After breaking ground on the Porsche Experience Center in August, Porsche Cars North America is making progress on the 53-acre facility located in Carson, Calif. The Center will overlook the Porsche Test Track, which offers drivers a variety of track configurations and surface conditions on which Porsche road cars can be studied, along with the human performance of the drivers themselves.
To celebrate the construction progress, yesterday Porsche unveiled a new look for the iconic Muffler Man fiberglass statue, located off the 405 freeway. He now proudly wears a Porsche racing suit and serves as gatekeeper for the Experience Center site.
The new complex will feature the Porsche Human Performance Center and sports science lab, offering customized programs to maximize personal fitness and wellness for race car drivers and endurance athletes. The world-class facility will also include a business and conference center; family-friendly cafe; upscale restaurant; and, trackside viewing, dining and conference spaces that will be available for car clubs and corporate clients to reserve for events.
The complex will be home to Porsche Motorsport North America (PMNA), who is moving their current operations from Santa Ana, Calif. PMNA sells production-based race car models to customer teams in North America and provides them with parts, service and expertise in between races and at the track. For the first time ever, Porsche will also be able to provide factory-backed classic car restoration and maintenance services at the new facility.
The Porsche Experience Center has already been a boon to the local economy, as the luxury automaker has invested $28.7 million and created 310 jobs during the project development phase. Once operational, the facility is expected to result in the creation of 135 additional jobs and generate $22.5 million in economic activity each year for Southern California.
Porsche broke ground on the Carson facility in August 2013 and anticipates that construction will be completed and facility operations will commence during the fourth quarter of 2014. A second North American Experience Center is also under construction in Atlanta, part of the company’s new U.S. headquarters.
