Status: 18.09.2023, 19:14 p.m.
By: Julian Baumann
CommentsShare
Climate activists have deliberately paralyzed Porsche SUVs in order to demonstrate against the presence of the Stuttgart-based carmaker at the IAA. In doing so, they also fired shots at Finance Minister Lindner.
Stuttgart/Berlin - Stuttgart-based carmaker Porsche started producing climate-neutral fuels in Chile last year and is also pushing ahead with the electrification of its models. Nevertheless, the legendary sports car brand is repeatedly in the focus of climate activists. At the beginning of June, members of the "Last Generation" tried to sabotage the Porsche celebration of the brand's 75th anniversary in Stuttgart. They blocked the access roads and directed their protest specifically against the chairman of the supervisory board, Wolfgang Porsche, but the action was not very successful.
In the course of the IAA auto show in Munich (September 5 to 10, 2023), Porsche was once again targeted by activists who specifically searched for SUVs from the brand in the German capital. As the activist group "The Tyre Extinguishers" explained on X (formerly Twitter), 51 Porsche SUVs – i.e. the Cayenne and Macan models – in Berlin's Schmargendorf district had been deflated to protest against the IAA and against Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP), who is described as a Porsche friend.
Activists paralyze Porsche SUVs and send message: "Your car is a disaster for our climate"
In a short clip posted by the activists on X on September 5, a gloved hand can be seen venting several tires of a Porsche Cayenne and then clamping a letter under the windshield wiper. "Attention – your gas-guzzler is deadly!" can be read there in bold letters, and further: "We have deflated one or more of your tires. Your car is a catastrophe for our climate." Over the short clip, the activists wrote greetings in English to Finance Minister Lindner, "who likes Porsche".
The FDP leader was accused of colluding with Porsche boss Oliver Blume as part of the exemption for e-fuels in the EU's combustion engine phase-out. Both Lindner and Blume vehemently denied this. However, the activists were primarily concerned with making a statement against Europe's largest auto show, which is currently taking place in Munich. "The IAA is a PR event for the auto industry trying to polish up its dirty image," they wrote. At this year's IAA, however, the focus will primarily be on e-cars and software applications.
Porsche sabotage in Berlin has repercussions: State security has taken up investigations
In a press statement, the activists explained that the action took place in Berlin on the night of September 5, the official opening day of the IAA Mobility. "In the affluent district of Schmargendorf and the surrounding areas, we specifically looked around for Porsche models, found them and paralyzed them," it says. "51 of these climate killers now have flat tires." The statement claims that the auto industry wants to maintain its "destructive business" and is receiving support from the government. The FDP is currently planning to equate vehicles with e-fuels with e-cars for tax purposes.
Climate activists have deflated the tires of Porsche SUVs to protest against the IAA and the auto industry. © IMAGO/Nikito & Screenshot: X/The Tyre Extinguishers (Photomontage: BW24)
On the opening day of the IAA in Munich, there were protest actions against the auto show by several groups, which can be read in the ticker of tz. Why the supporters of the activist group "Tyre Extinguishers" in Berlin have chosen Porsche models is not explained in the statement, except for the link with Christian Lindner. In addition to the Stuttgart-based company, all other well-known car manufacturers and suppliers in the industry are also represented at the IAA. In addition, the action will not remain without consequences, as the state security has taken up the investigation, as a police spokeswoman told t-online.
