Weekly Porsche Wrap

1956 Porsche 356 1500 GS Carrera making a couple of stops at Concours D’Elegance – A fella by the name of Roger Craig is part of a new movement that keeps old cars original and unrestored. Careful not to alter the car in any meaningful way, they basically just do the regular maintenance to keep the car on the road. This particular 356 first appeared in the Pebble Beach Concours D’Elegance in the 1956 road races. This year it can be seen, fading paint, dents and all, in both the Pebble Beach and the Palo Alto Concours D’Elegance events. Pretty cool to see these old cars not turned into garage queens that oftentimes are over-restored to the point where they look better than they originally did. [Via MercuryNews.com]

Porsche in final stages of Qatar deal – Just a quick update. Looks like Porsche is in final talks with Qatar. According to a Porsche spokesman, “The due diligence has reached a positive conclusion.” Meanwhile, Daimler has denied any interest in buying a stake in Porsche. Also the German government appears ready to deny a loan to Porsche. [Via Bloomberg.com and FT.com]

Porsche 911 GT3 Cup entry comes from last to win! – I love races like this. Farnbacher Loles took his #87 GT3 from last place all the way to first to win the Acxiom GT class victory in the EMCO Gears Classic at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course last Saturday. That’s what makes racing great! By the way, the 3 Porsche-powered Daytona Prototypes all finished in the top 10. Not too shabby for Porsche overall. [Via MotorSport.com]

Lots more rumors about a Porsche Roadster of some sort – Not sure if the rumor mills are a reliable source, but it seems like when they start firing things up, something is coming down the pipe. I’ve seen everything from the new Porsche Roadster being based on the Audi TTS to the Volkswagen Bluesport roadster concept. Regardless, I bet we see something announced in the next few months. Could be a decent boost to Porsche’s slumping sales, which are off by 28% this year. [Via Automobile.com]

Porsche receives Quality Award by J.D. Power – Yet another award for Porsche. This time around it’s the J.D. Power Quality Study that found the customers impressions of Porsche’s quality and workmanship to be outstanding. What is there to say about that? We Porsche lovers already know this and have known it for years. [Via TheAutoChannel.com]

Porsche Panamera luggage announced – As if a post $100k car isn’t enough, Porsche Design has matching luggage to go with it. To be honest, aside from the wow factor, I find car/brand-specific luggage to be pretentious, impractical and just plain wasteful. Who the heck is going to roll around an aluminum and polycarbonate hard-shell suitcase that cost as much as many people’s cars?! I guess if you have the money, and nothing else to do with it, that’s what you do. Hopefully I never have that problem. [Via Autoblog.com]

Comments

  1. 356 is great.one of my favorites.

  2. I am not sure i like the details (if true) on the idea of dropping a TT motor into the Boxster to…..boost sales?. Watch me be wrong and say bad idea ..but me no like.

  3. mitchell says

    porsche synonymous with quality? who da thunk it?

    and for some reason, im excited to see my first panamera in person.
    i dont think the pics and vids provide the full effect.

  4. cool 356.like that it’s original!

  5. its nice to see cars staying stock. so many people “customize” them and change how the car was meant to be. i like seeing a high quality car driving down the road with nothing done other than a nice wash =)

  6. Dropping a TT motor into any Porsche would be difficult unless they came out with a front engine model. I’ve heard that rumor before, but logistically, I couldn’t see it being feasible unless that’s what the next generation 914 is going to be.

  7. I like the idea Roger Craig has that suggests not restoring old cars to the point where they wind up being over restored. I understand and appreciate that. Not just with Porsche. You see lots of muscle cars that make use of so many reproduction parts that one wonders what makes it a classic anymore. So little of the original car even remains it seems. Its just its shape thats left! Muscle cars maybe quite different as an example to that 356. A lot of them beaten and abused not long after leaving the factory that they wouldnt be at least on the road ,save for repro parts. Closest to original use of parts is the best respect for something like the 356. So a chrome door handle doesnt shine like it did in 1956 ..so what? 🙂

  8. I agree Ryan on the luggage.I think the car brand specific luggage was not made so much for real drivers….Just people who want everyone to know they have the car that matches the luggage. I think a high percentage of those who appreciate the car for what it is could care less about matching luggage or the need to have it.

  9. That Volkswagen Bluesport Roadster isn’t half bad looking.

    http://www.motorauthority.com/content/images/2/0/2009_volkswagen_bluesport_roadster_concept_main630-0110.jpg

    One good part of a merged company would be shared platforms like this. The next 5 years should be interesting.

  10. Cool to see Porsche doing well in the racing circuit. Watched a little bit of it this weekend and it was a good race.

  11. I agree with Ryan, the luggage is way overboard.

  12. hope porsche doesn’t put out inexpensive cars to boost sales,usually cuts down on brand.

  13. j.d.power`award great news.sports cars don’t have to be fast but fickle.

  14. I hope we don’t start seeing mass production of porsche watches, pens, wallets etc… I know they have a phone with the porsche brand on it but other items seem a little ridiculous

  15. Porsche, Mercedes, and many other high-end brands have always offered matching luggage as an option. This was also an option on many American cars in the 1950’s, like the T-Bird.

  16. Yeah, the luggage is over the top. How many times are you going to use suitcases in your car anyway? I only drag them to the airport and then you are away from your car for a week or two.

  17. Anyone know how much the luggage costs? If it is designed to fit into the Porsche’s limited space and it isn’t horribly overpriced (though I’m sure it is) it wouldn’t be bad.

  18. Yea, the luggage is actually a pretty sweet idea. If you have the money, why not?

  19. congrats on j.d.power’s.quality and reliability.

  20. not sure what to think about the luggage. i’d like to know a percentage of how many owners buy the luggage to go with it.

  21. Actually, It could be worse.The luggage not too bad on second thought, It does have a traveling theme and you consider that Porsche could move towards the Gene Simmons mode of marketing. 🙂

  22. the luggage increases the resale value of the car, so the price isn’t really that bad

  23. luggage is nice.sure it fits in the car like a glove.

  24. qatar deal=speaking but saying nothing.

  25. @Brad – what is the Gene Simmons mode of marketing?

  26. congrats on cup win!

  27. porshe roadster?what’s a boxster?

  28. Andrew, The Gene Simmons mode of marketing is to plaster your brand name on anything and EVERYTHING, No synergy or synonymous connection required. I guess that works for a 40 year old rock band but might get quite tacky for a specialty auto maker. I can think of a lot of items that the Porsche brand could represent well. Porsche toothpaste, Hair spray, bubble gum etc etc! …not so much lol BTW KISS has a casket available, (really no joke) Ok maybe when its time to check out, A Porsche casket not so bad lol

  29. I have been wanting one of these for a while!

  30. @ russ, really you don’t want to be sporting around a porsche watch, hat, pen, shoes, polo shirt, driving glove, boxers, and socks??
    to me that screams big dork

  31. @James,Thanks!… Good thing i read this before i stepped outside dressed the way i was, Total dork lol

  32. Phil Schneider says

    The 356 is one of the most perfect car designs ever.

  33. Maria – a Boxster is a Boxster, a Roadster is…a Roadster.