While in Germany for the CarreraGT day, we also decided to make a trip to Zuffenhuasen for the factory tour.

We went through the engine production facility. There we got to see where all the Porsche engines are being built and tested. They also showed us the test room where all the engines are run on a dyno for 30 minutes. German law states that the engine has to make within +-5% of its reported power. Porsche uses the +5% figure only. Engines that do not make the rating are stripped down till the problem is found.

The assembly line for the drivetrain and the body was also interesting. To hear about the just in time process is one thing, to see it in action is another. They tell us that mating the drivetrain and suspension to the body only takes five miuntes.

We all saw seval turbo cabs running around... production versions getting ready for shipment. While we did not see any 997 prototypes running around, we did see a new engine. We did see something a Carrera engine with a silver intake manifold. The build sheet showed it as an M97 engine, but they quickly hauled it away before we could look at it to closely. Perhaps a 3.8L engine for the 997? We also saw a parts bin showing 997 on it?

All in all the facility was facinating to see in action.