Porsche will be presenting the new Panamera to the public for the first time at Auto Shanghai 2009 in China from April 20 to 28.
The four-door Panamera combines a wide range of features, seemingly contradictory at first sight, but offering a unique synthesis quite unparalleled in the premium segment.
The Panamera offers the sporting and dynamic characteristics expected from a Porsche, combined with a very high standard of driving comfort. Despite its extra-low and sleek coupé silhouette, the Panamera provides more than ample space and roominess inside for four passengers and 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 V-configuration with either six or eight cylinders, each with direct fuel injection, and covering a power range from 300 to 500bhp. This makes each engine quite superior in its power and torque, combined with superior fuel economy and exhaust emissions reduced to a minimum. The Panamera will make its debut with a normally-aspirated V8 and a V8 boosted by twin-turbocharger technology.
Depending on the model, power is transmitted by a six-speed manual gearbox or the Porsche seven-speed Doppelkupplungsgetriebe (double-clutch gearbox ). PDK is available as an option on all models within the range not fitted with PDK as standard. This gives the Panamera both particularly sporting driving characteristics and enhanced comfort on the road.
As a further option, the Panamera Gran Turismo will be available with the 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.
The V6 and V8 normally-aspirated 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 Porsche traction management with extra-lightweight, active all-wheel drive. PTM is also available on the other models as an option.
In addition to the regular steel suspension featuring variable dampers for a sporting but comfortable driving experience, the Panamera is also available with the option of a brand-new, adaptive air suspension offering additional air volume. This ensures a particularly wide range of suspension characteristics; an even higher standard of motoring comfort on the one hand and extremely sporting driving dynamics on the other.
For example, in the sport plus mode, the air suspension lowers the entire car even further towards the road, giving the Panamera a higher standard of aerodynamic efficiency and improving its centre of gravity, enhancing driving safety and reducing fuel consumption. As a further option, the Panamera is available with dynamic chassis control, an innovative feature which actively compensates body roll in bends and at the same time improves the car’s responsiveness and smoothness on bumpy roads when driving in a straight line.
Intelligent lightweight technology making appropriate use of high-strength steel, lightweight 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.
