CARSON, CA-Porsche Cars North America revealed plans to build a 53-acre Porsche Experience Center in this city in south Los Angeles County. The “facility and road handling” course is the second to be announced in North America by the German automaker. In May, Porsche said it would build a similar facility in Atlanta, as part of the company’s national headquarters.  

When completed, the Carson and Atlanta projects will be among five Porsche Experience Centers internationally, including the original Silverstone Circuit in Great Britain and others in Leipzig, Germany and Shanghai, China.  The seller was Watson Land Co.; deal terms were not disclosed.

The test track will allow Porsche customers to test drive the high-performance cars on a closed track, allowing drivers to accelerate and achieve speeds not normally possible on public streets. The facility will also incorporate a sports science laboratory and training programs, ranging from heat acclimation training and hydration strategies to individual wellness assessments. Porsche also plans driver training and what it calls “car culture events” at the facility.

About 20 Porsche dealerships operate in Southern California, which is “our best market in North America,” says Nick Twork, Porsche manager of product communications.  

The new Carson facility is located near the intersection of the 505 and 110 freeways, and also within a short distance of the Los Angeles International Airport. Construction is slated to start in summer 2012.

The Carson Porsche Experience Center will be designed by Atlanta-based architecture firm Cooper Carry, while the test tracks themselves are to be designed by two engineering firms, Giffels/IBI and Tilke Engineering.