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The unfortunate situation we have is that the car's transfer price is locked in during product/program development. Regardless of what the currency is doing the home room takes the risk on its movement. What we have happening at the moment is quite abnormal for the AUD being as high as it is and Porsche AG would never have banked on it being this high. With this in mind if they did move the price to compensate on the fact that the dollar has increased by 40% the right way for them, they will be screwed when it moves the other way and it will, if they decide to reduce the 911 pricing. Hell drop the pricing by 100K I am all for it. It means I will have major pain now but next time I get in cheaper. Whether I take the hit in year 2 or year 5 its still going to be a hit.

 

The ludicrous thing about the 991 is that they decided to increase the price from the previous model by 10% this should never had occured. I also believe there was another price increase in January, now not sure if Australia was hit with this but NA certainly was. As you stated Coastr, most people buying 911s at the moment are not ones looking for a "sports car". There are other cars out there that will give the buyer a higher "status" than a 911 would for the same or potentially less money. I cant see myself buying anything other than Porsche, I have the blinkers on but nothing else stirs the senses like sitting behind the 911 does. I was asked by friends how the "experience" was in purchasing the 911. My comment to them was it was like going back to see long lost family overseas. You know you belong and feel comfortable. Its a strange question to ask someone but this also translates to the status part of the purchase. For me I didnt buy a Porsche for the status, if anyone knows me I dont do things for status if anything I am dead set against it, I did it because as my wife said "that smile on your face is amazing and says it all. Its good to be back isnt it?"

 

Also the protection of the car industry is lower than the US tarrifs in Australia are 5% or less whereas in the US they are over 15% (dont quote me on this but I have seen it on presentation my wife has done). What screws us is the LCT. This just lines the gorvernment pockets and I can tell you now the local manufacturers dont like it either.

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If anyone out of porsche be upset with the results, it would be the Aussie arm of Porsche. At the same time if we are not a big part of the market for them I would not see much changes happening in a rush. (simply due to the dynamics of our market place, everything is expensive here!)

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Spoke to a guy who runs one of the Asian countries for Porsche (better not say which!).  He quite openly said that worldwide sales of the 991 have been disappointing and Porsche is scratching their head trying to work out where they got it wrong and what they should do about it.  Inside view is that they have nailed it with the Boxster but missed with the 911.  BTW, he also said there is lots of cultural change taking place with the VW/Audi guys increasingly calling the shots and the old Porsche guys quietly being purged.

 

As for the pricing . ..  I'm in the camp that blame our government's stupidity more than the mfr.  Even if you ignore new cars where an argument can (maybe) be made for protecting local mfr, why the hell can't I parallel import a 15 year old Porsche?!!  Why can a Kiwi  buy a 993 for half what we have to pay?  It's a joke.

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Do we seriously believe that a person who is shoping for a Holden, Ford or Toyota is all of a sudden going to change their minds because LCT or tarrifs have vanished and buy a Porsche, BMW, Merc, Ferarri etc? They are a totally different market. Yes, NZ is the dumping ground for all grey imports. Hell Holden even did it when they were about to launch Cadillac in Australia back in 07/08 (from memory). They had 80 CTSs sitting at the docs that they quickly sent to NZ for sale.

 

Let say LCT was not in the equation we are still 100K more than the US market and that is comparing RRP with MSRP. This has nothing to do with our government, this is PCA and P AG treating us like fools. Dont forget the US prices listed do not include any of their stupid taxes either so the pricing is usually 10-18% higher than we see. The US mentality is to always talk EX taxes when talking products. I struggled with that concept when I was over there. You would negotiate a price that you were comfortable with and then all of a sudden the stupid state taxes would kick in.

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Do we seriously believe that a person who is shoping for a Holden, Ford or Toyota is all of a sudden going to change their minds because LCT or tarrifs have vanished and buy a Porsche, BMW, Merc, Ferarri etc? They are a totally different market.

Arthur

 

I've got a Holden and I bought a Porsche, I'm just saying.........

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Spoke to a guy who runs one of the Asian countries for Porsche (better not say which!).  He quite openly said that worldwide sales of the 991 have been disappointing and Porsche is scratching their head trying to work out where they got it wrong and what they should do about it.  Inside view is that they have nailed it with the Boxster but missed with the 911.  BTW, he also said there is lots of cultural change taking place with the VW/Audi guys increasingly calling the shots and the old Porsche guys quietly being purged.

 

As for the pricing . ..  I'm in the camp that blame our government's stupidity more than the mfr.  Even if you ignore new cars where an argument can (maybe) be made for protecting local mfr, why the hell can't I parallel import a 15 year old Porsche?!!  Why can a Kiwi  buy a 993 for half what we have to pay?  It's a joke.

 

The situation with getting it right with the Boxter but missing it with the 911 is that the Boxter''s quality etc is getting better and still is a porsche for half the $'s you pay for 911.

So there is a larger segment of population of the population could be the audience here. And when performance is up there with 911 then the price is quite attractive.

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Arthur

 

I've got a Holden and I bought a Porsche, I'm just saying.........

Yeah but you didnt say I am not buying a Holden because Porsche now is 100K cheaper...........

 

I too drive a Holden. More to the point my next Holden is a 1.4T SRiV Cruze. You dont toss up buying a sedan vs 911.

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Do we seriously believe that a person who is shoping for a Holden, Ford or Toyota is all of a sudden going to change their minds because LCT or tarrifs have vanished and buy a Porsche, BMW, Merc, Ferarri etc? They are a totally different market. Yes, NZ is the dumping ground for all grey imports. Hell Holden even did it when they were about to launch Cadillac in Australia back in 07/08 (from memory). They had 80 CTSs sitting at the docs that they quickly sent to NZ for sale.

 

Let say LCT was not in the equation we are still 100K more than the US market and that is comparing RRP with MSRP. This has nothing to do with our government, this is PCA and P AG treating us like fools. Dont forget the US prices listed do not include any of their stupid taxes either so the pricing is usually 10-18% higher than we see. The US mentality is to always talk EX taxes when talking products. I struggled with that concept when I was over there. You would negotiate a price that you were comfortable with and then all of a sudden the stupid state taxes would kick in.

 

Arthur, with respect - the government has everything to do with it because it denies us the ability to purchase a Porsche from another location and import it ourselves.  In  other countries (including the USA) you have this option, therefore the dealer cannot charge an excessive price or buyers will start importing their own.   The governemt also does this with books and music and hence we pay double the going price for these items.  Luckily for books they are unable to stop the flow completely, but because we have to register vehicles for road use, they've got us.   This is far more important to the overall price than just GST or LCT, as you quite rightly point out that many US states have taxes that get added to the final price.

 

It's not that a Porsche is in competition with a Toyota or Ford, but they are in competition with any large discretionary spend.  So maybe some of that money goes to a cheaper sports car, maybe it goes to a boat, maybe it just goes into something else completely.  The enthusiasts who have the money will just spend it and get on with it, but there is a whole other tier of people who have the money but don't see value in an overpriced car, and so the money doesn't see any car dealership.   I personally know people in the states who have bought the odd porsche in their life, and it's never been a case of 'I really want a Porsche'.  It's more a case of 'I've got the money to spend on something nice, I might drop by the Porsche dealer'.  That market is gone in Australia, because you've got to be a committed Porsche buyer to plunk down on a new 911.

 

If the price of a Porsche was cut from $300k down to $180k, you're still not competing with Holden but you are going to find a lot more buyers.  That is the point, and the main thing that is stopping that from happening is government protection and inertia.

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Coaster is right with the Govt. issue.

I do believe there is colaboration between the Govt. and Co.s like Porsche to grab the public by their throat ( or other things!) and do what they want to them as it's a win-win situation for both, and who cares about a bunch of guys that have enough money to chuck it at them.

More money in porsche's pocket is more money in taxes. both happy!

And that how it work for them too in having the ban on importing the Porsches. So if you and I can't import one then we have to use or local importer, which in this case is the manufacturer, and think of that "win-win"situation mentioned above, they're both happy.

So that's why the likes of Porsche so boldly name their prices  down here and bravely inflate them here and there without a worry in the world. Not to mention that they are a good marque and know that people will go to them anyway.

That's the dynamic.

I call that govt. and Co. relationship "the axis of evil"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Arthur, with respect - the government has everything to do with it because it denies us the ability to purchase a Porsche from another location and import it ourselves. In other countries (including the USA) you have this option, therefore the dealer cannot charge an excessive price or buyers will start importing their own. The governemt also does this with books and music and hence we pay double the going price for these items. Luckily for books they are unable to stop the flow completely, but because we have to register vehicles for road use, they've got us. This is far more important to the overall price than just GST or LCT, as you quite rightly point out that many US states have taxes that get added to the final price.

 

It's not that a Porsche is in competition with a Toyota or Ford, but they are in competition with any large discretionary spend. So maybe some of that money goes to a cheaper sports car, maybe it goes to a boat, maybe it just goes into something else completely. The enthusiasts who have the money will just spend it and get on with it, but there is a whole other tier of people who have the money but don't see value in an overpriced car, and so the money doesn't see any car dealership. I personally know people in the states who have bought the odd porsche in their life, and it's never been a case of 'I really want a Porsche'. It's more a case of 'I've got the money to spend on something nice, I might drop by the Porsche dealer'. That market is gone in Australia, because you've got to be a committed Porsche buyer to plunk down on a new 911.

 

If the price of a Porsche was cut from $300k down to $180k, you're still not competing with Holden but you are going to find a lot more buyers. That is the point, and the main thing that is stopping that from happening is government protection and inertia.

 

Right so this give Porsche the right to suck every last cent out of its clients in Australia? Seriously!

 

If Porsche AG was serious about the Australian market they would position the car in a more appealing price bracket. Just because there are rules in place to prevent someone from doing parallel imports should not give corporations the right to just plainly rape its clients and consumers. If you seriously believe the dealers are the ones in the wrong here well then you have missed the point.

 

Lets say the government is screwing you, me and every other consumer over. Then dont you think as a good coroporate citizen Porsche should do the right thing and really shove it up the government by limiting their revenue in LCT and GST? Lets assume that the cost of living in Australia is the tax system. Why is there $100K+ difference at the dealership between our cars? All of this difference is going straight in PCA and PAG pockets not the governments.

 

I think we agree to a certain degree but I am putting the blame into the coroporations corner rather than the gorvernments. I run my own company and if I were to do the same thing I wouldnt survive very long with the practices that Porsche has adopted. I have already said way too much about German marque's executives but if you knew half the stuff these guys say about Australia and their consumers, you would be horrified.

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More to the point isnt it Valentine's Day today? Why are we discussing bad government policy and irresponsilbe corporations? We should be with our loved ones. Its a pleasant night to be taking our beloved 4 wheel girls out for a spin. :)

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I think there's plenty of blame to go around.  Yes, Porsche, BMW, etc. are being greedy.  They are taking advantage of the protected market position our government has handed them.  But at the end of the day they are in the money making business and I think you have to put the majority of the blame on our union-protecting government.  If we were free to import cars from other countries you can be damn sure the mfrs would quickly cut their prices to match the rest of the world.

 

Personally, I'd settle for dropping the 25 year import rule down to 5-10 years.  I'd have my 993 within a month and for half the price!

 

Better run before my Valentine loses her sense of humour!

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I think there's plenty of blame to go around.  Yes, Porsche, BMW, etc. are being greedy.  They are taking advantage of the protected market position our government has handed them.  But at the end of the day they are in the money making business and I think you have to put the majority of the blame on our union-protecting government.  If we were free to import cars from other countries you can be damn sure the mfrs would quickly cut their prices to match the rest of the world.

 

Personally, I'd settle for dropping the 25 year import rule down to 5-10 years.  I'd have my 993 within a month and for half the price!

 

Better run before my Valentine loses her sense of humour!

 

It's not a 25 year import rule.  The date is stuck at 1 Jan 1989, and there it will stay forever unless the legislation is changed.  You will never be able to import a 964 or 993 unless you bring it in under personal import, which means living and using the car in another country for 12 months before importing.

 

IIRC it used to be around 10-15 years.  It was changed because the 'motor industry' wanted to kill Japanese grey imports before Australians woke up to the fact that they were getting fleeced rotten.  At the time it was all about saving the children, as these things usually are.  I distinctly remember Toyota coming out and saying that grey imports were not safe, even though they manufactured them in  their own factories and sold them by the million to willing Japanese customers.

 

Bah this protectionist rubbish just makes me angry so I'll leave off.  Yes, the manufacturers are being greedy, but hand me a nice little protected market and I would find it hard to resist temptation as well.

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I am not standing up for the manufacturers, and def not standing up for the Govt, but I think it is an over simplification to just compare converted prices.

The AUD is above parity now, but equally I have seen it where the AUD bought less than USD 0.50. Our currently bloated AUD does exaggerate the price comparison. Long term exchange rate sits somewhere in between, and if used for the price comparison it does shrink the price differential.

Not saying the exchange rate accounts for all the difference, just that it exaggerates the difference.

I could start up on cost of doing business in Australia, but that's probs too political ;)

MHO

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I am not standing up for the manufacturers, and def not standing up for the Govt, but I think it is an over simplification to just compare converted prices.

The AUD is above parity now, but equally I have seen it where the AUD bought less than USD 0.50. Our currently bloated AUD does exaggerate the price comparison. Long term exchange rate sits somewhere in between, and if used for the price comparison it does shrink the price differential.

Not saying the exchange rate accounts for all the difference, just that it exaggerates the difference.

I could start up on cost of doing business in Australia, but that's probs too political ;)

MHO

All in all Porsche should not have hiked their price with the new model. I'not saying that they should have chupped it in half either. A proper and comprehensive analysis would have justified a low $200Ks mark. At least for this model 911.

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Every one should read these links.

 

Excellent find BMERRERA

I read those- the Quotes from the Porsche representatives are insulting to say the least. He's treating his customers and prospective customers like idiots who cannot add up.

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either way you look at it, currency, govt charges, people buying new Porsche's in Australia are getting totally ripped off compared to other countries.

 

facts are facts, we pay more, sometimes 2.5 times more for the same car!!

 

now lets all go buy shares in Porsche instead of their cars :D

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either way you look at it, currency, govt charges, people buying new Porsche's in Australia are getting totally ripped off compared to other countries.

 

facts are facts, we pay more, sometimes 2.5 times more for the same car!!

 

now lets all go buy shares in Porsche instead of their cars :D

JJ,

I have some shares but enjoy the Porsche much more, if I have to choose between the shares & the Porsche the shares are going first.

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