Porsche Panamera: Beauty or Beast?

When Porsche released a bevy of photographs of the company's first four-door sedan, the Panamera, a few weeks ago, it was bound to create a stir.

The idea (or nerve, depending on who you talk to) of Porsche building anything other than two-door sport cars stimulated strong emotions when Porsche introduced the Cayenne S.U.V. in 2002. The Panamera, which will go on sale in the United States next fall, could be just as polarizing.

According to a Porsche news release:

The symbiosis of sports car DNA derived from the looks of a coupe, the unique interpretation of the classical saloon body and the benefits of a variable space concept give the new Porsche a truly unmistakable appearance.

Well, the appearance is definitely unmistakable. The Panamera measures 76 inches wide, 55.8 inches in height and a whopping 195.7 inches — 16 feet! — in overall length.

Chris Harris, the editorial director of Drivers Republic, is a Porschephile. He has owned more than 30 Porsches and currently drives a 1971 Porsche 911 S/T recreation. I wondered what he thought of the Panamera.

"Perhaps Porsche deliberately disseminated a negative message about the Panamera's styling?" he wrote in an e-mail. "Vast, bloated development cars have been scooped for the past few years, and they haven't looked pretty — but this time around I think the burden of expectation has worked rather well. We all anticipated an abomination, a squished Cayenne with some contrived Carrera-reference-detailing. But in expecting a design calamity, the reality is less shocking."

"It's no beauty — a Maserati Quattroporte is far prettier, and the Aston Rapide concepts are far sexier — but in drawing references from the Carrera GT supercar (front end) and Ferrari 456 (door scallops) it kind of works. And remember, that's all a Porsche needs to do — the proof is in the driving. "

"Porsche doesn't do beautiful and lithe, Porsche does dynamics and visual presence. Excepting 2004's gorgeous Carrera GT, the last genuinely sexy Porsche was probably the 1964 904 GTS. The Panamera doesn't alter that situation, but I suspect it might redefine high-performance, comfortable, four-seat motoring. Just how relevant that subject will be over the next few years is currently undecided."

No specific engine details are currently available, but Porsche revealed that the Panamera will be offered with a V-6 or a V-8 with outputs of 300-500 horsepower.

"Some engines use turbocharging technology and Direct Fuel Injection, making them both fuel-efficient and very powerful," said Porsche. Transmission options include a 6-speed manual and the company's new double-clutch gearbox, which has the longest name for a transmission in automotive history: the Doppelkupplungsgetriebe; Porsche has abbreviated it to PDK.

The primary models will be rear-wheel drive. The top of the line model will have all-wheel drive, which will be an option on all other models. Porsche also is preparing a fuel-efficient version of the Panamera with hybrid drive. Porsche has an annual sales target of about 20,000 units.

So, what do you think?

By Richard S. Chang

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