Panamera Premier

I’ve gotta be honest. I can’t really say that I have been excited about Porsche’s upcoming sedan, the Panamera. I respect the fact that as a company they need to expand their market. I just wish that Porsche would create a new design language for its not-sport car offerings. The styling cues of the small and sleek Boxter/911 don’t scale up to the powerful and elegant Cayenne/Panamera. That said, when the local Porsche dealership sent me an invite to its premier party, I rsvp’d immediately.

And quite a party it was. I try to think of Porsche as a manufacturer of high performance vehicles, but they are a luxury brand and know how to cater to discriminating tastes. The event was held at a garage for private jets. When I entered the venue I was treated to a picturesque view of bright skies and vibrant forest in the distance while being surrounded by executive aircraft and perfectly detailed examples of the entire Porsche product range. Imported water, red and white wine, beer, and hors d'oeuvres were served at the open bar. If couldn’t tear yourself away from the automobiles, don’t worry. One of the lovely waitresses in the short dress would gladly take your order. If this isn’t motivation to be successful, I don’t know what is.

Once I saw the Panamera in person, I thought, ‘I get it’. The long nose and distinctive Porsche headlights looked powerful and elegant; pretty much what you’d expect from a front engine Porsche. The interior is huge and reminiscent of a 7-series BMW. But they took every chance they had to and some sport to the trim. The seats grip firmly (all four), the instrument panel is similar to the 911, and the center console extends the length of the cabin (much like a Mazda RX-8).

The real controversy around the car is its tail. The story goes that the CEO demanded that the roof be raised make the rear seats comfortable for adult passengers (note: Wendelin Wiedeking has since resigned). In doing he destroyed the design team’s ambitions of mimicking the sweeping tail line of the 911. Seeing the final product in person you realize that they almost got it to look right. Almost.

After looking at it for a few minutes, I wandered around to look at the rest of the lineup. I’m just not a sedan guy. There is nothing you could do to a sedan (not all-wheel drive, not a twin turbo charged v8, not a double clutch, not a fridge in the back seat. Nothing!) that would make it worth $150k to me. My wandering ended when I saw an old favorite. My dream car hasn’t changed.

Pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/MrSharps/20090820PanameraPremier?feat=directlink