VW does not own Porsche. From VW website "The Group’s passenger car business is divided into two brand groups. Under the leadership of the Group, the Audi and Volkswagen brands are responsible for the performance of their respective brand group worldwide. The Audi brand group comprises the Audi, SEAT and Lamborghini brands. The Volkswagen brand group is made up of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars, Škoda, Bentley and Bugatti brands."

The Porsche and Piëch families (Dr. Ferdinand K. Piëch is the Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Volkswagen AG and has worked for Porsche) are major stockholders in Porsche. Dr Piëch's father was Ferdinand Porche's son-in-law. As others have mentioned, due to this familial connection both companies have worked jointly together for many years sharing platforms and technology. I hope that clears it up.

marayatano said:Guess again. Porsche+Audi+VW=Family. Cayenne=Toureg.

I believe it was a joint developement. I read that in some magazine.

Porsche spun off on its own, but the Porsche and Piech families are still on each others boards of directors. The Piech family being the majority shareholders in the VW/Audi empire.

Do you know what "interlocking directorate" means in the real world?

danl said:I would be all over this deal a few months back, but at the moment I'm not in too much need of a new car. In any case, I know the wrx is a good car and all, fun to drive etc. But can anyone comment on how reliable subarus are? Just that I dont know too many ppl who owns subarus, but I do know alot of honda owners and a few regretful saab owners.


CR rated Subaru the #1 car maker in 2004 for reliablity.

wuhoo said:gm and holden (australia) have a similar relationship

Wrong, grasshopper. LINK>>

I thought about this vehicle, but overall the looks of the vehicle started to turn me off. From the front it can look mean (Only the AERO) package, but the rear starts to lookugly, it really turns too much into a wagon. And If i'm spending 20k, I better like what the vehicle looks like.

SonOfZeus said:stonepran said:I thought about this vehicle, but overall the looks of the vehicle started to turn me off. From the front it can look mean (Only the AERO) package, but the rear starts to lookugly, it really turns too much into a wagon. And If i'm spending 20k, I better like what the vehicle looks like.

Furthermore, why would anyone knowingly want their new Suburu (Saab) serviced under warranty by an indifferent GM mechanic?

Most Subaru dealerships and GM dealerships are the same one and they probably share the same mechanics.

Subaru all the way.
Awsome performance and safety + great in rallies.
Sorry, I don't like the looks of the wagons/hatchbacks.

To the poster asking about Subaru's reliability, they were ranked the most reliable manufacturer this year.
http://www.autobytel.com/content/shared/articles/templates/index.cfm/article_id_int/409/startrow/21/year/2005/articletype/1

I have a 2004 Outback Sport (very close to the 9-2X Linear) and I absolutely LOVE it. Mine is a manual and even though there's no turbo, with 2.5 liters to work with there's alot of torque off the line. The WRX and 9-2X Aero have the smaller 2.0 engine with a turbo which, while having more HP, has pretty bad turbo lag and not as much initial torque.

Anyhow, no problems at all with my car, though I will say that the transmission is not the most forgiving so take that into consideration if you're not used to driving a manual tranny.

Oh, and it's completely awesome in the snow even with the crappy stock Bridgestone RE92 tires.
Personally, though I prefer the look of the Impreza (looks less wagon like and more like some odd hatchback) but the 9-2X isn't a bad looking car especially if you can get it for less than it's Subaru cousin.
Oh one other thing, I've heard reports of the Saab mechanics not knowing how to fix problems that have arisen with 9-2X's due to a lack of training. One guy got so tired of waiting he supposedely took his to a Subaru dealership (even though he'd have to pay out of pocket) and they fixed the problem right away.

One last thing, I'm about 5'11 and I think there's plenty of room in the front seats (tons of headroom especially), the back however is a bit tight so I wouldn't reccomend cramming tall folks in there for long trips.

"Sorry, your rebate claim has been denied. Reason: incorrect or missing UPC barcode."

1954oval said:Well sort of. The Porsche engineer was called Ferdinand Porsche, and he designed the KDF-wagen in the late 30's in response to Hitler's desire for a "people's car". This car eventually became the Beetle, and company became Volkswagen.

Volkswagen and Porsche have always been closely connected, both family and business-wise but neither has ever owned the other. Projects such as the 914, 924, Cayenne/Touareg all are the result of VW/Porsche collaboration.

And to expand on that, Porsche (the Dr. Ferdinand Porsche) had a desire to build his own sports car, thats why he started Porsche.