Excitement is running high among drivers in Canada. That’s because Porsche Cars Canada has just announced its plans for an action-packed Porsche Experience Centre in Pickering, where customers and fans can experience the Porsche brand hands-on, up-close and personal.
This brand park will be slotted into the Durham Live entertainment complex, which is coming off the drawing board for this town in the Greater Toronto area. Planned as Canada’s own scaled-down version of Las Vegas, this massive new destination will feature multi-use facilities that include:
- a concert hall;
- a casino;
- a movie studio;
- a convention centre;
- 300 hotel rooms;
- a mix of restaurants; and
- some 40,000 square metres of retail space.
Opening Scheduled for 2024
Slated to open in 2024, its attractions will range from fun for kids to sophisticated adult entertainment. One of its main draws will be the Porsche Experience Centre: a self-contained brand park where guests can explore cutting-edge automotive technology and vehicle dynamics, under the guidance of experienced instructors.
More than two kilometres long, its driving circuit will be framed by displays of modern and vintage vehicles, many from the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart, with others on loan from private owners. Other facilities will include a themed coffee shop and an everything-Porsche fan store.
Keeping Pace with Canadian Targets
Aligned with Canada’s ambitious target of 100% all-electric car and truck sales by 2030/2035, there is little doubt that this exxciting Canadian Experience Centre will follow the example of the Tokyo brand park, with an entire charging area set aside for its visitors in the car park. There’s also a good chance that Porsche will be planning more innovative EV models that will join its sporty Taycan by the time this Centre opens.
Located less than fifty kilometres from downtown Toronto – the fastest-growing city in North America – Canada’s new Porsche Experience Centre is only the third of its kind in North America, joining its predecessors in Los Angeles and Atlanta. Offering unique product experiences, these miniature racetracks reflect the values of this global brand.
Global Brand Park Network
Starting with the UK’s Silverstone PEC in 2008, this global network has grown steadily. In addition to its North American facilities, it also encompasses Leipzig and Hockenheim (Germany), Le Mans (France), Franciacorta (Italy), and Shanghai (China) with the Tokyo (Japan) PEC opening in 2021.
The heart of all Porsche Experience Centres are their circuits, together with off-road areas, skid pans and other testing facilities. Many of them reproduce famous racetrack corners, for added excitement.
Although open to the public in general, all driving guests must be at least 21 years old, with current valid drivers’ licenses. For safety reasons, youngsters under sixteen years of age must be under parental supervision at all times when visiting any Porsche Experience Centre. Although they won’t be allowed to drive real sports cars, young Canadians will certainly enjoy the state-of-the-art simulation facilities.
Hands-On Driving Experiences
Visitors to Porsche brand parks can sign up for customisable ninety-minute driving programmes on the test track. If they wish, owners can take these classes in their own Porsches, while non-Porsche drivers can thrill to the powerful throb of dream wheels like the Macan, Panamera, 718 Cayman and 718 Boxster.
It’s likely that Toronto’s new PEC will use driver training modules similar to those followed at Porsche parks elsewhere in the world. In Canada, this may welll include an off-road course, a dynamic area, a start control session, and an acceleration straight as well as a low-friction circuit and a skid pan.
Keeping Young Canadian Drivers Safer
Young Canadians are hoping that Porsche will replicate its Atlanta approach towards endowing novice drivers (between 16 and 24 years old, with licenses) with the skills needed to respond effectively to all the challenges faced on the road every day. Known as the Young Driver Experience, this course is divided into five purpose-built modules that demonstrate a wide variety of driving conditions.
Designed to develop awareness, with faster hazard recognition and sharper strategic responses, highly skilled Porsche instructors could certainly help make young drivers feel safer and more confident on Canada’s roads.
Staying Real in the Digital Era
In contrast to many companies that are moving online at an increasingly rapid clip, Porsche is wagering on real-life driving experiences. Well aware that its brand is synonymous with excellence in performance and driving pleasure, the new Porsche Experience Centre in Canada is designed to pump up the excitement, while endowing Canadians with more advanced driving skills.
