Made in Slovakia
Ever since the Cayenne went into production in 2002, Slovakia has been its home base. A cook chunk of the SUV is built there, including body assembly, paint, engine, gearbox, drivetrain, under-chassis, and wheels. Back then, the cars were sent to Germany for the interior and final inspection before they went to dealers or were shipped out of the country.
That was the arrangement for years, although the Onsabrück plant was involved at some point. Porsche kept up the Bratislava-Leipzig assembly until the end of the second-generation Cayenne’s production. Now, it’s Bratislava that ships Cayennes worldwide for the most part, although assembly is in Malaysia for Southeast Asia.
Porsche
Moving Out, Allegedly
According to a Bloomberg report, Porsche plans to bring Cayenne production to Leipzig, once the site of the SUV’s final inspection. Right now, it’s home to the Panamera and Macan, including the electric version of the latter. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung added that the planned move is to maximize the Leipzig plant by utilizing spare capacity.
It was said that Porsche has declined to comment on the report, although this move is supposedly meant to help curb costs. The German news publication also mentioned that both combustion-powered and electric models of the Cayenne could be produced back in Germany.
Porsche
A Risky Move?
Now, there are many reasons the Cayenne is made in Bratislava, and cost is one of them. Labor rates are lower there than in Germany, allowing Porsche to earn more profit per unit. Its platform mates, namely the Audi Q7 and Q8, are also assembled there, making it easier to move components around the line and, of course, further lowering production costs.
So, it seems a little odd that production is planned to be moved to a country where it costs more to build per vehicle. The cars made in Leipzig also share fewer parts with the Cayenne, so setting everything up could cost Porsche even more money. Retooling a plant isn’t a cheap job to begin with.
At the moment, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports that negotiations are underway regarding the brand’s cost-saving measures. It was confirmed by a spokesperson, but nothing was mentioned about the Leipzig plant. In the meantime, nothing is fully confirmed, but it will be interesting to see how Porsche can retain profits from each Cayenne it builds should it make the move. Hopefully, it won’t be at the expense of using less expensive parts, especially for the next-gen gas-powered models.
Porsche
