Porsche invited us to Germany to be one of the first to drive its all-new Panamera, the company's first four-door sedan. We spent three days assailing the Bavarian Alps, streaking across the German Autobahn, and meandering through picturesque Alpine towns. We touched 170 mph at one point and sat stagnant in city traffic during another. What were Porsche's objectives with this new sedan? How does it drive? Who's going to buy it? And, most importantly, does the Panamera deserve to wear the coveted Porsche crest? Find out after the jump...



All Photos Copyright ©2009 Michael Harley / Weblogs, Inc.

Say what you will about the styling of the Porsche Panamera, the company's merchandising division cranks out some seriously lust-worthy designs. Some of them have nothing to do with their automotive namesake, but here's an instance of Porsche Design working in concert with the automobile division to give drivers something a little more handy than a baseball cap or polo shirt. Okay, so the Panamera Collection includes plenty of those too, along with watches, coats and kids clothing, but it also includes a set of intriguing fitted luggage for the four-door sports car from Zuffenhausen.

Instead of the usual (and usually exquisitely crafted) soft leather bags, Porsche has gone with a set of aluminum and polycarbonate hard-shell suitcases of various sizes and shapes. They're even available in the same colors as the Panamera, making this set of fitted luggage especially fitting. Check 'em out in the gallery below (along with the requisite clothing line) and the details in the press release after the jump.

After years of anticipation and ramp-up, Porsche has finally begun production of the Panamera four-door model at its factory in Leipzig. But don't take our word for it, you can go and see for yourself as the German automaker has re-opened the factory to the public.

While preparing the German assembly plant, where the Cayenne is also built, for production of the Panamera, Porsche had shut down the location for eight months, during which some 22,000 square meters of capacity were added to accommodate the new assembly line. Now that the renovations are complete, visitors are once again welcome to tour the facility, free of charge, by booking online. So if you find yourself headed to Saxony, why not take a swing by? If not, you can check out the images in the gallery below and the press release after the jump.




[Source: Porsche]

Rumors about a coupe version of the Porsche Panamera were circulating before the sedan was even officially announced, and while a 928 successor has potential, a convertible version of the four-door Panamera seems downright absurd. However, according to an interview conducted by Auto Motor und Sport with Porsche development head Wolfgang Dürheimer, a drop-top Panamera is feasible – if not entirely likely. Dürheimer is quoted as saying (translated), "Currently, this topic is not on the agenda. We have other homework to do, such as the six-cylinder. And then the Panamera will also have a hybrid engine." As expected, AMuS runs with it, saying that the Panamera convertible would pack a cloth soft-top rather than a retractable hard-top, in keeping with Porsche's convertible 911 variants and Boxster. Of course, a Panamera cabrio would be a huge gamble, particular as the standard sedan hasn't even gone on sale and Porsche is unable to gauge reaction to its first four-door model. If nothing else, Porsche could use the platform that underpins the Panamera to create a new FR coupe, spawning a drop-top variant further down the road.




[Source: Auto Motor und Sport]

With the launch of the Porsche Panamera configurator, you can finally build the sedan from Stuttgart to your own specs. Starting with an untouched 500 hp, $132,600 Turbo model that scoots to sixty in just four seconds, we came up with the $181,170 Mahogany Metallic example above. Even though we left a great many options unchecked and some imaginary money in our imaginary wallet, we're sure it will still perform impressively. Sadly, though, there was no button marked "Make the backside pretty." Hat tip to Evan.

The day before the public unveiling of the Porsche Panamera at the Shanghai Motor Show, journalists were invited to the 94th floor of the Shanghai World Financial Center in China to catch a glimpse of Stuttgart's first four-door sedan. Providing further proof that both the Germans and Chinese are a persistent bunch, a team of workers proceeded to strap the Panamera onto a special pallet, tipped it on its tail and wedged the dark silver metallic sedan into the freight elevator to make the 1,394-foot trek up the world's third-largest building. The pictures tell the tale better than we can, so check them out in the gallery below, along with more live shots of the Panamera straight from Shanghai.

Despite previous reports to the contrary, new reports suggest that Porsche is indeed planning a front-engine coupe to fill the void left in its line-up by the old 928. The original front-engined V8 GT was built by Porsche in various iterations between 1978 and 1995 before it was dropped. Since news of the four-door Panamera's development began circulating, so did rumors of a two-door variant to pick up the 928's mantle, but now that the Panamera has made its official public debut in Shanghai, new accounts suggest that Stuttgart is working on it already.

In this case, according to UK magazine Auto Express, any potential 928 successor would run in parallel, not as a replacement to the 911 (natch). Expect a fastback profile and the mechanicals to carry over largely from the Panamera, while reportedly reduced demand for lower-end Porsches like the Boxster and Caymen would dictate that the new GT would be positioned significantly higher, taking aim at the likes of the Bentley Continental GT and Aston Martin DB9. Is there any truth to the reports? Only time will tell, but in the meantime we've assembled a new gallery with high-resolution images of the original Porsche 928 for your nostalgic reminiscence...just click the thumbnails below.



[Source: Auto Express]

Underscoring the increasing importance of the Chinese market to automakers around the world, Porsche has unveiled its newest model at the Shanghai Motor Show. We've seen official images of the Panamera for at least six months and even had a chance to ride in it last month in Germany but this is the first time the public has been able to see it in person.

The true four-seat Panamera goes on sale this Fall with normally aspirated and turbocharged versions of the company's 4.8-liter direct-injected V8 in all markets. Some markets will also get Audi's new supercharged 3.0-liter V6 and a hybrid system will join the lineup in 2011. Check out our in-depth run-down of the technology in the Panamera which will have to hold you over until we get to drive the Panamera this summer. We hope to have more live shots soon, but for now, click on the galleries below and check out the official press release after the jump.




[Source: Porsche]

The new Panamera is without doubt one of the two most controversial vehicles ever to come from Porsche, the other, of course, being the Cayenne. While traditional Porsche fans howled at the idea of an SUV coming from the "sportscar maker," this time around, the problem is not so much the premise of a four-door, four-passenger Porsche, but rather the car's styling.

Porsche is no stranger to controversy surrounding its new models. In fact, the German automaker seems to thrive on the divisiveness. Some of the cars that purists have complained about most bitterly have been among its best sellers. Much of the same whining heard about the Cayenne and Panamera accompanied the introduction of the front-engine, water-cooled 924 and 928 in the '70s, and to a lesser extent, even the transition of the 911 from air to water cooling.

The Panamera won't be shown publicly until the Shanghai Motor Show next month, but Porsche invited several dozen international media to its Weissach R&D center this week for a workshop on the technical details of the Panamera, and we were along for the ride. Read on to learn more about what makes the Panamera tick.



All photos Copyright ©2009 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.

As if Porsche's Panamera isn't already strange enough, the European options list will apparently include some items you'd never imagine on a car from Zuffenhausen. When you think about it, though, a trailer hitch isn't the most far-fetched thing you might want on your Panamera. After all, the S version is going to have plenty of grunt to drag that Tabbert Paganini all over The Continent, and other high-end sedans are fitted with hitches, so why not the Panamera? After all, it's not like you're trying to turn a 911 into a Peterbilt, but then again, isn't this what the well-heeled buy Cayennes for? Thanks for the tip, Michael!

[Source: Vlane]