Porsche 911 rollout rolls on

JANUARY’S release of the upgraded GT3 will by no means spell the end of Porsche’s facelifted 911 model rollout.

Launched last week ahead of first deliveries in early 2010, the latest GT3 will be one of the few 911 variants to increase in price next year, when Porsche Cars Australia (PCA) is expected to lower prices across the board after the federal import duty is cut from 10 to five per cent.

Porsche soon will reveal an official price for the GT3 of around $282,000 – up about $25,000 on its limited-production predecessor, which was sold here before the federal luxury car tax rate increased from 25 to 33 per cent.

It will be the exception to the rule, however, as PCA works to improve the value equation of most models for 2010, pricing for which will also be revealed soon.

Porsche’s Australian chief Michael Winkler confirmed price adjustments were to come next year.

“We are working our way through the duty reduction now – the goal across all models is to pass on the duty reduction to customers," he said.

“We’re calculating our way through the duty reduction and the value equation, and it’s likely the adjustment will be down.

“Buyers will be better off, but still worse off than before the LCT rise, because a five per cent duty reduction does not negate an eight per cent LCT increase.”

Left: Porsche 911 Sport Classic, Porsche 911 Turbo, Porsche Boxster Spyder, current Porsche 911 GT2.

Mr Winkler said adjustments would apply to all Porsche models except the Panamera, which was launched last month with prices ranging between $270,200 for the S and $364,900 for the Turbo flagship.

“Panamera prices will be unchanged because essentially we are already subsidising the reduced duty rate for that model,” he said.

As previously reported, the upgraded 911 Turbo, which will also hit Australian Porsche showrooms in January, is expected to drop in price from $361,000 to about $355,000 because the previous 911T price was subject to 33 per cent LCT.

The prices of garden-variety versions of the MkII 997-series 911 coupe and cabriolet should fall by lesser amounts, but it’s not yet known what pricetag will be carried by the additional 911 Sport Classic ‘whale-tail’ model, just three examples of which will arrive here around April.

Similarly, the Boxster Spyder, which will make its debut at the Los Angeles motor show on December 2, will be an additional model. Mr Winkler confirmed the chopped-top convertible would carry a premium over the Boxster S upon which it is based, but it will still be cheaper than the mid-engined Cayman coupe.

Only around 30 examples of the Spyder will be sold here a year, with a 12 to 18-month production run expected to see out the current generation of Porsche’s compact roadster before it is replaced.

Also due here around April is the wicked RS version of the new 911 GT3, which made its global debut at Frankfurt in September. PCA already holds 24 orders for the “racecar with number plates” – a number that will all but exhaust production for Australia, which commences in February.

Mr Winkler said it was too early to speculate on the price of the upgraded GT2, which will emerge next year and is expected to go on sale in Australia before the end of 2010. A limited number of the current 911 GT2 arrived here in March 2008.

While the turbocharged rear-drive GT2 will again be the most formidable track-focussed 911 variant, the all-wheel drive Turbo S will complete the 997 MkII rollout in 2011, before the redesigned 911 emerges.

Porsche next year will introduce its second-generation Cayenne SUV, including its first hybrid model (see separate story).

What’s coming from Porsche:
911 GT3	January
911 Turbo	January
911 Sport Classic	April
Boxster Spyder	April
911 GT3 RS	April
911 GT3 RS	April
911 GT2	Late 2010
Cayenne MkII/Hybrid	Late 2010
911 Turbo S	2011
Panamera Hybrid	2011
VW BlueSport-based model	2011
998-series 911	2011
988-series Boxster	2012
988-series Cayman	2012
Roxster compact SUV	2013
Panamera-based coupe	2013
Panamera-based convertible	2014