Say it ain’t so!
Porsche is easily one of the most well recognized and respected sports car makers in the automotive world. Their history is rich with innovation and success in motorsports that has translated into superb products on and off the racetrack. Throughout its history, the 911 has been the backbone and quintessential Porsche model. Now, the production of that legendary model is coming to an end.
After 50 years of production, Porsche is going to end production on the 911. The news comes as a huge surprise after Stuttgart celebrated the 50th anniversary of the 911 in 2013 and recently introduced the new 991-generation model.
The decision to end production of the model comes after long and heated discussions between President and CEO of Porsche AG Matthias Müller and the board of executives.
“While the 911 has been a part of the Porsche DNA for over 50 years, we believe that in order to take the next step in terms of development is to end the production of the model,” said Müller. “In order to remain committed to being at the forefront of sports cars, we must recognize the drawbacks that the rear-engined layout presents. While the design of the 911 remains iconic, we believe that we have taken the platform and its design to the limit. We remain committed to giving our customer base and the sports car marketplace with a competitive product, and with that commitment we have decided that we must move on to more hybrid-based, mid-engined sports cars.”
The news comes as a complete shock to the automotive world as a whole as the rear-engined Porsche 911 provided a unique driving dynamic that was successful in motorsports. The desire to end the production of the 911 on a high note, rather than slowly succumb to the limitations of its rear-engined layout is understandable but incredibly hard to witness knowing the impact that it has had on the Porsche brand and automotive world as a whole.
Thankfully, Porsche will continue to make the 911 for the next three years, but the 991-generation will be the final model-generation produced. Porsche plans on unveiling a steady stream of special edition and performance models over the next few years, culminating with a limited final edition model to signal the end of the 911.
April 1st, 2014 will forever be known as one of the saddest days in Stuttgart.
Are you sad to hear that Porsche will stop producing the 911 in the next few years?
