REPORT: Porsche working on harder Panamera
2010 Porsche Panamera - Click above for a high-res image gallery
Porsche plans to expand its Panamera line-up to include three new powerplants – a Volkswagen-sourced V6, a diesel and some manner of hybrid – but in addition to offering new engines, the automaker may offer a harder, more performance-oriented model to slot in above the Turbo.
Similar to the strategy Porsche employed with the Cayenne, this new model – which could be dubbed the Turbo S or GTS – would nix the Turbo model's standard air suspension and instead fit a set of performance-tuned springs and shocks to maximize grip and on-track prowess.
As for future powertrains, a senior Porsche executive told Autocar that VAG's V6 and V8 diesels could be fitted to future Panameras, and we wouldn't be surprised to find the new Audi S4's supercharged, petrol-powered 3.0-liter V6 in Porsche's first production sedan in the coming years.
Gallery: First Drive: 2010 Porsche Panamera
[Source: Autocar]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
tankd0g 3:20PM (7/03/2009)
Harder looking?
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Yaroukh 4:10PM (7/03/2009)
+1
My first thought was "as if this one wasn't hard enough to look at".
Fugly. Neeext!
j 4:14PM (7/03/2009)
as in you'll get hard when you look at it?
KC 4:48PM (7/03/2009)
To get the stupid riches to buy a car with harsher ride and higher price tag to get the performance that no one, except Michael, can exploit.
Chase 10:35PM (7/03/2009)
... And if you're that concerned about performance, there is the GT3.
Tdogg 3:36PM (7/03/2009)
Everytime I see the front of this thing I see C6 Corvette.
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AUTOMANIAC 4:14PM (7/03/2009)
i don't think the c6 will be happy about this.
Tdogg 6:32PM (7/03/2009)
Im not ripping on the corvette, im just sayin Porsche designed the front in a way that reminds me of the C6.
Carlos 3:42PM (7/03/2009)
I don't see the purpose of doing this, this just doesn't seem befitting for a car that weighs over two tons. Shouldn't they focus on it being a fast four seat GT with great response? I say they should offer a Turbo model without all wheel drive.
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Alex 4:00PM (7/03/2009)
I've said it before, and will say it again: the car is absolutely hideous and likewise pointless.
Even the Cayenne is better looking and has a better purpose than this.
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j 4:12PM (7/03/2009)
no one really cares what you say
AUTOMANIAC 4:11PM (7/03/2009)
stop working and go un holydays, do it for the humankind.
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anonymous j 4:16PM (7/03/2009)
I wonder how many different variations Porsche can come up with using the same design before they finally come up with something new.
Kind of reminds me of that old Simpson's episode where Marge buys a Chanel dress and modifies it slightly every time she wears it.
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akboss302 4:27PM (7/03/2009)
Instead of working on a harder Panamera, they should work harder on the Panamera they have...its uuuugly!
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SEVENim 2:14AM (7/04/2009)
nah, work harder on the next panamera. this one cant be saved
Mason Hill 11:07PM (7/03/2009)
Porsche has unbeatable dynamics, but they are the Toyota of expensive cars. Boring or fuglu to look at. Fire your design team and hire Fisker or an Italian team, please.
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cm 5:31PM (7/03/2009)
I was reading this and wondering if they were going to do a 2 door version of the panamera lol
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downtoearth 7:58PM (7/03/2009)
Because a luxury flagship car that is hard riding thus uncomfortable, weights some 2,5 tonnes and pretends to be a sports car at the same time, needs an overpowered engine returning atrocious fuel economy is just what the world needs.
We live in a world where rich people are allowed anything and average Joes are banned and penalized each and every time.
Say, the Hummer. It was widely presented by virtually any media as the most environmentally damaging car one can possibly buy. The H2 returns some 10-12 mpg US combined [1].
What all those Hummer bashers failed to mention is that at least two Bentleys recently in production are rated by EPA at.... 11 mpg combined [2][3]. These are the Azure and the Brooklands. Other ones like the Continental, at 12 mpg, aren't much better.
So they are just as damaging as the Hummer H2. Did any media associate those Bentleys with environmental destruction as much as the H2 was tied with it? Obviously not.
Why?
Cause average Joes could somewhat afford Hummers H2 and had to be criticized for doing so while filthy rich Bentley drivers can continue their damaging activity as long as they want.
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hummer_H2#Fuel_economy
[2] http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/compx2008f.jsp?year=2009&make=Bentley&model=Arnage&hiddenField=Findacar
[3] http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/compx2008f.jsp?year=2009&make=Bentley&model=Brooklands&hiddenField=Findacar
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Aloysius Vampa 8:43PM (7/03/2009)
1.) The Porsche Panamera doesn't even weigh 4,000 pounds. That's a little less than 2.5 tonnes, which is equivalent to 5,512 pounds. That's a big difference.
2.) Average Joe cannot afford a Hummer H2. According to the Hummer website, the 2009 H2 starts at $63,090, ending at $70,765 for the H2 Luxury model.
3.) From 2002 to 2008, 151,426 Hummer H2s were sold in the US.[1] The cited Bentley Brooklands is scheduled for a lifetime production of 550 units.[2] I can't find production numbers, but I find it highly unlikely that the Bentley Arnage was produced in numbers anywhere close to the Hummer H2. The Bentley Continental GT and Flying Spur, together, raised Bentley's annual production numbers from 1,000 units in 2003 to 9,200 units in 2006.[3] In 2006 alone, GM sold 17,472 Hummer H2s.
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hummer_H2#Yearly_American_sales
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bentley_Brooklands#2008_Brooklands_Coup.C3.A9
[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bentley_Continental_GT#Flying_Spur
Level 9:34PM (7/03/2009)
this car has been 7 years on paper and 5 years in the making and it just coming out, looks outdated they need to re-shape the sheet metal here and there to make it into a super model right now its an old hag with ugly humps all over...
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