Porsche

Porsche Automobil Holding SE

Type	Public, (Xetra: PAH3), (FWB: PAH3)
Industry	Automotive
Founded	1931
Founder(s)	Ferdinand Porsche
Headquarters	Zuffenhausen, Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Michael Macht, CEO
Products	Automobiles
Services	Automotive financial services, engineering services
Revenue	€7.273 billion (2006)
Owner(s)	Louise Piëch and Porsche family
Employees	11,910
Subsidiaries	Porsche AG Volkswagen AG
Website	Porsche-SE.com
References: scheduled to be merged under a mutual Volkswagen AG/Porsche SE "Integrated Automotive Group" in 2011[1][2]

Porsche Automobil Holding SE, usually shortened to Porsche SE ([ˈpɔʁʃə]^[3]), a Societas Europaea or European Public Company, is a German automotive manufacturer of luxury high performance automobiles, which is majority-owned by the Piëch and Porsche families. Porsche SE is headquartered in Zuffenhausen, a city district of Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg.

Porsche SE has one main subsidiary – Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG (which stands for Doktor Ingenieur honoris causa Ferdinand Porsche Aktiengesellschaft), often shortened to Porsche AG, which is responsible for the actual production and manufacture of the Porsche automobile line. The company is also the majority shareholder in Volkswagen AG, the parent company of the Volkswagen Group, which includes (but is not limited to) the automotive marques Audi, Volkswagen, Bentley Motors, Bugatti Automobiles, Škoda, Lamborghini and SEAT.

Overview

The company was founded as Dr. Ing. h. c. F. Porsche GmbH in 1931 by Ferdinand Porsche,^[4] an Austro-Hungarian engineer born in Maffersdorf, Austria-Hungary (today Vratislavice nad Nisou, Czech Republic). Ferdinand Porsche is also known for designing the first Volkswagen, but Béla Barényi is credited with having conceived the basic design five years earlier.^[5] The company currently produces 911 (997), Boxster and Cayman sports cars and Cayenne sport utility vehicles. The latest model line, the four-door Panamera saloon (sedan), was launched on Monday, 20 April 2009.

In August 2009, Porsche SE and Volkswagen AG reached an agreement that the two companies would merge in 2011, to form an "Integrated Automotive Group".^[1][2]

Reputation

1953 Porsche 356 Roadster

1992 Porsche 911 Turbo, Type 964

2005 Porsche 911 (997) Carrera S

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.^[6] The current Porsche model range 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 sport utility vehicle (SUV). The limited run Carrera GT ceased production in May 2006. A high performance luxury saloon/sedan, the Panamera, was launched on Monday, 20 April 2009, and is due to be released worldwide in September and October. Recently, a spider version of the Boxster was announced, and became available after it was unveiled at the 2009 Los Angeles Auto Show.

Porsche was awarded the 2006, 2009, and 2010 J.D. Power and Associates award for the highest-ranked nameplate in its Initial Quality Study (IQS) of automobile brands.^[7]

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. The headquarters and main factory are still in Zuffenhausen, a district in Stuttgart, but the Cayenne (and formerly the Carrera GT) is manufactured in Leipzig, Germany, parts^[8] for the SUV are assembled also in Bratislava, Slovakia. Most Boxster and Cayman production is outsourced to Valmet Automotive in Finland until 2012.^[9] 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.^[10]

Porsche Engineering Group (PEG) has for many years offered consultancy services to various other car manufacturers. Audi, Studebaker, SEAT, Daewoo, Subaru, Yugo and others have consulted Porsche Engineering Group for their cars or engines. The Lada Samara^[11] was partly developed by Porsche in 1984. Porsche Engineering Group also helped Harley-Davidson design their new Revolution water cooled engine and gearbox that is used in their V-Rod motorcycle.

SUV reception

According to CNBC, even an at-the-time questionable foray into the SUV market with the Cayenne in 2003, couldn't damage Porsche credibility.^[12] The Times journalist Andrew Frankel says on one level, it is the world's best 4x4, on another, it is the cynical exploitation of a glorious brand that risks long-term damage to that brand’s very identity in the pursuit of easy money^[13] with his verdict being "Great car, if only it wasn't a Porsche".^[13] Despite the controversy faced by critics, the Cayenne has been a success, generating enough profit for the company to invest in and upgrade the existing model range, as well as fund the Panamera project. As of August 2009, well over 250,000 Cayennes have been built.

History

Weimar-era Württemberg coat of arms

Professor Ferdinand Porsche founded the company called "Dr. Ing. h. c. F. Porsche GmbH" in 1931,^[14] with main offices at Kronenstraße 24 in the centre of Stuttgart. Initially, the company offered motor vehicle development work and consulting,^[14] but did not 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 German: Volkswagen.^[14] This resulted in the Volkswagen Beetle, one of the most successful car designs of all time. The first Porsche, the Porsche 64, was developed in 1939 using many components from the Beetle.^[14]

Porsche's tank prototype the "Porsche Tiger" that lost to Henschel & Son's Tiger I.

Panzerjäger Tiger, after the loss of the contract to the Tiger I Porsche recycled his design into a tank destroyer.

During World War II,^[15] Volkswagen production turned to the military version of the Volkswagen Beetle, the Kübelwagen,^[15] 52,000 produced, and Schwimmwagen,^[15] 14,000 produced. Porsche produced several designs for heavy tanks during the war, losing out to Henschel & Son in both contracts that ultimately led to the Tiger I and the Tiger II. However, not all this work was wasted, as the chassis Porsche designed for the Tiger I was used as the base for the Elefant tank destroyer. Porsche also developed the Maus super-heavy tank in the closing stages of the war, producing two prototypes.

At the end of WW2 in 1945, the Volkswagen factory at Wolfsburg fell to the British. Ferdinand lost his position as Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen, and a British Army Major – Ivan Hirst was put in charge of the factory. (In Wolfsburg, the Volkswagen company magazine dubbed him "The British Major who saved Volkswagen."^[16]) On 15 December of that year, Ferdinand was arrested for war crimes, but not tried. 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 wanted to buy. He also had to steer the company through some of its most difficult days until his father's release in August 1947.^[17] The first models of what was to become the 356 were built in a small sawmill in Gmünd, Austria.^[17] 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 a Zuffenhausen-based company, Reutter Karosserie, which had previously collaborated with the firm on Volkswagen Beetle prototypes, to produce the 356's steel body. In 1952, Porsche constructed an assembly plant (Werk 2) across the street from Reutter Karosserie; the main road in front of Werk 1, the oldest Porsche building, is now known as Porschestrasse.^[18] The 356 was road certified in 1948.

Coat of arms of Stuttgart

Porsche's company logo was based on the coat of arms of Free People's State of Württemberg of former Weimar Germany, which had Stuttgart as its capital and became part of Baden-Württemberg after the political consolidation of West Germany in 1949.

Not long afterwards, on 30 January 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 internal combustion engine, transmission, and suspension. The 356, however, had several evolutionary stages, A, B, and C, while in production, and many Volkswagen 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 six-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 unauthorized changes to the design. Company leader Ferry Porsche took his son's drawings to neighboring chassis manufacturer Reuter. Reuter's workshop was later acquired by Porsche (so-called Werk 2). 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 and iconic model – successful on the race-track, in rallies, and in terms of road car 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 coupé, 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 Kommanditgesellschaft (KG), or limited partnership, to Aktiengesellschaft (AG), or public limited company, 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 five-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 Porsche 912, from the 1960s

The first Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Porsche AG was Dr. Ernst Fuhrmann, who had been working in the company'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 overhead camshafts instead of a central overhead camshaft, as in the Volkswagen-derived serial engines. He planned to cease the 911 during the 1970s, 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 1980s by Peter W. Schutz, an American manager and self-proclaimed 911 aficionado. He was then 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, rumoured to be making its way into a Hybrid Cayenne SUV and, announced for the 2011 model four-door coupé, the Porsche 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 percent of the Porsche voting shares, he also remains the second largest individual shareholder of Porsche AG after his cousin, F. A. Porsche, (13.6 percent).

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 third most powerful production engine in Porsche's history, with the most powerful belonging to the Carrera GT (605 hp) and the second being the 997 GT2 (530 hp). The 500 hp of the Cayenne Turbo S matches the "997 II" Turbo's output.

In 2004, production of the 456 kilowatts (620 PS; 612 bhp) 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 Piëch 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 (VW AG), and disclosed intentions to acquire additional VW AG shares in the future. As of June 2006, the Porsche AG stake in VW AG had risen to 25.1%, giving Porsche a blocking minority, whereby Porsche can veto large corporate decisions undertaken by VW AG.

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.^[19]

Profits

Porsche's 2006/2007 fiscal year's net profit was €4.2 billion. Out of this €3.6 billion was from stock option transactions, most presumably from Volkswagen AG and its dividends.

Table of profits in millions of euros:

The 911, the top selling model as of June 2006

The 987, the 2006 Boxster model

European sales

North American sales

Annual sales 2003–2005

model	2003[20]		2004[21]		2005[22]
	units	% of total	units	% of total	units	% of total
911 (996)	9,935 ( 18%)	33%	10,227 ( 3%)	31%	10,653 ( 4%)	31%
Boxster	6,432 ( 38%)	21%	3,728 ( 42%)	11%	8,327 ( 123%)	25%
Cayenne	13,661	45%	19,134 ( 40%)	57%	14,524 ( 24%)	43%
total	30,028 ( 33%)		33,289 ( 11%)		33,859 ( 2%)

Annual sales 2006–2008

model	2006[23]		2007[24]		2008[25]
	units	% of total	units	% of total	units	% of total
911 (997)	12,702 ( 19%)	35%	13,153 ( 4%)	36%	8,324 ( 37%)	30%
Boxster	4,850 ( 42%)	14%	3,904 ( 24%)	11%	2,982 ( 24%)	11%
Cayman	7,313	20%	6,249 ( 17%)	17%	3,513 ( 44%)	13%
Cayenne	11,141 ( 23%)	31%	13,370 ( 20%)	36%	12,898 ( 4%)	46%
total	36,095 ( 7%)		36,680 ( 2%)		27,717 ( 24%)

U.S. sales

Annual sales 2009^[26]

model	2009
	units	% of total
911 (997)	6,839 ( 17.8%)	35.00%
Boxster	1,909 ( 36.0%)	9.69%
Cayman	1,966 ( 44.0%)	9.98%
Panamera	1,247	6.33%
Cayenne	7,735 ( 31.0%)	39.27%
total	19,696 ( 24.3%)

Relationship with Volkswagen

The company has always had a close relationship with, initially, the Volkswagen (VW) marque, and later, the Volkswagen Group (which also owns AUDI AG), because the first Volkswagen Beetle was designed by Ferdinand Porsche. (Initial production of the first Beetle was made with cooperation and by Daimler-Benz AG). 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 Audi's Neckarsulm factory. Most Porsche 944s also were built there, although they used far fewer Volkswagen components. The Cayenne, introduced in 2002, shares its entire chassis with Volkswagen Touareg and Audi Q7, which is built at the Volkswagen Group factory in Bratislava. In late 2005, Porsche took an 18.65% stake in the Volkswagen Group, further cementing their relationship, and preventing a takeover of Volkswagen Group, which was rumoured at the time. Speculated suitors included DaimlerChrysler AG, BMW, and Renault.

On 26 March 2007, Porsche took its holding of Volkswagen AG shares to 30.9%, triggering a takeover bid under German Law. Porsche then formally announced in a press statement that it did not intend to take over Volkswagen Group (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 Volkswagen Group, which is Porsche's most important partner.^[27] Porsche's move comes after the European Union moved against a German Law that protected Volkswagen AG from takeovers. Under the so-called "Volkswagen Law", any shareholder with more than 20% of the voting rights has veto power over any corporate decision in the annual general meeting – in effect, any shareholder in VW AG cannot exercise more than 20% of the firm's voting rights, regardless of their level of stock holding. (The local state government of Lower Saxony owns 20.1% of the shares.^[28]) However, the European Court of Justice ruled against the law, potentially paving the way for a takeover.^[29]

On 16 September 2008, Porsche increased its shares by another 4.89%,^[30] in effect taking control of the company, with more than 35% of the voting rights. It again triggered a takeover bid, but this time over Audi. Porsche dismissed the bid as a mere formality, since it is Porsche's intention to keep the corporate structure of the Volkswagen Group.

There has been some tension and anxiety amongst the Volkswagen Group workers, who fear that a Porsche takeover might signify a hardened production efficiency control, rejection of demands for payment rises or even personnel cuts.^[31] Ferdinand Piëch and his cousin, Wolfgang Porsche, also seemed to be on a collision course.^[31]

On 13 August, Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft's Supervisory Board signed the agreement to create an 'integrated automotive group' with Porsche, led by Volkswagen AG. Volkswagen will initially take a 49.9 percent stake in Porsche AG by the end of 2009, and it will also see the family shareholders selling the automobile trading business of Porsche Holding Salzburg to Volkswagen AG.^[32]

Corporate restructuring

Through the Volkswagen AG stake acquisition, Porsche reformed the company's structure, with Dr Ing. h. c. F. Porsche AG becoming a holding company, renamed "Porsche Automobil Holding SE",^[33] and a new Dr Ing. h. c. F. Porsche AG operating company being formed in 2007.^[34] Thus the operating activities are separated from holding activities of the company.^[35] There was an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) for Porsche AG shareholders which took place on 26 June 2007, at the Porsche Arena in Stuttgart, Germany to discuss the change to the company structure.^[36]

On 3 March 2008, Porsche set the stage for obtaining a plurality stake in the Volkswagen AG. One day later Porsche sought to allay fears it would attempt to force a merger with Volkswagen Group.^[37] By September, Porsche owned a 35.14% plurality stake in Volkswagen AG, effectively giving it control over the company.^[38] Volkswagen Group expected the move, and welcomed Porsche's investment.^[39]

On October 26, 2008, Porsche announced its intent to raise its stake in Volkswagen AG to 75% during 2009.

On 7 January 2009, Porsche's holding in VW AG was raised to 50.76%.^[40] Porsche's move automatically triggered a bid for Scania AB, because VW AG already had a controlling position in the Swedish truck-maker.^[41] As Porsche had no strategic interest in the company, on 19 January, they offered the minimum price in that mandatory takeover bid.^[42] Porsche SE owned 50.8 percent of Volkswagen Group as of 5 January 2009, and has said it plans to lift the stake to 75 percent before the end of 2009, at that level they could bring VW AG's cash onto Porsche's books.^[43]

By March 2009, Porsche SE was aiming for its first ever credit ratings from U.S. rating agencies Standard & Poor's and Moody's.^[44]

In its efforts to acquire a majority holding in Volkswagen AG, Porsche built up a large debt burden, aggravated by taxes due on very large paper profits from Volkswagen AG options. By July 2009, Porsche was faced with debts exceeding 10 billion euros. The supervisory board of Porsche finally agreed to a number of arrangements whereby the Qatar Investment Authority would inject a large amount of capital, and Porsche would be merged with Volkswagen Group. On 23 July 2009, Michael Macht was appointed CEO, to replace Wendelin Wiedeking, who is expected to receive a compensation package of 50 million euros.^{[45][46][47][48]}

According to CNBC, "Volkswagen has Sealed the Deal for Porsche" as of 14 August 2009.

On 31 August, reports began circulating that under Volkswagen Group's umbrella, the Cayenne and Panamera will be axed from Porsche's line-up once they complete their model cycles in seven years, so as to reduce competition with Volkswagen's current SUV and saloon offerings. Volkswagen Group believes that it is oversaturated with SUVs and saloons, and will thus restructure Porsche to be a strictly sports car-producing marque. This would mean that the Boxster, Cayman and 911 would survive, along with rumored introductions of a successor to the Carrera GT supercar, an entry-level roadster to be positioned below the current Boxster and a two-door vehicle based on the current Panamera. The reports, however, are yet to be confirmed from either Porsche or Volkswagen AG.^[49]

On 2 September, an article was published revealing that Porsche executives dismissed the rumours surrounding the Cayenne and Panamera demises as absurd, for numerous reasons, two of which state that:

• Volkswagen Group CEO Martin Winterkorn's recent pledge to have Porsche producing 150,000 vehicles annually within the next few years would be near-impossible without the Cayenne, as it is the company's best-selling vehicle, and allowed it to penetrate foreign markets such as Russia and China.
• A one billion Euro investment programme was dedicated to the development of the Panamera, a feat which involved the expansion of Porsche's Leipzig production facility (where the Cayenne is currently built) to accommodate production of the Panamera.

Therefore, it would seem illogical to terminate two of Porsche's most ambitious projects. Confirmation on whether or not the vehicles will be terminated is yet to be received from Volkswagen Group or Porsche officials.^[50]

Motorsport

The Martini Racing blue and green "psychedelic" livery on a 1970 917K. This car raced at Watkins Glen in 1970.

Porsche is the most successful brand in motorsport, 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).^[51]

Pronunciation of "Porsche"

In English use, Porsche is often pronounced as a single syllable (/ˈpɔrʃ/), without a final /ə/. However, the company's proper pronunciation is /ˈpɔrʃə/ POR-shə^[52] ("Porsh-uh"), as German language words do not have silent "e".

Models

Consumer models

• 911 4-seat Sports targa, coupe and cabriolet
• Boxster 2-seat Roadster
• Cayenne SUV
• Cayman 2-seat Sports coupe
• Panamera 4-seat Sports saloon

Tractors

Porsche Diesel Super

Racing models

Note: models in bold are current models

Prototypes and concept cars

Electric vehicles

Porsche plans to offer an electric version of its famous model Porsche 911.^[53]

Aircraft engines

See Porsche PFM 3200.

See also

References

External links

• Porsche Automobil Holding SE – the top-tier parent company
• Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG Porsche automobiles international portal
• Porsche Engineering
• Porsche Leipzig
• Porsche Peru
• Porsche Design Group
• DigitalLook.com financial information – Porsche Automobil Holding SE (PAH3)

Video clips

• Porsche YouTube channel

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