Porsche reconciles comfort and power with latest Panamera

Porsche 2017 Panamera

German automaker Porsche is consolidating its image with the redesigned and reengineered 2017 Porsche Panamera.

The new Panamera is meant to unite the sports cars that the brand is known for on one hand with comfortable luxury sedans on the other, bridging the gap between the worlds. Porsche’s new Panamera joins a recent line of reinventions by the automaker intended to broaden its appeal to new consumer segments.

“The new Panamera can be identified as a Panamera at first glance, but also as the new Panamera,” said Michael Mauer, Head of Style Porsche AG. “Its strengths have been reinforced, its weaknesses have been eradicated and above all its distinctive character has been preserved.”

Reconciled
The new Panamera takes its cues from the Porsche 911 in its roofline and new side window, and its rear axle steering, helping to establish a distinct yet continuous place for the vehicle within the brand’s fleet. Porsche describes the resulting vehicle as “a luxury sedan that is at home on the race track.”

Porsche 2017 Panamera Turbo

On the interior, black panel surfaces and smartphone-like entertainment systems and touch screens reflect a makeover for the cockpit, pushing the brand’s design into the digital age. However, an analog tachometer remains as a tribute to the brand’s heritage.

Furthering the commitment to digital innovation, all 2017 Panamera’s will be outfitted with Porsche Connect. Porsche Connect allows drivers to sync up their vehicle and mobile phones, allowing users to control certain vehicle functions remotely and otherwise make the driver’s time more efficient.

A 550 hp twin-turbo V8 and 440 hp twin-turbo V6 will replace the old engines in the Panamera Turbo and Panamera 4S, respectively. Both increase power while also improving fuel economy and reduce emissions by 16 percent, a necessary step in light of the recent emissions scandal (see story).

Porsche Panamera interior

Porsche introduced the vehicle in Berlin earlier this week and has posted an array of videos to social media.

In the first video, images of a cityscape are intercut with close-ups of the new Panamera Turbo. They soon become longer shots showing more of the vehicle, then move to the interior before the headlights turn on and the vehicle takes off.

As it drives down the highway, a gust of wind causes a street sign to turn and a group of businessmen’s coffees to spill, representing the power of the vehicle. As it drives along city streets, shop-workers and pedestrians alike stop to take notice.

At the halfway point, a blue Panamera S also accelerates from a stop, catching an equal number of eyes. The two vehicles rendezvous, then speed in tandem through an empty tunnel and highway.

The new Panamera Turbo and Panamera 4S in motion

Another video, in subtitled German, focuses exclusively on the Panamera Turbo and a record-breaking run at the Nürburgring, the longest racecourse in the world. Preparatory work and brief shots of the run are shown.

Breaking a record with the fastest luxury sedan on earth. The new Panamera Turbo

By showing off the racing capabilities of the vehicle even as the bookends of the vehicle tout it as a luxury sedan, Porsche blends two contrasting traits of the brand in one vehicle.

Digital future
Porsche has reconciled what are widely seen as competing tendencies with previous vehicles.

At the end of 2015, the brand turned the page in its history by introducing an electric vehicle to its fleet.

The Mission E, which debuted as a concept car at the Frankfurt Motor Show, will be 100 percent electrically powered and will launch at the end of the decade. Environmental concerns are growing among consumers, and the Mission E was Porsche’s first step in blending its heritage with contemporary concerns (see story).

Taking note of the intersection between automotive, technology and lifestyle, Porsche has also been expanding its brand by taking a foothold in other sectors.

The automaker is ensuring its development as the leading provider of digital mobility solutions with a new hire and subsidiary company.

Porsche’s supervisory board has approved the founding of Porsche Digital GmnH to further enhance the automaker’s digital mobility solutions in its sector. Leading the endeavor will be Thilo Koslowski as managing director, who joined Porsche from Gartner Inc., a United States-based IT consulting firm (see story).

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