[opinion] - hmmm…VW/Audi/Porsche _IS_ in trouble… [⚠️ ADMIN WARNING: NO INSULTING / POLITICALLY CHARGED POSTING]

[whitex]

Didn't know this was a thing, but not surprised.

Was hoping people able to afford 911s would be smarter... god, people are dumb.

These are not people who can afford 911s. Most expensive listed one is 5ETH, so ~$8K. Cheapest is listed at $230. Not sure if they costed more in the past, but I'm sure a number of them were bought by NFT speculators hoping to cash in.

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[snstevens]

I'm sad…I liked Porsche - but apparently they have determined they can not complete in the EV market place, nor do they wish to make the adjustments necessary to do so…

@daveo4EV - I get that you’re sad, and I appreciate the Porsche is going through a difficult time, but I’m just not getting why you think Porsche should or will leave the EV market.

The fact is that European laws are not going to change anytime soon. Have you read the news about the heat dome over France and most of Central Europe (not to mention that over 40 people have died in France recently due to heat-related causes)? There is no chance that they’re going to abandon their climate goals and as a result if you are a car manufacturer and want to sell cars in Europe, you’re going to have to sell EV’s. Of course the US is a different market, and has always been important to Porsche, but even in this market EV ascendance over ICE vehicles is just a matter of time.

I think Porsche gets this, and the fact that we’re seeing updates to the Taycan indicate that they’re not abandoning that model. I also think that a 718 EV is coming, and I’m looking forward to driving it and possibly buying it when it’s available. In the meantime, Porsche is doing what any company that recently had poor business performance is doing - they’re trying to right-size their manufacturing and make money.

On a personal note, the first time I drove the Taycan I said to myself, “Man! So this is what a Porsche EV feels like!” It handled incredibly well and the exhilaration that I felt when I drove it just really hasn’t changed. It’s a wonderful car to drive and at least at the time I didn’t find any EV that even came close. I had the same experience driving both ICE 718 models and the Taycan at the PEC in LA and was totally impressed at how well the Taycan performed.

I appreciate that the PCM software is not the quality that we all expect from a car at this price point. However, I’m not being affected by bugs on anything other than an occasional basis, and the PCM works fine for me in general. For navigation I use Apple Maps mostly because I like the interface better. Does that mean that I don’t get maximum charging speed? Yep. But again that isn’t a dealbreaker for me.

From my perspective, it’s OK to be sad about Porsche missing the initial mark in software, but I really don’t think you should be sad about the company getting out of the EV market. That chapter hasn’t been written yet.

P.S. there isn’t a single EV out there right now that would make me sell my Taycan.

 

[PorscheTaycan]

I think they already tried their ultimate profitability strategy - a near 100% profit margin product to sell based purely on heritage and exclusivity. Click the picture to see all the exclusive virtual 911's.

https://www.porsche.com/international/communities/pioneers-circle/

NFTs were a big crypto fad a couple of years ago, so not surprised some big brands jumped on the bandwagon, but they have since crashed big time - the poor people who bought these....

 

[whitex]

NFTs were a big crypto fad a couple of years ago, so not surprised some big brands jumped on the bandwagon, but they have since crashed big time - the poor people who bought these....

Yea, but a good example of a Porsche product selling purely on brand and exclusivity. As we can see, that failed.

 

[whitex]

"Ferdinand" is not an appealing car name.

Yea, "Drive a Ferd!" does not seem to convey the Porsche image. A certain American car company may also sue over the name.

 

[PorscheTaycan]

"Drive a Ferd!"

Too similar to “Nerd” or “Turd” lol

 

[Tooney]

The reasons behind the 'cruel history of high-priced electric vehicles' as forecast by European car company CEOs

 

[Vim Schrotnock]

Article in todays WSJ. When you see a company stragegy headlined as a 'streamlining plan' that eliminates job, the business is in serious trouble. As has been stated before, they need to focus on their ICE and hybrid business to survive, and as you can see from the boldfaced statement from the CEO they are doing this, and 'delaying' the rollout of new EV's. They can't make money on EV's now, and they don't see much of a future in competing against better established and way better structured pure EV companies in the future.

As stated earlier, I agree the hybrid strategy is their best bet to maintain a decent portion of their business out to 2035 or so. But beyond that, they will be a very different company.


Porsche Could Cut Jobs as It Pushes Ahead With Turnaround Effort

The sportscar maker is in talks with employee representatives as it pushes ahead with a broader streamlining plan.
Porsche is in talks to cut jobs as it pushes ahead with a broader streamlining plan that seeks to put the German sportscar maker on firmer footing for the future.

Open discussions are underway with employee representatives on the adjustment of employee numbers alongside other initiatives to ensure the competitiveness of Porsche’s sites, Chief Executive Michael Leiters said in a statement from the company’s annual shareholder meeting Tuesday.
With discussions “in full swing,” Leiters said in a speech at the meeting that it wasn’t possible to provide further details on job cuts at the moment.
The CEO previously outlined plans to streamline the automaker and boost profit by realigning the strategy to counter a slow uptake of electric vehicles, weakness in China, and U.S. tariffs.
The company has already begun by shedding non-core assets, with an agreement to sell out its stakes in hypercar joint venture Bugatti Rimac and electric-vehicle maker Rimac Group. It has also moved to shut down its battery-tech developer Cellforce Group, e-bike electric drive systems developer Porsche eBike Performance and Cetitec, a company that produces specialized software for data communications.
In the same statement, Leiters said he is focusing the company on its core business, structurally adapting the organization and streamlining it across the board.
“But in order to secure our competitiveness in the long term, the streamlining of the company planned so far will not be enough,” he said.
Porsche is investing in new gas-powered and hybrid models after delaying the rollout of new all-electric vehicles, with Leiters targeting a value-over-volume strategy that seeks profitability over maximizing sales volumes by producing more higher-margin, desirable cars.
The company is also reducing the number of model variants, allowing it to focus on a smaller range of more appealing cars.
It plans to present a full strategy for the period to 2035 at an investor event in October, but it said the key elements of the plan are centered on the brand and customer, products and technology, and the company and operations.
Porsche also used the meeting to confirm its full-year guidance, despite a “very challenging” market environment. It still expects sales this year at between 35 billion and 36 billion euros ($40 billion-$41.14 billion), an operating margin of 5.5% to 7.5% and an automotive net cash flow margin between 3% and 5%.

 

[Tooney]

Porsche plans Cayenne return to Leipzig as staff face pay cuts
Porsche is apparently working on a far-reaching overhaul of its production operations. According to a report first carried by the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ), production of the successful Cayenne model is to be moved entirely from Bratislava in Slovakia to Leipzig. The plan is for the SUV to roll off the line there in future in all powertrain variants.

For the plant in Saxony, this would provide an important long-term perspective. The backdrop is the current overcapacity at Porsche. Both the Leipzig SUV plant and the main factory in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen are considered underutilised.

However, the plans apparently come with a crucial condition. According to FAZ, the relocation will only be possible if employees accept noticeable reductions in pay. Labour costs in Slovakia are significantly lower than in Germany. To make production in Leipzig economically viable, at least part of this gap would have to be closed.

 

[Tooney]

VW may close four factories to adapt to the future, report says
Volkswagen Group is considering what was previously unthinkable: closing up to four factories in Germany and instituting layoffs that would shrink the workforce by 15 percent.

 

[gamueller]

Yeah, the production costs of German manufactured cars won't be sustainable if they want to remain in business. Hello Eastern Europe!

 

[Tooney]

Nearly 40% Of Porsche Workers Now Earn Six Figures

 

[69Mach390]

Nearly 40% Of Porsche Workers Now Earn Six Figures

201 of the 23,000 employees (less than 1%) make 300k/yr.

So almost none of the employees can afford the product they help make.

By comparison the Median income of a Porsche owner is $500k. Well above the top 1% income of the Porsche employees.

 

[whitex]

201 of the 23,000 employees (less than 1%) make 300k/yr.

So almost none of the employees can afford the product they help make.

By comparison the Median income of a Porsche owner is $500k. Well above the top 1% income of the Porsche employees.

Now do SpaceX! IPO created a number of wealthy employees, yet, how many employees can afford a any of their Falcon rockets?

A company can produce good, reliable products, even if almost none of the employees can afford to buy the product. In case of Porsche, they should be allowing their engineers to drive pre-release cars, as some other car companies do. The problem however is that I don't think it would help much even if the employees could spot issues, given how many issues have been reported and remain unresolved (think 22kW OBC failing for 7 years, Porsche app getting completely out of sync with the car, etc).

 

[questionmillennium]

201 of the 23,000 employees (less than 1%) make 300k/yr.

So almost none of the employees can afford the product they help make.

By comparison the Median income of a Porsche owner is $500k. Well above the top 1% income of the Porsche employees.

That must be the median income for people who buy Porsches brand new!

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