Going to Porsche; museum or factory?
Discussion
Hi all, a request from my Boxster owning brother;
What is best to do? The Porsche museum or the factory tour? He wants to take the car next year just so he can say he has really but not sure which to do and website isn't particularly clear on it. Want to spend a couple of nights in Germany too so advice on where others may have stayed would be great?
All advice and thoughts much appreciated
Thanks!
What is best to do? The Porsche museum or the factory tour? He wants to take the car next year just so he can say he has really but not sure which to do and website isn't particularly clear on it. Want to spend a couple of nights in Germany too so advice on where others may have stayed would be great?
All advice and thoughts much appreciated
Thanks!
I went this summer. We stayed at Heidelberg because my wife has friends there, it's a very pleasant spot. Nice easy day trip out to the Museum with some interesting autobahn driving.
I didn't manage the factory tour because there were some restrictions on availability that didn't coincide with ours.
The museum is very good, I really enjoyed spending time there.
We came back via a couple of nights in Reims and a mandatory champagne house tour which was well worth visiting too.
I didn't manage the factory tour because there were some restrictions on availability that didn't coincide with ours.
The museum is very good, I really enjoyed spending time there.
We came back via a couple of nights in Reims and a mandatory champagne house tour which was well worth visiting too.
I was just at the museum a fortnight ago, just because Nürburgring was closed due to fog.
There are a lot of nice cars to look at, and at a quiet day like we enjoyed there, plenty of options for getting some nice shots of them. However, the information available about the history of the company, the people surrounding it and even the motorsport accolade won over the years, is shockingly in its absense!
Likewise most of the newest metal on display is followed by next to no information at all as regard to the car. A Cayenne hybrid was just standing in a line of new cars. No plaque, sign or anything about it.
Brighting up the day there, was the sound of a car being started - followed by a short story about it. Apparently a 993 test car that had at one point done 2000 km. straight, only stopping for fuel. The nice thing about it, was the revised exhaust popping and spitting on the overrun
Compared to the factory tour I have had at Leipzig, I would do the museum.
Set out app 2½ hours for a thorough day there.
CK
There are a lot of nice cars to look at, and at a quiet day like we enjoyed there, plenty of options for getting some nice shots of them. However, the information available about the history of the company, the people surrounding it and even the motorsport accolade won over the years, is shockingly in its absense!
Likewise most of the newest metal on display is followed by next to no information at all as regard to the car. A Cayenne hybrid was just standing in a line of new cars. No plaque, sign or anything about it.
Brighting up the day there, was the sound of a car being started - followed by a short story about it. Apparently a 993 test car that had at one point done 2000 km. straight, only stopping for fuel. The nice thing about it, was the revised exhaust popping and spitting on the overrun
Compared to the factory tour I have had at Leipzig, I would do the museum.
Set out app 2½ hours for a thorough day there.
CK
Stayed in Stuttgart a couple of years ago. Did Porsche and Benz museums in 1 day. Both very good. Even my wife thoroughly enjoyed being dragged round!
Went to Baroque Palace as well where perchance Germany were celebrating 125 years of Motoring.
Stayed in mercure hotel just up the hill from station. Good facilities. Stuttgart is a nice place to stay for about 4 days max.
Went to Baroque Palace as well where perchance Germany were celebrating 125 years of Motoring.
Stayed in mercure hotel just up the hill from station. Good facilities. Stuttgart is a nice place to stay for about 4 days max.
crispyshark said:
highly recommend the museum. It's one of the best of its kind.
Is it? For me it's just a lot of (albeit very nice) shiny Pork parked up in a modern building.The Mercedes Museum on the other hand is absolutely superb, going through a full timeline of development of the very first automobile, through the war years and slave labour, through the 50s and 60s and then to modern day - with reams of information on displays, interactive exhibits etc. There is also a massive amount of motorsport DTM/F1 cars there too.
To be frank, it knocks the Porsche one into a cocked hat.
Did both Museums during a road trip this summer. The Porsche one was good and we spent about two hours there before the patience of my 18 month old daughter ran out. The staff were incredibly helpful and friendly, and we had a good lunch, reasonably priced, at the cafe downstairs. That said, even daughter hadn't become threaders with it, I suspect I could only have spent another hour tops looking round everything.
By contrast we did the Merc museum in the afternoon. We could only spend an hour there due to us arriving late, and I could happily have spent the whole day there really getting into the really detailed interactive displays.
There is clearly a bit of a Porsche vs Merc sclong measuring contest going on as you drive round Stuttgart; Porsche build a designer architecture museum, Merc build one eight stories tall; Porsche sponsor a sports pitch, Merc build one the size of a small African republic!
They were both great, but the Merc one is massive and more detailed in comparison.
By contrast we did the Merc museum in the afternoon. We could only spend an hour there due to us arriving late, and I could happily have spent the whole day there really getting into the really detailed interactive displays.
There is clearly a bit of a Porsche vs Merc sclong measuring contest going on as you drive round Stuttgart; Porsche build a designer architecture museum, Merc build one eight stories tall; Porsche sponsor a sports pitch, Merc build one the size of a small African republic!
They were both great, but the Merc one is massive and more detailed in comparison.
hornetrider said:
To be frank, it knocks the Porsche one into a cocked hat.
Totally agree. I did the factory tour twice (once with Porsche collection) and it's very interesting, but can be hard to get onto.
The Porsche museum is a great building and has a fair amount of cars, but didn't excite me that much which was surprising. I thought the layout poor and there's no 'story', mainly just a random selection of exhibits and it only displays about 80 of the 300-500 vehicles they own, so it felt like it was missing loads of the ones you expected to see.
The Mercedes museum on the other hand is massive, tells the full story through history and could not be more comprehensive, really really impressive.
Don't do a factory tour at Mercedes though, we did the engine plant tour and it was very very boring.
Sadly, I think that some of you may have visited the Porsche Museum and missed the whole presentation method. It was designed to be used with the audio tour and to afford you more freedom of access to the exhibits.
You use the little wireless device which is available in multiple languages to guide you around, I spend 6 hours there and learned more about the marque in one day than I could have read in 6 weeks!
Its a great place, I am going back again, but this time with a factory tour on the day before.
Edited for sp.
You use the little wireless device which is available in multiple languages to guide you around, I spend 6 hours there and learned more about the marque in one day than I could have read in 6 weeks!
Its a great place, I am going back again, but this time with a factory tour on the day before.
Edited for sp.
Edited by David Hype on Monday 26th November 21:57
TonyHetherington said:
Thanks everyone - very interesting.
Sounds like it's definitely worth doing as they'll be going to that region then, and Merc too?
I'll forward the details on to my bro and he, I'm sure, passes on his thanks
Tony, please tell your brother to ask for `English headphones` at the reception counter, plus our PCGB membership discount too.Sounds like it's definitely worth doing as they'll be going to that region then, and Merc too?
I'll forward the details on to my bro and he, I'm sure, passes on his thanks
hornetrider said:
crispyshark said:
highly recommend the museum. It's one of the best of its kind.
Is it? For me it's just a lot of (albeit very nice) shiny Pork parked up in a modern building.The Mercedes Museum on the other hand is absolutely superb, going through a full timeline of development of the very first automobile, through the war years and slave labour, through the 50s and 60s and then to modern day - with reams of information on displays, interactive exhibits etc. There is also a massive amount of motorsport DTM/F1 cars there too.
To be frank, it knocks the Porsche one into a cocked hat.
From a design perspective which is one of the main cut and thrusts about Porsche, I think it is truly awesome. Dare I say it, I think I would far prefer the motorsports section in the Porsche factory to that of Merc but then I always loved Le Mans.
I took my son there a couple of months ago we both really enjoyed it. Arrived Sunday morning in time for the prebooked tour first thing Monday, did the museum and main dealer then found a local hotel to stroll back from in the morning for the tour.
All of it highly recommended and the audio tour is definitely a top tip.
SM
All of it highly recommended and the audio tour is definitely a top tip.
SM
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