Fresh Perspective

For the record I really love Porsche, even the Boxster and Caymen.  You would be forgiven for thinking otherwise given how found I am for Porsche competitors like the Aston Martin Vantage or Nissan GT-R, but I think that just further proves how good they are…. Except their stylist keep trying to make non sports cars look like sports cars.  They somewhat redeemed themselves with the faclifted Cayenne, but this new Panamera really is a buzz kill for me.  I can sum up the car saying it’s a really cool trick spoiler wrapped in a tragically unatractive body.

So that’s my opinion take it or leave it, but sitting in my inbox today was some Panamera news that they’ll debut the car in China.

Full press release after the Jump

Press-Information    05/01/2009

New Panamera: World Debut in China

Stuttgart. Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, Stuttgart, will be presenting the new Panamera to the public for the first time at Auto Shanghai 2009 in China from 20 – 28 April. Porsche’s unique, four-door Gran Turismo will be making its world debut at a press conference on 19 April and will be entering the market in late summer 2009.

The four-door Panamera combines a wide range of features seemingly contradictory at first sight, and offering a unique synthesis quite unparalleled in the premium segment: The Panamera comes with all the sporting and dynamic characteristics of a genuine Porsche combined with a very high standard of motoring comfort. Despite its extra-low and sleek coupé silhouette, in turn, the Panamera offers more than ample space and roominess inside for four passengers and variable loading space for a substantial amount of luggage. And last but not least, the Panamera proudly boasts power units offering a high standard of fuel efficiency despite the car’s outstanding performance.

All power units featured in the Panamera are modern V-engines with either six or eight cylinders covering a power range from 300 – 500 bhp and featuring Direct Fuel Injection. This makes all engines quite superior in their power and torque, together with superior fuel economy and exhaust emissions reduced to a minimum.

The Panamera is making its debut with a V8 normal-aspiration power unit and a V8 featuring bi-turbocharger technology.

Depending on the model, power is transmitted by a six-speed manual gearbox or Porsche’s new seven-speed Doppelkupplungsgetriebe (PDK) (Double-Clutch Gearbox) available as an option on all models within the range not fitted with PDK as standard from the start. This gives the Panamera both a particularly sporting and an extra-comfortable character on the road.

As an option the Panamera Gran Turismo will be available with Porsche’s Sports Chrono Package giving the car even more sporting and dynamic engine and gearshift characteristics and enhancing the dynamic performance of the Panamera to an even higher level of perfection.

The V6 and V8 normal-aspiration versions of the Panamera come as standard with rear-wheel drive. The top model in the range with its turbocharged power unit, in turn, features PTM (Porsche Traction Management) with extra-light, active all-wheel drive. PTM is also available on the other models.

In addition to the regular steel suspension featuring variable dampers for a sporting but comfortable driving experience, the Panamera is also available as an option with brand-new, adaptive air suspension offering additional air volume. This ensures a particularly wide range of suspension characteristics with an even higher standard of motoring comfort on the one hand and extremely sporting driving dynamics on the other.

In the Sport Plus Mode the air suspension lowers the entire car even further down to the road, giving the Panamera an even higher standard of aerodynamic efficiency and improving its centre of gravity, enhancing driving safety and reducing fuel consumption. As an option the Panamera is furthermore available with PDCC Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control actively compensating body roll in bends and at the same time improving the car’s response and smoothness on bumpy roads when driving in a straight line.
Intelligent lightweight technology making appropriate use of high-strength steel, light alloys such as aluminium and magnesium, as well as high-tech plastic materials serves to reduce the weight of the car to an appropriately low level in its class, benefiting not only fuel economy, but also driving dynamics.