Porsche to value-pack Panamera

PORSCHE’S first sedan, and its first new model line in more than a decade, will introduce a number of new technologies from the famed German sports car maker – but it won’t come with a higher pricetag than equivalent 911s.

The new Panamera "four-door sports coupe", which as reported by GoAuto in August will definitely be sold in Australia from 2009, was snapped in testing for the first time in late September, but won’t be the most expensive Porsche.

"Panamera will not be the Porsche flagship," a senior Porsche official told GoAuto at the 911 Targa launch in Portugal late last month.

Asked at the Paris motor show whether Panamera will be positioned above 911 in Porsche’s model range, the company’s global R&D chief Wolfgang Duerheimer said: "No. (The) 911 for the time being and for the future will be the backbone of Porsche and the most important model we have in our line-up.

"It will be the racing machine that we have a lot of derivatives (of) like GT3, RS and RSR, and will continue to form the basis for racecars for our customer. The Panamera is in a different class and will not be a racecar.

"(But) Panamera will be a typical Porsche you can be sure. It will open up a completely new segment for us because we know we have customers who like to drive sporty but want to carry luggage. It will be the most sporty solution in terms of a four-door four-seater sports coupe.

"In terms of luxury and performance levels we are competing with the best in the market. Yes, you can be sure that in terms of steering, braking, sound and performance Panamera will be remarkable in this segment," he said.

Panamera is expected to provide the resurgent Stuttgart brand with at least 20,000 extra annual sales from 2009, when a total of more than 120,000 Porsches will be built.

In the company’s last financial year, which ended on July 31, Porsche produced more than 100,000 vehicles for the first time – a five-fold increase on the 20,000-odd it shifted in 1996. Of the 102,600 vehicles it built last year (up 12.8 per cent from the 90,954 it manufactured the previous year), 34,386 were 911s (up 23.6 per cent) at Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen, 27,906 were examples of its Finland-built Boxster line (including 14,002 Caymans) and 34,134 were Cayenne SUVs – down from 41,884 in 2004/2005.

To be assembled alongside Cayenne at a dedicated new 25,000 square-metre production facility at Porsche’s expanded Leipzig plant, which will be completed by late 2008, Panamera’s body-in-white will be produced at Volkswagen's Hanover facility.

But it will be powered by variations of an upgraded V8 that will debut in next year’s facelifted Cayenne, which will also become Porsche’s first hybrid model in 2010. Though a variation of VW-owned Lamborghini’s Gallardo V10 won’t fit under Panamera’s bonnet, a version of the SUV’s petrol-electric powertrain could also eventually power Panamera.

"We think hybrid technology and Porsche driving agility is a combination that can fit,” said Mr Duerheimer. “We are preparing a hybrid answer on the Cayenne side and we will see it probably on the end of this decade as a production car."For starters, however, based on its rigidly traditional new model rollout, GoAuto expects Porsche to launch the Panamera S, powered by a version of the naturally-aspirated V8 that will power the facelifted Cayenne (in which it should grow from 4.5 to around 5.0 litres), at the Geneva motor show in March 2009.

It’s likely to be followed at the same year’s Frankfurt motor show by the launch of Porsche’s first V6-powered sports car, the entry-level Panamera. Set to feature the same upgraded VW-sourced V6 (with a capacity that should grow from 3.2 to 3.5 litres) as the facelifted base Cayenne, which will become Porsche Cars Australia’s first sub-$100,000 model in 2007, the least expensive Panamera should be priced between the Cayman S coupe and the entry-level 911 Carrera coupe at less than $200,000.

The following year’s Paris motor show could play host to the launch of the Panamera Turbo flagship, powered by the facelifted Cayenne’s turbocharged V8, available exclusively in all-wheel drive guise and priced below the 911 Turbo at around $300,000.

According to Porsche’s all-wheel drive project leader, Dr Erhard Moessle, Panamera’s final design is already locked in and early test mules have already hit the road. Dr Moessle won’t comment on a cabriolet version, but confirms Panamera will out-perform its rivals yet undercut its stablemates on price.

"Panamera will have enough power to beat its competitors," he said. "(The 911) Turbo is expensive, so Panamera may not be that expensive."Aimed directly at four-door luxury sports cars like Aston Martin’s new Rapide, Maserati’s Quattroporte and the Mercedes-Benz CLS – for which BMW is expected to offer a rival by 2010 – Panamera is also expected to debut a number of new technologies.

Porsche has confirmed it will replace its five-speed Tiptronic S auto with a double-clutch transmission like Volkswagen’s DSG, which itself is based on Porsche’s own PDK system first patented and used in its race cars in the 1980s.

Dr Moessle told GoAuto previously he would like to have seen PDK in the new 911 Turbo, but that it’s logical to assume it will be introduced in Porsche’s next new or redesigned model. With all-new 911 and Boxster/Cayman models not due until early next decade, Panamera appears to be Porsche’s next opportunity to debut it.

However, Dr Moessle warns the PDK system, which he says will be heavier than Porsche’s six-speed manual but lighter than Tiptronic S, still falls short of a traditional torque converter-equipped automatic in terms of smoothness.

"We have them running already, but when we do PDK for production it must be as comfortable as an auto," he told GoAuto.

"A lot of our customers will come from Mercedes-Bens and Jaguar and are used to a very comfortable gearbox. The sporty side is no problem and it has no problem handling 750Nm (of torque) - the problem is to achieve the same amount of smoothness (as an auto) but with quicker, sportier gearchanges and a higher torque capability."Mr Duerheimer concurs. “Semi-automatic (DSG-type) gearboxes are not on the level of comfort we would like to give our customers," he said. "Because when you have this interruption of the gearchange and you are not influencing it yourself in pushing the buttons, the level of comfort is not on the way we want to have it."Asked if Panamera was the right model in which to introduce PDK, Mr Duerheimer said: “It could be. I’m sure PDK is a technology that we will see in the Porsche cars of the future - PDK will replace Tiptronic inside Porsche - but I cannot tell you when."Porsche’s new 911 Turbo comes with a variation of the Cayenne’s superior electronically-controlled multi-plate clutch-actuated AWD system, which is expected to replace the mechanical viscous coupling on future 911 Carrera 4 variants and to filter down to Panamera – but not Boxster/Cayman.

"With Cayenne development let’s say we entered a new field of all-wheel drive technology,” said Mr Duerheimer. “On snowy, slippery conditions the Cayenne even out-performed one of the other sports cars. Therefore the 911 Turbo now has the AWD technology we introduced in the Cayenne and at present that’s it.

"It’s a question of money and the performance level you want to deliver, but I see a possibility to even go a little bit deeper into the 911 side, besides the Turbo, with electronically controlled AWD systems replacing the visco AWD system we use at present.

"The visco is very good in terms of weight. But usually you can see at Porsche a top-down approach to new technologies."As previously forecast by GoAuto, Mr Duerheimer also flagged the likelihood of direct petrol-injection for future Porsche models – beyond the Cayenne V8, which already employs VW’s FSI system.

"We are not unhappy with the level of performance we have achieved so far (in the 911 Turbo). But development goes on and directed-injection is a technology we count on in the future. As time goes on we will have one or the other answer in this field.

"I think it’s a solution that will again help us increase performance and at the same time reduce fuel consumption. It will happen."One technology that doesn’t appear destined for use by Porsche, at least in the medium term, is the Delphi-developed Magnetic Ride Control variable suspension damping system employed by some Cadillac models in the US, some of HSV’s new E Series models and next month’s new Audi TT coupe.

Audi, the luxury brand of Volkswagen, which is 20 per cent owned by Porsche, is one of many car-makers that out-source R&D projects to Porsche. Mr Duerheimer said bench-tests had revealed MRC is not as effective as Porsche’s own “active suspension management” system in low temperatures.

"As you might know at Wiessach (Porsche’s motorsport and development HQ) we also develop for third parties, so we are not only developing our own technology – about one third of my team is related to third party products.

"So this forces us to study their technologies very closely and to think what can be improved. We always study very closely what’s coming on the market because we should take care that we don’t leave the train or miss an important train when it starts.

"But on this side we had shocks on our test benches, not in the car, and think that at present this technology is not the right one. In extreme cold weather you will not see the difference when you hit the button - unlike with PASM, which works well in all conditions. Of course you could argue that sports cars are only driven in the sunshine but all know that’s not true.

"We are very happy with PASM and we think not all the potential technology has to offer been explored so far so there will be future possibilities on this side. With PASM we were able to bridge a real big gap in terms of very sporty to very comfortable to drive. So with the switch of this buttons the driver really feels a difference and it works on the whole outside temperature criteria. If we test in the Northern Territory or in Alaska, you must feel the difference between sport and standard.

"With MRC I’m not sure the whether the temperature stability is on such a wide gap in the same way as our system. We will test it this winter,” he said.

Mr Duerheimer praised the ability of Audi’s new TT, which will be a rival for its Boxster and Cayman models, but implied its steering, braking, seats, sound and throttle response was not up to Porsche standards.

"I think it’s an interesting car and we have quite a good understanding between our companies. (But) I think our competitors still have a long way to go until they’re competitive with us, especially in terms of driving smoothness.

"Some things at Porsche won’t be modified in future. The first one is a direct connection between the steering wheel and the tyre. (We will offer) no electric steer-by-wire because it’s very important to sense how much grip you have.

"Second, brake-by-wire – we still have the direct connection between brake pedal via hydraulic systems to again the tyre. We don’t want to filter out any brake feel .

"Our seats offer longitudinal and lateral feel that others don’t . Also the sound is a better way than a tachometer to know what the engine is doing without taking concentration off the road. So I think when our competitors go to drive-by-wire, that’s good for us,” he said.

As well as being the company’s first sedan, the front-engined Panamera will be the first V8-engined Porsche sports car since the 928 was discontinued in 1995. The four-door 989 prototype of 1991 (and earlier 911-based sedan concepts) were never series-produced.

Aussie Outback still number one: Porsche
PORSCHE’S global R&D chief has quashed suggestions America’s Death Valley had become the sports car maker’s preferred hot-weather testing location.

Mr Wolfgang Duerheimer said the Australian Outback remains unrivalled as the world’s best hot-weather, high-speed test bench.

"Australia is on our, let’s say, hot list for high speed and hot temperatures, so let me just emphasis that we really like your country and appreciate very much that we still have the possibility in the Northern Territory to test the level of performance and durability of our cars.

"There are not many countries in the world where you can empty one tank without lifting the throttle quite frequently. You can go very fast and if you are above 40 degrees in Australia this is a lot of stress for the car. We do this on closed tracks like Nardo in Italy, but to be on the real road is still different.

"Death Valley’s also an important place where you need to be in order to track your thermal abilities, but if you are going more than, let’s say 70mph, then you are in jail in the US.

"The thermal conditions of the engine and the cooling system at 70mph and at top speeds in Australia are completely different factors and we know that our customers especially on the racetracks take our cars to the limit - and therefore we need to check whether they are able to stand the stress," he said.

The Porsche development boss confirmed many Porsche models had been, and will continue to be tested in Australia prior to production, including Cayenne.

"I’m glad we did not meet when we were testing our cars in Australia. We try to hide a little bit. It’s not so easy to predict where we are. I have been there many times."Mr Duerheimer stressed that having the biggest or most powerful engine – or the fastest top speed - was not a priority for Porsche.

"I want to emphasise that when we develop new cars we don’t see any limits at Porsche. We try to deliver the best what’s possible at the stage of development and the timing we are living in, but Porsche in terms of vehicle technology is not striving for the ultimate number one position in one discipline, like having the car that is the fastest, like going over 400kmh, or having the biggest and the most powerful engine.

"Our target is to deliver a perfect package in terms of sportiveness, driving dynamics, and we can usually clock this level of performance on a racetrack. If you have a good lap time with a new 911 GT3 you know it’s a very good car and every car on the sports car side must be faster on the track than the previous model.

"This includes the engine, the suspension, the brakes, the aerodynamics, the rolling resistance, the steering, the driving position. We call it concept harmony. That’s what we look for in terms of sports car development and the Carrera GT exactly gave this answer in the segment of high-performance sports cars.

"The SLR is also a car in this field, but it is much heavier and it’s much more, let’s say, internally like an SL.

"The Bugatti makes more than 400km/h and has 1000hp but it will not be faster at the Nurburgring Nordschliffe than the Carrera GT," he said.