I've been fortunate enough to drive both the Porsche Panamera S and the Panamera Turbo over the past four weeks (the Turbo over this past Thanksgiving weekend). This is a car that elevates the word "sedan" to a new dimension. In fact, while technically correct, the word "sedan" sounds too mundane to serve as the Panamera's descriptor. Like calling the Grand Canyon a "natural formation."
If you think this Porsche's specs are the sole reason it's more than just a sedan, well, you'd be partially right. With 500 horsepower, 567 pound-feet of torque, a zero-to-60 time in the mid 3s and a top speed over 175 mph there's no ignoring the Panamera's performance. But when you're spending $150,000-plus on a sedan you can find similar numbers in more than a few high-end four-doors.
No, what makes the Panamera unique is how that performance is melded with a highly functional and supremely effective luxury sedan. I've always been most impressed with vehicles than can do more than one thing really well. For instance, a great luxury SUV capable of daily commutiing in the city is nice, as is a billy-goat-capable off-roading machine. And when you get all of those attributes in a single vehicle (i.e. Toyota Land Cruiser) you have a vehicle that defines engineering excellence.
And that's where the Porsche Panamera scores. It's nearly peerless as a racetrack weapon AND it's almost unequaled as a fully-functional luxury sedan. It defines engineering excellence.
But despite it's capabilities an important question remains: Should Porsche really be making a sedan?
I think far too many people have taken one look at the Panamera and decided the answer is clearly, "NO!"
I'll agree it's not a styling home run, but I've found a much better way of approaching the car's design success -- or failure. First, I have yet to meet a person who has driven the Panamera and remains hung up on its looks. Everyone who drives the car, even those initially repulsed by the Panamera's appearance, come away so impressed that its looks no longer matter.
Second, I've now run into several people while driving a Panamera who never saw it in photos. Because they aren't car people they weren't tracking it's every spy shot and Nurburgring lap time. Their first exposure to the design was when I pulled into their driveway or up next to them at a stop light. Their reaction? They love it.
This confirms a long-held belief I've had. There are basically two types of people in this world: car guys and everyone else. The "everyone else" numbers dwarf the car guy numbers, and if you can succeed in their eyes the car guys simply don't matter. The Toyota Camry is probably the best example of this. I think the Panamera will be another.
Which brings me to my final point. The Panamera is essentially the Cayenne, Part 2. When the Cayenne was in development every "car guy" hated it and what it represented. They all claimed it was ugly and stupid and would be the downfall of the company. And when it hit the market it becames Porsche's top seller, effectively saving the company from financial ruin. It was also hailed as an excellent SUV. The non-car guys didn't care about Porsche's history or heritage or even about the Cayenne's questionable styling. They just bought Cayennes and went on with their lives.
I know because I was one of the car guys bemoaning the Cayenne throughout its development. Then I drove it and I saw the impact it had on Porsche's bottom line and I quietly shut up (just like most other car guys regarding the Cayenne).
This time around I kept my mouth shut during the Panamera's development, and now that I've seen it in person and driven it I know it's a winner. So I'm going to beat the car-guy herd and start endorsing the Panamera now. For all the rest of your car guys out there, stubbornly holding onto your angst, I'll be waiting for you at the finish line.
Oh, and to the question "Should Porsche really be making a sedan?" Here's your answer: If Porsche executes on every vehicle type as well as the Cayenne and Panamera, I don't have a problem with the company making minivans.
By pushrod
on December 1, 2009
04:52 AM
Personally, I've always thought of Porsche being about performance and engineering. I don't really care how many doors (or wheels) their machines have. There are truly fanatical purists that figure that the only thing Porsche should be making is variants of the 911, viewing any other model as unworthy of the Porsche name. Some even cried "sacrilege" when they added water-cooling to the 911. Purist thinking is fine, but not to the point where the company can't survive.
The Panamera fits the "performance and engineering" thing pretty well in my mind. So does the Cayenne. The idea that performance should be limited to cars with 2 doors is thinking too narrow in my mind. I would love to see what they would do with a minivan :-).
By rsholland
on December 1, 2009
05:09 AM
Karl, you're absolutely right about the "car guys" vs "everyone else." After following Edmunds and other car sites, I've felt the same way for quite some time now. Most car guys are living in a dream world, and are totally out of sync with what's going on outside their bubble, and/or refuse to acknowledge the facts as they are.
And, yes, Porsche should be building this "sedan," although I prefer the term "4-door coupe;" but I understand your word usage here.
By ahightower
on December 1, 2009
05:37 AM
I totally agree with the article. The same vocal minority thought BMW shouldn't have been making SUV's either, but those have likewise been very profitable (and brought manufacturing jobs to the USA). Why shouldn't Porsche evolve into a full-line manufacturer, to compete with BMW in all segments? It won't make their sports cars any worse. If you want a sports car from a company that only makes sports cars, you can buy a Ferrari. For now...
By opfreakx
on December 1, 2009
05:48 AM
no.
By guy1974
on December 1, 2009
07:47 AM
This is all a moot point since Porsche's new owners, VW, have said Porsche will return to its roots (Cayman, Boxster and 911) and the Panamera and Cayenne will go after their current model cycle.
We will see if VW actually follows through on that - they have enough other brands to cover these segments so I assume they will follow through.
By deagle13
on December 1, 2009
09:48 AM
I think a more important question is "Should Porsche try to inject 911 styling cues into every Porsche model". Why is there so much concern over "brand identity" when desigining new cars? Porsche has no history in the 4 door sedan marketplace, so why not begin with a clean design slate?
Based on what I've been reading about the Panamera the car is phenominal. Why not let an outstanding car stand on its own and perhaps become a new design icon? Remeber, the 911 design is only considered iconic because the 911 has been an outstanding car for the past 40+ years. If the 911 had been a piece of junk, its design would have been just another historical footnote. Though I agree with Karl that the Panamera will most likely prove successful (and based on the two I've seen on the streets, it looks better in the flesh than in pictures), I think Porsche missed out on a design opportunity with this one...
By chavis10
on December 1, 2009
09:50 AM
The car still looks dumb from the rear no matter how great the performance. Porsche really could've made it look nice but dropped the ball for no apparently reason with the hatchback design. It has a similar profile to the QuattroPorte until you get the rear end. I do like the inside and the front as both are very nice. The front reminds me of the Carerra GT a bit and that's a compliment.
I'm curious as to how fast this car accelerates when it does not include the Sport Chronos package.
My main beef with the Cayenne besides the hideous front end was the fact that it had all the extra mass of a pointless low range transfer case. They should've stripped the Touareg's off road hardware to save some pounds.
By jederino
on December 1, 2009
09:58 AM
The Panamera exhibits a new use of the "form follows function" principle. In this case, the function was to remind people of the 911. That it does, and it isn't an embarrasment, either. So, if it brings more dollars in for R&D and pays the wages and thereby helps bring new and exciting sports cars to market, I'm for it!
By rsholland
on December 1, 2009
10:10 AM
chavis10
SUVs have traditionally had low ranges, and frankly I'm glad Porsche offers this feature, whether owners make use of it or not.
By carlisimo
on December 1, 2009
10:35 AM
I find it much easier to accept a sporty sedan than an SUV. We’re already used to the idea of fast and entertaining sedans anyway, mostly thanks to other German automakers.
It’s also significant that the Panamera is a more expensive, lower-volume model than most of its sports cars. We can feel comfortable that it isn’t going to take over the Porsche brand because of that, and that 911s and mid-engined 2-seaters will remain more common than the sedan. That wasn’t the case with the Cayenne – it was Porsche’s cheapest model and so it became more common. That was annoying. A world in which the typical Porsche is an SUV does hurt the brand more than if Porsche had an SUV available in small numbers, probably to be purchased by people who already have a Porsche sports car (which might often be the case with the Panamera).
By ahightower
on December 1, 2009
11:18 AM
I think a more important question is "Should Porsche try to inject 911 styling cues into every Porsche model".
I'll agree with that. But they do need to have some common design "language", so that a Porsche is recognizable as such, like BMW and Mercedes. They're not going to start from a completely clean slate.
By sabastian
on December 1, 2009
12:24 PM
I'd be more okay with this car if it had two less doors and was called the 928. Not everything Porsche builds needs to be a 911, but I think they should stick with variations on the "sports car" concept: roadster, 2-seat coupe, 2+2 coupe, GT, supercar, etc.
By chavis10
on December 1, 2009
01:01 PM
It's a simple fact that Porsche needed more than the Cayman and 911 to make money and survive so I don't really have a problem with them offering new models. That said, they don't have to make the new models ugly. Just make them look nice and you want have as many people complaining.
By nosubstitute
on December 1, 2009
02:55 PM
Although I enthusiastically support your "car guy vs. non-car guy" analysis (since it affirms a point I've been making for years), when it comes to Porsche there's a slight variant: "911 guys vs. non-911 guys." As a Carrera recidivist I've walked right by whatever else happened to be in the showroom on the way to purchasing each of my four 911's. Sorta kinda noticed the Caymans and sorta kinda couldn't car less. As far as I and others of my ilk (of which there are many) are concerned, the brand is "911 Carrera."
In a lot of ways, the situation that's now most similar is with the Corvette. True, everything in the Porsche showroom is expensive and high performance, but 911 addicts don't really care. Likewise I imagine a Z06 shopper not only is oblivious to the unsightly Aveo's and Colorado's blighting his shopping experience, he probably hasn't a whole lot of interest in the Camaro SS either, whatever its attributes.
The bottom line for those of us who are truly afflicted is that whatever the parent company wants to foist on the "non's" is fine with us as long as the R&D budgets for the objects of our affection are kept fully funded. So Panamera and Cayenne buyers, rock on. If Porsche can bring the price of a carbon fiber structure for the 911 down from the stratosphere to the merely ridiculous by amortizing costs over your silly four doors and rock climbers, it's all good.
By rayainsw
on December 2, 2009
09:27 AM
Karl -
Whatever you write that I agree with
or disagree with,
I am very glad to see your prose
in this format.
Cheers,
- Ray
Looking forward to reading
[ no more 'tweets' ]
By estreka
on December 3, 2009
12:36 PM
I have no problem with Porsche developing a sedan as long as they abide by the company ethos. The very name hints at products with solid performance and intoxicating German engineering. That's why people buy Porsches.
I hated the Cayenne. Not because it came across as a VW SUV with a Porsche emblem slapped on, but because the product was gimmicky. I know the performance was there, but I couldn't get past the "make a quick buck" feeling I got. The Panamera on the other hand is completely OK with me. It's a real Porsche in my eyes.