WhiteBlue wrote:Raptor22 wrote:Lets wait and see. VAG have a history of raiding the group arts bin and synergising technology transfer across the brands for competition as well as production purposes.
That is an interesting point you make. But it neglects the painful lessons that VW have learned in balancing brand reputation and platform synergies. They are probably the most experienced corporate body world wide with that kind of expertise.
We are all very technically focussed here on F1T and engineers tend to overlook what their monetary savings in R&D and production does to brand value and brand reputation. Marketing gurus can fill volumes with the painful experience that you make when you are optimizing these kind of advanced issues in a gigantic corporation such as the VW/Porsche group. Money is being burned like nothing you have seen before. It is like a third Irak war if you allow me the analogy.
The brand value of the Porsche brand must be a considerable fortune and I believe that ultimately the premiums that Porsche cars command will depend of a superior showing in a world class racing series. LMP1 isn't going to give the Porsche marketing people the kind of penetration they need for their future campaigns. So they must be desperate to influence F1 governance and their own positioning to take advanatge of any opportunities that may present themselves in the near future.
Sure, but the VAG group is not about burning money an ego trips. The lower state of Saxony holds 20% voting shares while the Porsche and Piech families holds 50.73% (not to be confused with Dr.Ing hc F. Porsche Aktiengesellschaft, the maker of Porsche branded automobiles). The Piech end of the family, specifically Ferdinand, is an efficiency guy. He's not to drop 1 Billion Euro on a Formula 1 programme in the current concorde agreement. Not with the dice loaded toward Ferrari and Mercede's. Renault are sitting on the fence. They found themselves in the Formula but cut back spending drastically in 2008.
Clearly the company is still answerable to the German people although that is not such a big problem if the business case for motorsports provides employment within the region, but it will have also have to bring brand value across the brand family, not just Porsche.
If Porsche wants into F1 they will have to fund it themselves. Only way they will get group money out of Piech and Winterkorn is if there is resource sharing.
The common engine that was being pushed by Mosley was also supported by VAG and its shareholders due to the engine platform being able to be shared across brands and therefore also regions in Germany which would have a sort decentralising of motorsport technology in Germany.
With the current participants being unyielding on the new engines I think VW are not going to get too excited about F1. There is vested interest in keeping VAG out as well because of their size and the number of brands they hold if they entered F1 they could cover the whole grid, effectively snuffing out renault and Mercedes in a simple move. The economy of scale of VAG being able to field Porsche, Audi, VW, SEAT, Skoda, Lamborghini and even Bugatti means they are positioned to be a very influential member of the grid. Something that is not lost on Ferrari. The re-entry of a brand like Bugatti may not have significance to those less than 75yrs old but it is a very real threat to Ferrari's political sway.
Whats this got to do with Porsche building a motorsport centre in Weisach? A lot more than nothing but in VAG's bigger picture I think it's really just for WEC. An F1 entry for Porsche on it own is not in the groups interest. Porsche failing if they go on their own is not in the groups interest either...
