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Rich Sandor · 08-21-2011, 10:28 PM

There have always been "poor man's Porsches" such as the 914 and 924, and 944, but since they were visually so distinctly different from the 911, they never had any effect on the perception of the stereotypical "Porsche" car, and the 911 had always retained that supercar status. Everyone went "whooooooaaaah" when a 911 turbo drove by.

Although the Boxster is a great car in every way, it has certainly contributed to the diminished exclusivity of owning a Porsche. Since the original Boxster and the original 996 shared a HUGE amount of parts, they became difficult to distinguish from one another. A $50,000 Boxster looked much like a $120,000 C4S cabriolet.

Now, if the Boxster had gone away after a few years, it would not have affected the 911 as much: But it didn't go away. It made Porsche a LOT of money, so it stayed. Not only did it stay, but every year Porsche sold more, and more, and more of them. Look at the numbers:

Porsche Group - Worldwide sales figures:
1995 - 21,124
1996 - 19,262
1997 - 32,383
1998 - 36,686
1999 - 43,892
2000 - 48,797
2001 - 54,586
2002 - 54,234
2003 - 66,803
2004 - 76,827
2005 - 88,379
2006 - 96,794
2007 - 97,515
2008 - 98,652

Porsche Cars North America Sales (US and Canada only)
Year Units
1986 30,471 - 944 turbo introduced
1987 23,632 - (October 1987 - Black Monday, start of the largest recession since 1929)
1988 15,737 - (aka: the S&L crisis - 747 out of 3224 saving & loans companies fail)
1989 9,479 - (new homes built in the US fall from 1.8mil to 1.0mil.. worst since ww2)
1990 9,140 - (Gulf war and spike in oil prices)
1991 4,388
1992 4,131 - 944 series becomes the 968
1993 3,713
1994 5,820
1995 6,078 - 928 and 968 production ends
1996 7,524
1997 13,731
1998 18,207 - Boxster introduced
1999 21,915 - 996 model 911 introduced
2000 23,698
2001 24,143 - 996 turbo introduced (Sept 11 2001.. has little affect on Porsche profits)
2002 22,511 - Cayenne introduced
2003 30,028
2004 33,289
2005 33,859 - Cayman introduced
2006 36,095
2007 36,680
2008 27,717 (HUGE US financial crisis, Porsche profits drop 14%)
2009 U.S. only: 19,696 - Panamera introduced
2010 U.S. only: 25,320

Without the Boxster and Cayenne, Porsche would not be as profitable as it is today. Profit is good, because it brings money for R&D to build even better cars. Moreso the fact that the Porsche Holdings board is chaired by enthusiasts and not just financial money managers.

If Porsche stayed with just the 911, securing the exclusivity of the model, the company might very well be dead today.

08-21-2011, 10:28 PM	#154
Rich Sandor racing & tech mod. Join Date: May 2004 Location: Vancouver Posts: 4,034 Thanked 507 Times in 188 Posts Failed 22 Times in 12 Posts	There have always been "poor man's Porsches" such as the 914 and 924, and 944, but since they were visually so distinctly different from the 911, they never had any effect on the perception of the stereotypical "Porsche" car, and the 911 had always retained that supercar status. Everyone went "whooooooaaaah" when a 911 turbo drove by. Although the Boxster is a great car in every way, it has certainly contributed to the diminished exclusivity of owning a Porsche. Since the original Boxster and the original 996 shared a HUGE amount of parts, they became difficult to distinguish from one another. A $50,000 Boxster looked much like a $120,000 C4S cabriolet. Now, if the Boxster had gone away after a few years, it would not have affected the 911 as much: But it didn't go away. It made Porsche a LOT of money, so it stayed. Not only did it stay, but every year Porsche sold more, and more, and more of them. Look at the numbers: Porsche Group - Worldwide sales figures: 1995 - 21,124 1996 - 19,262 1997 - 32,383 1998 - 36,686 1999 - 43,892 2000 - 48,797 2001 - 54,586 2002 - 54,234 2003 - 66,803 2004 - 76,827 2005 - 88,379 2006 - 96,794 2007 - 97,515 2008 - 98,652 Porsche Cars North America Sales (US and Canada only) Year Units 1986 30,471 - 944 turbo introduced 1987 23,632 - (October 1987 - Black Monday, start of the largest recession since 1929) 1988 15,737 - (aka: the S&L crisis - 747 out of 3224 saving & loans companies fail) 1989 9,479 - (new homes built in the US fall from 1.8mil to 1.0mil.. worst since ww2) 1990 9,140 - (Gulf war and spike in oil prices) 1991 4,388 1992 4,131 - 944 series becomes the 968 1993 3,713 1994 5,820 1995 6,078 - 928 and 968 production ends 1996 7,524 1997 13,731 1998 18,207 - Boxster introduced 1999 21,915 - 996 model 911 introduced 2000 23,698 2001 24,143 - 996 turbo introduced (Sept 11 2001.. has little affect on Porsche profits) 2002 22,511 - Cayenne introduced 2003 30,028 2004 33,289 2005 33,859 - Cayman introduced 2006 36,095 2007 36,680 2008 27,717 (HUGE US financial crisis, Porsche profits drop 14%) 2009 U.S. only: 19,696 - Panamera introduced 2010 U.S. only: 25,320 Without the Boxster and Cayenne, Porsche would not be as profitable as it is today. Profit is good, because it brings money for R&D to build even better cars. Moreso the fact that the Porsche Holdings board is chaired by enthusiasts and not just financial money managers. If Porsche stayed with just the 911, securing the exclusivity of the model, the company might very well be dead today.