Varrera
• Porsche Boxster Concept
• Porsche Carrera GT Concept
• Porsche E2
• Porsche Martel design

[edit] See also

• Ferdinand Porsche (founder)
• Ferry Porsche (Ferdinand Anton Ernst Porsche, 2nd generation, creator of the 356)
• F.A. Porsche (Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, 3rd generation, designer of the 911)
• Porsche Museum, Stuttgart
• Porsche Design Group
• List of Porsche engines
• CTS Car Top Systems
• Porsche Club of America
• Need for Speed: Porsche Unleashed
• list of German cars

[edit] References

1. ^ Porsche enjoys unsurpassed prestige in US. Porsche AG press release. Retrieved on 2008-04-06.
2. ^ J.D. Power News Release
3. ^ Forbes Autos review of Cayman S
4. ^ Porsche Engineering info
5. ^ Porsche USA press release 11 September 2006
6. ^ Porsche triggers VW takeover bid
7. ^ Top EU court finds against VW law
8. ^ Porsche getting new name
9. ^ Porsche rules out Volkswagen merger
10. ^ AutoWeek Porsche Story, Warehouse Shopping, March 7, 2007
11. ^ January - March - Archive 2006 - Porsche AG - Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG
12. ^ Porsche AG - Press releases - About Porsche - Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG
13. ^ January - March - Archive 2008 - Porsche AG - Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG

[edit] External links

• Porsche official international website
• Porsche Leipzig official website
• Porsche Design Group official website
• Porsche facts website
• Testdrive website for Cayman S

v • d • e Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG road car timeline, 1960–present
Type	1960s										1970s										1980s										1990s										2000s
	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
Entry Level Sportscar						912											924																				Boxster (986)								Boxster (987)
	356									914													944										968														Cayman (987c)
911 Series					911																									911 (964)					911 (993)					911 (996)						911 (997)
GT																			928
Supercar																											959										911 GT1								Carrera GT
SUV																																											Cayenne
Concept cars	356/1 · 114 · 695 · 901 · 989 · Panamericana · Panamera · Roxster
Motorsport	Porsche in motorsport · Porsche Supercup · 64 · 360 · 550 · 718 · 787 · 804 · 904 · 906 · 907 · 908 · 909 · 910 · 914-6 GT · 917 · 934 · 935 · 936 · 953 · 956 · 961 · 962 · GT1 · GT2 · GT3 · WSC-95 · LMP · RS Spyder
People	Ferdinand Porsche · Ferry Porsche · Ferdinand Alexander Porsche · Ferdinand Piëch · Wendelin Wiedeking
Tractors	Junior · Super
Other	Official Website · Porsche Design Group · Volkswagen Group · List of Porsche engines · Tiptronic · VarioCam

Coordinates: 48°50′08″N, 9°09′07″E