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US Ambassador Daniel R. Coats Visits Porsche's Research and Development Center in Weissach

ATLANTA, July 1 -- Daniel R. Coats, the US Ambassador to Germany, visited Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG today. He was welcomed to Porsche's Research and Development Center in Weissach, Germany, by Dr. Wendelin Wiedeking, Porsche's President and Chief Executive Officer. Following a guided tour of the Center, Ambassador Coats and Dr. Wiedeking took the opportunity to exchange opinions in a thorough and intensive discussion, focusing on German/American economic relations.

Dr. Wiedeking emphasized that he considered Ambassador Coats' visit a special honor. The USA and Porsche, he stated, formed more than "just" a normal business relationship: "This is a relationship based on deep friendship and a shared history. Ever since the foundation of the company, Porsche has seen itself as a small but important element of the German/American partnership. At the initiative of a US dealer, Ferry Porsche once drew the first sketch of Porsche's logo, now famous the world over, on a napkin in a restaurant in New York back in the early '50s. The USA, accounting for almost half of Porsche's overall revenue, is the company's number one sales market, making a significant contribution in ensuring the ongoing independence of the company." For that reason alone, said Dr. Wiedeking, "Porsche's heart beats for America."

This close relationship between nations rests on a strong foundation: Porsche Cars North America, headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, and a network of more than 200 dealers. The Cayenne sports utility vehicle, Porsche's third model series following the 911 and the Boxster, has, in Dr. Wiedeking's words, been developed especially for the particular wishes and needs of the Porsche customer: "The great popularity of the Cayenne in America only a few months after its launch, proves that we are going the right way," Dr. Weideking noted. "Good economic relations are the foundation for international security. Porsche has always contributed to such sound relations and will continue to do so in the future."

Ambassador Coats emphasized the significance of economic and business relations in a spirit of Transatlantic partnership: "Porsche's success in the USA is an outstanding example of the stable economic foundation underlying the German/US relationship. Despite recent claims of a certain divide between our two countries, our business relations remain fully intact. Particularly direct investments in our respective countries make our economies grow together to an ever-increasing extent. And, we capitalize on our market potentials to our mutual benefit. This not only results in impressive import and export figures, but is also reflected on both sides of the Atlantic by higher corporate profits, tax income, and the creation of jobs." Ambassador Coats added that the type of corporate involvement in the USA of the type practiced by Porsche AG was of utmost significance to the prosperity and positive development of both countries. This was also, he stated, a major cornerstone for the good relations between people on both sides of the Atlantic.

Visiting Porsche's R&D Center in Weissach, Coats gladly took the opportunity to drive a number of fast laps in a Porsche 911 on the company's test track. His wife, Marsha, and Consul General Peter W. Bodde, responsible for the State of Baden-Wurttemberg, accompanied Coats on his visit.

Porsche Cars North America, Inc. (PCNA), based in Atlanta, Ga., and its subsidiary, Porsche Cars Canada, Ltd., are the exclusive importers of Porsche vehicles for the United States and Canada. A wholly owned, indirect subsidiary of Dr. Ing. h.c.F. Porsche AG, PCNA employs approximately 200 people who provide Porsche vehicles, parts, marketing and training for its 203 U.S. and Canadian dealers. They, in turn, provide Porsche owners with best- in-class service.

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