Actual sales in November of 2011 were down in all regions compared to November of 2010, with the biggest decline of 9.1 percent occurring in North America. Within regions, sales seemed to vary widely by country; Italy, for example, saw November sales growth of 31.2 percent, while sales in Germany declined by 13.1 percent.
The situation was similar in the Asian region, with sales up by 36.5 percent in Japan, likely due to a strong Japanese yen, but down by 11.5 percent in China. Porsche attributes this decline to long lead times on popular Chinese models such as Cayenne and Panamera.
Porsche’s best selling vehicle, much to the dismay of brand purists, remains the Cayenne SUV. In November, Porsche sold 9,318 vehicles worldwide, of which nearly 5,000 were Cayennes.
The Stuttgart-based automaker is adding a third shift to its Leipzig plant in order to up production of both Cayenne and Panamera models. In addition, it’s confident that the newly-redesigned 911 will begin to have a positive impact on sales, beginning as early as December.
Porsche saw profits rise by 59 percent in the first half of 2011, and it’s likely that the second half will deliver comparable results. The automaker has a stated goal of selling 200,000 units per year by 2018; based on its current rate of sales growth, it will hit this target with four years to spare.