Porsche Magazines

[Milu]

Is it my imagination or does every other edition seem to be a "special collectors edition"?

[CJFusco]

That's practically every magazine. Look at all the "special anniversary editions" that ROLLING STONE has come out with in the last couple years.

[cairns]

Don't forget the "Exclusives". 400 journalists show up at a press release and they all write an "Exclusive" on the new whatever (Road and Track).

Or worse taking the company's pictures and propoganda and writing a faux "objective" article. (Motor Trend/Panorama).

[kang]

I also hate how they come out with the June issue in late April. I think this is so that they can leave them on the magazine racks for a longer period, in the hopes that they sell more. Of course, pretty soon the next issue comes out, and no one buys the last issue anyways. Seems stupid to me...

[azasadny]

Kind of like how every auto dealership has won the "President's Award" or is the "Number 1 Dealer"... marketing BS...

[URY914]

What about comparing every P-car ever built to the Carrera 2.7.
When will it ever end???

[cairns]

A good one URY. I love Excellence but when I saw the last one (comparing the Cayman to the RS) I was thinking the same thing.....

I actually was fortunate enough to drive a real RS at speed on the track recently- it is a wonderful, incredibly communicative car. But comparing it to modern 911s/Caymen's etc. is pointless- a totally different animal.

[TWork]

I agree that the comparison of a Cayman to the RS was absurd. The article didn't provide any actual data other than car weight and references to Car and Driver (or some other mag) 0-60 times. The interior of the 34 year old car feels dated? It's not as plush? What? The 2007 model puts out less emissions? Shocking stuff here. The article could have simply said that automotive technology has advanced a lot in 34 years and been done with it.

[juanbenae]

Originally posted by URY914
What about comparing every P-car ever built to the Carrera 2.7.
When will it ever end???

excellence blew it by doing that when my subscription was up for renewal. made the decision easy, well that and another r-gruppe car

in all seriousness, i am done after 6+ years.

[URY914]

The other day I was at Border's and picked up a British P-car mag, 911 World or the other one. What were they doing? Comparing the 2.7 RS to the Cayenne, for Christ's sakes!!!

Who will be the first to do a back to back road test with the Porsche tractor???

[stout]

Puh-leaze...

I can't speak to the other P-car magazines, but Excellence has done maybe 3-4 "special" issues in my ten years here. Porsche's 50th celebrated, our 100th Issue, and our 20th Anniversary are the only ones that come to mind. And, whenever we've done one, we have tried to make it truly special -- FOR THE READERS -- as a thank you.

The 20th, at 228 pages and 100 pages of articles alone (not including front-end content) was a costly monster in terms of $$, postage, and time. And there was no more advertising in it than usual. So what, exactly, is there to complain about there?

As to the recent Cayman 2.7/RS 2.7 story, the 911 wasn't picked because it's an icon (or rightful benchmark, as it is in so many other stories) but merely because it was Porsche's first 2.7-liter flat six-powered road car, and we thought it would be interesting to put it into context with Porsches latest (and last?) 2.7-liter flat six-powered road car.

You're right, a lot of the info within was predictable (though I would say the actual weight figures of the 987 were stunning), but the ending shocked even me...

Excellence is, above all, meant to be entertaining and to give you something to think about, or think about in a new way, regarding the cars we all love. Of course we won't always nail it for everyone with every story, but then that's probably not possible. And this is a tough crowd...

But to cancel a subscription due to a disagreement with one story? I guess it's a good thing there are a lot of happy subscribers out there. We have a renewal rate that's excellent within this industry. Doesn't mean we can't get better, though...

Cheers,

pete

[stout]

Originally posted by cairns
Don't forget the "Exclusives". 400 journalists show up at a press release and they all write an "Exclusive" on the new whatever (Road and Track).

Or worse taking the company's pictures and propoganda and writing a faux "objective" article. (Motor Trend/Panorama).

Now these are, by and large, fair shots...

That said, MT has been the comeback kid lately. From worst of the heap to maybe 1st or 2nd best. If you haven't checked it out lately, you really should. The current issue's handling article is one of the best I've seen from the big five in years...

Oh, and I agree: Exclusive should only be used if there is something genuinely exclusive about the story. That rarely happens. Having the Yellow Bird for 2.5 months and 2500 miles probably qualifies. Driving a new model with 20-30 other journalists probably does not. Actually, it definitely does not.

But what about "First Drive." Fair game only if the magazine gets the first drive worldwide? Or fair game if it's the magazine's first drive? Remember, magazines are a business and they have to think about selling on the newsstand or risk fading away....

pete

[stout]

Originally posted by kang
I also hate how they come out with the June issue in late April. I think this is so that they can leave them on the magazine racks for a longer period, in the hopes that they sell more. Of course, pretty soon the next issue comes out, and no one buys the last issue anyways. Seems stupid to me...

Another fair shot. Definitely a frustration here for everyone involved, even us.

It doesn't allow us to keep a magazine on the stands longer, though. Any well run magazine with a good distributor will have each issue on the stands for a limited time before it is replaced by the next one. And it's on a set schedule. A confusing schedule, but a set one....

All of these responses are offered only as a view from the other side of the coin. I like seeing your views, and I hope my responses shed some light on how the business works...

Cheers,

pete

[Superman]

I look forward to each and every edition of Excellence. I guess the most recent edition was a teeny bit disappointing. Not for the '73 RS comparison, but because it lacked an article about a vintage race car with a pedigree. Usually, there is a story about some obscure rare Porsche with a racing pedigree.

All in all, Excellence is.........well......excellent.

[id10t]

Only "special" Porsche magazines Excellence has put out (imho) is the original "Porsche Magazine" which a few issues later got sued into "Excellence (formerly Porsche Magazine)" and then finally "Excellence".

Still have #1 and the transitions all the way thru.. wonder if it is worth a few bucks?

[URY914]

There is one article that you need to write that would improve Excellence greatly. Simple: profile my car....

[stout]

Originally posted by id10t
Only "special" Porsche magazines Excellence has put out (imho) is the original "Porsche Magazine" which a few issues later got sued into "Excellence (formerly Porsche Magazine)" and then finally "Excellence".

Still have #1 and the transitions all the way thru.. wonder if it is worth a few bucks?

Idiot,

Now they can't be too "not special" if you've saved all of them for 20 years can they? That is a LOT of magazines.

Full sets in good condition seem to trade anywhere from free (must pick up) to another enthusiast to $200-300 and up.

pete

[scottmandue]

Eghad boys we have someone from Excellence checking out out BBS!
Am I the only one impressed with this factoid?

I have to admit I let my subscription lapse but only because I'm lazy and to be honest for the same reason I don't go to the boat show anymore. After awhile it gets frustrating looking at beautiful things you know you'll never be able to afford.

I always found the writing and photography to be very good... perhaps it's time for me to consider re-subscribing.

[id10t]

Ed@Excellence - Dad was a packrat, and never threw away anything. He died in '94 though, so thats when the excellence collection stops... On the other hand, that first year with the transitions are still in my posession, as are the Road and Tracks from '53 on thru the 80s, etc. I really gotta get 'em organized, cataloged, and start selling 'em. Only ones I want to keep are the Panoramas from '65 (Have Dec '59 thru Dec '69) since that is the year my 356 was made...

And now the only Porsche magazine I get is the 356 Registry's, which is worth every nickle and then some.

[stout]

Originally posted by scottmandue
Eghad boys we have someone from Excellence checking out out BBS!
Am I the only one impressed with this factoid?

Actually, a lot of us do. We're enthusiasts, too -- and this is a place full of great enthusiasts...

...and a few haters, too!

pete