Porsche has offered just a sketch of the Macan but could reveal more at the upcoming Paris Motor Show.
Porsche is clearly counting on the new Macan crossover to deliver big next year, accounting for perhaps 40% of its total global sales volume, a significant feat for any vehicle, never mind an all-new and untested product.
Named for an Indonesian tiger, the Macan is a downsized counterpart to the long-popular Porsche Cayenne and is based on the same platform as the Audi Q5. Porsche promises it will “combine all sports car characteristics with the benefits of an SUV.”
The benefits to Porsche, in fact, will be on the bottom line, the maker now telling suppliers to tool up to provide parts for 75,000 of the crossovers next year. That’s a big jump from Porsche’s original forecast that it would sell just 45,000.
The increase was first reported by German news magazine WirtschaftsWoche which cited orders from Porsche’s purchasing chief Uwe-Karsten Staedter.
The sports carmaker recently completed its merger into the Volkswagen fold and it is clearly setting its own sights on big growth. In 2011 Porsche sold 118,867 vehicles worldwide. And it wants to pump that up to 200,000 by 2018. If the Macan order is any indication, it could get there sooner.
It’s uncertain whether Porsche anticipates Macan to generate totally incremental sales or if the new crossover – previously codenamed Cajun – will cannibalize some sales for other, existing models like the Porsche Cayenne.
But, based on sales growth so far this year and potential increases in 2013, the Macan could nudge Porsche close to the 200,000 mark and would account for as much as 40% of the maker’s total volume if it hits that 75,000 target.
The Macan will become the fifth model in the Porsche line-up and the second crossover. The maker generated plenty of skeptics when it announced plans for the original Cayenne, more than a decade ago, but that bigger CUV has proved to be the most popular model in the maker’s line-up – a crown it could soon cede to Macan.
The maker is expected to offer a number of variants – in typical Porsche fashion – and at least three different powerplants. That starts with a 3.0-liter V6 that will be shared around the world. It is expected to turn out 290 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque. A Cajun Turbo S is also reportedly coming, and will use twin turbos to bump hp to around 350. The third engine, a diesel, may also come to the States, according to various reports.
The new offering will be produced at Porsche’s plant in Leipzig and the maker has already begun to prepare for the launch by investing 500 million Euros, or about $685 million in the plant – which already produces the Cayenne. About 1,000 new jobs are being added to handle production of the new Porsche Macan.
Porsche may provide more official news about Macan during its news conference at the upcoming Paris Motor Show.