[kenhwang]

I really like how they're rolling out updated headunits for all their cars right now. Just about every Porsche from the 1960s to late-2000s can be updated to support a modern Porsche infotainment interface as well as CarPlay/Android Auto.

[MrFoof]

Porsche will sell you a new dashboard for your classic 911 that appears visually identical to the original, but is entirely modern in its construction.

Porsche's classic division is really setting the standards for supporting older cars. They realize over time it'll become an increasingly relevant portion of their business and just increase revenue. You can even send a car out to Germany and they'll fully restore it (at quite a price). The big thing though is they simply produce parts for their older cars.

Mercedes-Benz is also pretty up there for supporting their classic cars. Aston Martin also increasingly building out their support for their cars. Ferrari and Lamborghini starting to get more into the game, but for those brands it very much remains going to a big few shows in the EU to round up parts at times. Toyota, Nissan, Ford, Chevrolet also have some levels of support.

[velhartice]

I worked at the grand opening of the new classic restoration center next to the ATL airport and saw for myself how committed Porsche is to keeping their entire lineage of vehicles on the road. IIRC they said ~75% of all Porsche vehicles ever made are still registered.

[kenhwang]

Really have to thank the 3d printing revolution for a lot of these classic parts support. They no longer have to keep a large supply of all sorts of old parts around in storage, they can just redesign them in a way that can be 3d printed and manufacture them on demand.

[sandworm101]

3d printing isn't as useful as people think, not for old cars. The parts that wear out are the parts that are put under some sort of load. You cannot 3d print a shock absorber. You cannot 3d print a connecting rod or bearing. Sure, you can print out a plastic widget for holding a mirror in place, but you cannot print out the actual mirror when it breaks.

[kenhwang]

Porsche is already thinking of 3d printing piston heads since their research is showing it's stronger than if they forged it.

I don't think there'll ever be a need to 3d print shock absorbers or bearings, since those tend to be commodity wear parts and there will probably always be compatible modern variants (or if you look at some parts guides, many current cars still use the exact same basic parts from several decades ago).

Engine blocks and major large internals like conrods or more commonly needed transmission internals are the parts I think will be most difficult to keep stocked.