Porsche is the type of car company that tries to fascinate with every new product it launches, much like Apple did in the days of Steve Jobs. If the new 718 Boxster is like the basic iPhone of the range, the Panamera is the iMac, practical yet stylish.
Despite an early barrage of criticism, the Panamera became popular for its svelte design and dynamic nature. Few other cars in this segment can perform launches the way this one does.
This 2017 model has a whole lot going for it. "What 2017 model, all I see is the old car?" we hear you say. But if you look past the camouflage placed over its lights, this is clearly an all-new machine. The prototype was caught during a nightly stroll through Stuttgart by our friend DrGumoLunatic.
The snaps he took give us clear indication that Porsche's design language is advancing at its fastest pace ever. From the back, we see that four square exhaust tips are now being used, something not seen on current models. The taillights have a 3D effect and use clean lines to define themselves. The hatchback has also changed to a more practical shape.
Keen-eyed viewers may have also spotted the new wing mirror design. But the big story of today is what we got to see inside the car. Not only is the prototype market "hybrid" on the outside but the dashboard proves it's got electricity at the wheel too.
As far as we can tell, that's the Panamera's new console, not an engineer's laptop. The screen could even be as big as 10 inches, but that's not as amazing as what's on it.
Several hybrid driving modes can very clearly be made out. These include E-Auto (self-explanatory), E-Power for maximum thrust, E-Hold for when you want to conserve the existing charge and E-Charge for filling the battery while driving. The system also says the full-electric range is 38 kilometers. That's already a little better than the current model's 35-kilometer theoretical EV range.
Needless to say, this particular Panamera model will be rechargeable. We can't be completely sure about what sort of combustion engine is being used, but the current 3-liter supercharged gasoline unit looks iffy because Audi switched to a V6 turbo setup for the S4 sedan recently.
Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida. Full profile
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