Porsche considering diesel and targa top for Panamera?
Click above for high-res gallery of the Porsche Panamera Gran Turismo
Regardless of what you think of Porsche's upcoming Panamera (we're currently on the fence), it is going to be an extremely important launch for the company. Despite the fact that purists panned the Cayenne, it has sold like hotcakes and has made an extremely tidy profit for the German automaker, now in the midst of a major takeover of Volkswagen, the most valuable automaker in the world. Obviously, Porsche is hoping for similar successes from its very expensive four door. As we've heard countless times, a hybrid option is currently in the works and a diesel engine is also on the drawing board. We're not entirely sure how the crazy German engineers will do it, but a targa-style top is also being developed. No matter, we'll have all the details soon enough as Porsche brings its production Panamera to the 2009 Geneva Motor Show in March.
Gallery: Porsche Panamera Gran Turismo
[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Mi key 7:52PM (10/09/2008)
"...targa-style top is also being developed.."
Whwhwhwhat?
A 4dr sedan Targa would be just horrendous.
I'd be for the return of a real targa on the 911 but not this.
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Geeky1 8:20PM (10/09/2008)
Diesel? Sure.
Hybrid? In a Porsche? WTF are they smoking?
...Targa top? Disgusting.
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993C4S 9:53PM (10/09/2008)
Targa? In a 4 door? That would be interesting?
As for a hybrid, let's not forget that Porsche (the man himself) developed one of the first hybrids ever: The Lohner-Porsche.
http://993c4s.com/cars/ruf-electric-porsche-cayman/
Geeky1 10:56PM (10/09/2008)
As far as hybrids go, having done it once isn't justification for doing it again. I don't care how it performs, it will never be ok in my book to have an electric motor powering-in part or in whole-the drive wheels of a car. Ever. There is no beauty in armatures and coil windings, in voltage regulators and batteries, etc. Go look under the hood of a 300SL Gullwing, an E-type Jaguar, a Ferrari 275GTB/4, an ZL1 or L88 powered Chevrolet, the '73-74 911 Carrera RS, or any of a whole multitude of cars; Hell, go look at the BMW S62, the Chevrolet LS7, the Mercedes M156, or the Nissan VR38DETT. Look at any high performance internal combustion engine ever made-by anyone-and then go look under the hood of a Tesla. It's disgusting. Leave it for the Priuses and the other overgrown golf carts of the world, it has no place in a real car, whether Porsche has done it before or not.
And targa tops are just plain nasty. On anything. They may not be as ruinous to structural integrity as a convertible top would be, but they're still no help, and they don't look very good, imo.
Stoneman 8:32PM (10/09/2008)
I drove a Cayman S a few weeks ago. (see: http://tinyurl.com/4bj6uv )
Oh man, incredible. A hybrid Porsche? Please no...
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Gary 9:58PM (10/09/2008)
Since it's a Porsche, people will buy it no matter what.
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ken_aisin 11:03PM (10/09/2008)
Targa for this crap? Porsche is really pushing it.......
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BoxerFanatic 1:27AM (10/10/2008)
Keep in mind that Porsche's recent "targa" is really a big sliding sunroof, not a side to side opening between the doors.
I could see a four door with a big moving sunroof deal, with side rails over the door frames.
It would look really stupid with a wide open roof across the front seats but not the back seats.
I know diesel is all the eco-rage for efficient cars. This is a big Porsche sport sedan.
THE WORD SPORT SHOULD BE MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE WITH DIESEL, most of the time. A 4000RPM redline, and tractor-like behavior is not befitting a sporting vehicle.
And Audi has not brought TDI performance engines from prototype racing onto market yet, so it hasn't really made it from the track to the street, in any meaningful way.
Leave diesels for cars that diesels fit, like economy cars, and mainstream sedans, trucks, and other non-high-performance vehicles. Leave performance cars alone. The same should really be said for Hybrids at this point, with their weight and packaging penalties.
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Reader 2:54AM (10/10/2008)
Am I the only one that wasn't truly convinced they were actually going to produce the Panamera? I guess I was just being too optimistic...
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Cardude 4:34AM (10/10/2008)
It is a disgusting joke that Porsche released that stupid clown poser mobile Cayenne before they released this car. Come on, what is a closer to a sports car, a sports sedan or a stupid SUV? It's not rocket science!
Anyway, this car is a good way for Porsche to redeem itself, and open a new chapter in their history. I think a targa on a sedan isn't the way to go though. To me, the 911 targas have always been very ugly.
A diesel? Why not? A diesel won LeMans, so those who say it has no sporting cred are off base.
So now a sporty vehicle cannot have torque? Where do people get this crap? Gimme a break already!
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Michael 7:41AM (10/10/2008)
Anyone who calls the Cayenne stupid has probably never driven one. It's a beast.
BoxerFanatic 11:00AM (10/10/2008)
You didn't read my post very carefully.
Audi has not brought it's LeMans winning TDI technology to the street. Audi/VW TDI STREET vehicles still have a low redline, and are economy cars, not sporting cars, regardless of their prototype racing program.
I never said a sporting car shouldn't have torque, I said it shouldn't drive like a tractor, with ONLY torque, and comparatively little horsepower or flexibility.
I wouldn't want to drive a porsche with a ~4000RPM redline, even if it made more torque than the Queen Mary ocean liner. It would still drive like a tractor if the engine doesn't rev. A Porsche is not a pickup truck or an economy car.
Gasoline engines have more flexibility and more feedback than diesel engines. Diesel makes good sense for some things, and I wish it were more widely adopted for those purposes; but a Porsche, or other performance car, isn't one of those things.
If Audi ever brings their race-winning diesel V10s to the street, I may re-evaluate that, but so far that isn't even a rumor.
Mike 7:05AM (10/10/2008)
Diesel? Sure.
Hybrid? In a Porsche? WTF are they smoking?
...Targa top? Disgusting.
Greetz Mike - http://www.torrentfly.org
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bid4goodies 10:04AM (10/10/2008)
Porsche into diesel? That is not new . . . What's interesting with that?
http://bid4goodies.com
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Alex 10:27AM (10/10/2008)
you are a tart.