Everyones favorite late night comedian Jay Leno was recently given the opportunity to drive the all new Porsche Panamera at Pebble Beach in Carmel Valley Califonia. Jay was immediately in awe of the new Porsche’s front end while he did mention that the back end would take some getting used to. On the inside the talk show host agreed that the from the driver’s seat he was feeling pure Porsche. An interesting observation that Leno made is that like certain new cars the Panamera is one of those automobiles that looks much better in person than in any two dimensional representation. Luckily the funny man had second generation Porsche racing driver David Donahue on hand to show him the finer points of the Panamera’s launch control as well as to discuss the finer points of the two plus two’s packaging.
The Panamera made its world debut this past April at the Shanghai Motor Show with a design heavily influenced by the best selling 911. The Panamera becomes the fourth stand alone model in Porsche’s line up next to the the 911, Boxster/Cayman and Cayenne with sales set to begin very soon.
Porsche will offer the new car in two different trim-levels: Turbo and 4S. Unlike the 911 and Boxster/Cayman, the Panamera will not have a boxer engine. Instead the lineup will take its cues from the Cayenne and have engines in the more traditional V6 and V8 arrangements with power ranging from 300 to 500 HP and is fed through either a six-speed manual gearbox or aseven-speed Double-Clutch Gearbox (PDK).
In a move that would seem like something more suited for Maranello than Stuttgart, the German sports car builder Porsche is preparing to offer the Panamera with a choice of personalization programs for the luxury sedan. Porsche Exclusive, which is available now, and the more functional Porsche Tequipment that will follow in September. With a move like this Porsche is opening themselves up to the likes of luxury shoppers while offering the same proven performance that they instill in all their products.
The Porsche Exclusive package comes with the obligatory body colored trim pieces on the outside and the ultra plush Yachting Mahogany interior. Perhaps Porsche wants you to feel at home cruising around in this land boat, but everything from the unique aluminum PDK shifter to the 10.5 Liter cooling box between the rear seats allows you to travel in unheard of levels of style and comfort. Every interior surface imaginable is covered in top-grade leather while every piece of trim is a beautiful combination of dark mahogany with light maple inlays.
Porsche Tequipment offers all kinds of racks and attachments for the Porsche roof transport system carrying various kinds of leisure-time equipment. There is also a lightweight aluminum bike rack that can fit up to three bicycles for the four occupants as well as the optional tow bar. Inside Tequipment offers first class products like an official Panamera child seat and steering wheel made from either wood or carbon fiber. Of course there are also an assortment of rims. With a move like this Porsche is opening themselves up to the likes of luxury shoppers while offering the same proven performance that they instill in all their products.
The 2010 Porsche Panamera made its North American debut at the Monterey’s Classic Car Week in Monterey, California, but it will also be presented on August 16 at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.
On the US market, the new Panamera is priced at $89,800 for the V8 Panamera S, $93,800for the4S version and for $132,600 for the Turbo version.
Ladies and gentlemen, the Panameras have landed. The first fleet of Porsche Panameras – 31 of them, in fact – has arrived in the US just in time for its American debut at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance on August 9.
If you must know, the cars were airlifted via the cargo hold of a 747 all the way from its production facility in Leipzig, Germany where it shares the production line with a number of other Porsche models including the Cayenne SUV. While the Panameras are expected to go on sale in the US on October 17, Porsche’s new crown jewel is expected to make a few pit-stops along the way, including an appearance at the aforementioned Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance – where, as we’ve said, it’s going to make its US debut – and at the Monterey Auto Week later this year.
The Panameras that are arriving in the US are those of the V8-powered gas variant, which also comes in three models: the Panamera S, the Panamera AWD 4S, and the flagship Turbo, with the price tag for the three models coming in at $89,800, $93,800, and $132,000, respectively. It may be a steep price to pay for a car, especially considering the circumstances we’re all facing these days. Then again, it’s the Porsche Panamera; we’re pretty confident that a lot of Americans are lining up their pockets for a chance to be one of the first to be driving these babies out on the American highway.
Even before the Porsche Panamera hits showrooms around the world tuning enthusiasts are toying around with modifying the new four door sports car making it into a much more focused package. If you can put your imagination to work like this rendering’s artists did, you would have envisioned the German automaker’s latest creation sporting a more aggressive front bumper complete with grip enhancing front splitter and an oversized set of rims filling every inch of wheel well.
Even if this is just rendering, expect aftermarket manufacturers to be ready with a few products for owners to accessorize the new Panamera and personalize their vehicle, but it may take a few months for a full kit like this. It takes time to prepare bumper moldings and lay the carbon fiber for the splitter, but a well thought out suspension could take quite a bit more time.
The German sports car maker Porsche finally has something to brag about when it comes to ‘Ring times. When John Heinricy piloted a Cadillac CTS-V around the Nordschleife in 7 minutes and 59 seconds it officially gave General Motors the title of having the fastest four door to conquer the Green Hell. However, the title no longer belongs to America, it is now the German’s time to shine. Porsche’s test driver was able to complete the 12.9 mile circuit behind the wheel of a Panamera Turbo in just 7 minutes and 56 seconds. The luxury four seater bested the pride of General Motors by a full three seconds.
The Porsche Panamera Turbo is powered by a 4.8 Liter turbocharged V8 that makes 500 HP and 516 lb-ft of torque that make the new Porsche sprint from 0 to 60 MPH in 4.2 seconds in just 4.0 seconds with the with the Sports Chrono mode enabled, and hit a top speed of 188 MPH.
This is good news since the last time the words Porsche and Nurburgring were in the same sentence, the name Nissan wasn’t too far off. This is even bigger because news because it comes on the heels of the recently released in car video evidence of Toshio Suzuki setting the 7 minute 26 second record that the German automaker demanded as proof. Now the video doesn’t show what kind of tires are on the car, but we’re sure all that was well documented.
The German automaker Porsche is already offering a 3.0 Liter V6 diesel option for the Cayenne SUV. However, the sports car maker is also considering a diesel powered Panamera sometime in the near future. "There are V6 and V8 diesels within the VW Group that could be used as a basis."
This means the company might add either same 240 HP 3.0 Liter V6 from the Cayenne, or even the 322 HP 4.2 Liter V8 alternatively fueled diesel borrowed from the Audi A8 thanks to the new Porsche VW alliance.
Next to a greener Panamera, Porsche is preparing a top of the line version of the four door super car that will sit above the current Turbo version and will be the equivalent to a Cayenne GTS.
Porsche has just revealed a new promotional video for their 2010 Panamera luxury four door sports car. The video shows a regular day behind the wheel of the Panamera.
The German sports car maker Porsche has just revealed their first promotional video for the new 2010 Panamera four door. The high performance sedan will go on sale in the European market this September, followed by a U.S. release later on. The Porsche Panamera will be offered in both Turbo and 4S trims, engines will range from V6s to V8s and have outputs ranging from 300 HP all the way up to 500 HP.
Some very good news for those of you living in Germany, or planning a European vacation in the near future, Porsche has finished the recent expansion of their Leipzig plant and it is once again open to the public. So, if you are interested in every detail of the automotive industry or just love cars, you now have the opportunity to see a Porsche Panamera being brought to life!
The Leipzig plant is dedicated to the production of the new Porsche Panamera luxury sedan that will go on sale in Europe this September, and the Porsche Cayenne super SUV.
Picture Gallery
Post a comment
RSS -
Webmaster free news |