PORSCHE, the luxury car manufacturer, launched two new versions of its iconic 911 model yesterday for the first time since 1977.
The carmaker also said that it was considering a fourth model to join its line-up, which includes the Boxster, 911 and Cayenne.
Wendelin Wiedeking, chief executive, said that the “time is right” for the German company to decide whether to build a new Porsche series.
If the company’s management gives the green light to manufacture a new model, the car would not be launched before 2009.
There has been speculation that the new model will be a four-door sports car and Porsche will expect sales of at least 20,000 a year.
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The company unveiled two versions of the 911: a new Carrera and a performance version Carrera S, which accelerates from 0 to 100km/h (62mph) in 4.8 seconds and reaches a top speed of 293km/h.
Porsche has sold 160,000 911s since the model was launched. In the coming financial year the carmaker hopes to sell at least 15,000 of the new 911s.
According to German reports, a new series could boost Porsche’s annual sales to almost 100,000 units. Herr Wiedeking predicted that the company would sell 75,000 cars in the 2004 financial year, which finishes in July, as the two new versions of the 911 go on sale.
In the 2002-03 financial year Porsche made a pre-tax profit of £620 million from £3.8 billion in revenue after selling almost 67,000 cars.