Porsche CEO takes swipe at Tesla’s flying car spectacle: ‘Effects and shows’

Porsche CEO Michael Leiters took a swipe at Tesla’s recent flying car spectacle, saying his luxury German automaker is staying away from “any kind of effects and shows.” 

The rival automakers each unveiled their latest vehicle concepts on Oct. 15 – but Leiters said Wednesday that the companies are clearly targeting different customers. 

“We want to completely steer clear from any kind of effects and shows,” Leiters said during a conference in Berlin, according to Bloomberg, adding that Porsche is instead focused on tangible tech innovations. 

In its demo of the Tesla Roadster, Elon Musk’s electric-vehicle maker had a dramatic showing in which the vehicle sped up a massive curved ramp, reached 60 mph in under a second, flipped midair and landed safely on the ground using compressed-air thrusters. 

The long-awaited vehicle has been positioned as the future of Musk’s company as it pushes into fully-autonomous, futuristic drives, with the demo sparking plenty of social media buzz from car fanatics. But Leiters criticized the brand’s gimmicks and highlighted Porsche’s Mission S concept.

He claimed the Mission S has so far generated an “overwhelming” response from customers. Marketed as the “future of sports cars,” the sleek vehicle marks Porsche’s attempt to push further upmarket. 

The sports car has Porsche’s signature sloping roofline, a wraparound main line, torpedo-style fenders, a visible fan wheel at the rear and dial-style wheels, and is designed to accommodate either a hybrid or combustion engine. 

It’s expected to cost even more than the Porsche 911, which already has a starting retail price of $135,500. The Mission S would also mark the legacy brand’s return to sports cars for the first time since it ended production of the 918 Spyder in 2015. 

Meanwhile, Tesla is trying to lean into autonomous vehicle offerings, robotics and AI as it suffers slumping EV sales across global markets. The automaker recently announced it is winding down production of its geometric Cybertrucks as it focuses on the Cybercab, its self-driving taxi.

Tesla did not immediately answer a request for comment.