Mongo

If they do go that route, I think they should go head to head and challenge the Ferrari 599 for supercar and GT status.

hacker-pschorr

I could see that happening, unless the GT competes to closely with some new Audi model. I doubt it since the S5 would need some serious upgrades for that market, but you never know.

If Piech pushed for Porsche to be "sports car only" I could see the GT platform under the next generation Bentley GT.

I want to see Porsche step in place of Audi as the LMP1 champion. With Piech's history with the 917 project, I would not be surprised if this is a top priority for him.

anonymousagain

James, this is especially true when realizing that it's 400hp is derived from a very capable V8...WITH TWIN TURBO!?!? Makes you wonder if it's boosting anything at all...since NA versions in the 7series are already near 400. Wierd.

blitz928

This is the news I've been wanting to hear, My guess is Piech is going to "Purify" the brand and do what Porsche does best, building sports cars and hopefully will see some Porsches in high levels of racing again as well.

inactiveuser1

Here is another picture.

hacker-pschorr

I love Porsche and 928's.......but this is what the Panamera GT is hoping to come close to:

jayc67

Hmm. An OB 928 with wing and rear wiper delete..... and GTS mirrors. Nice

pcar928fan

Mark,

I would LOVE it if they made it look like that earlier pic that you provided. It has many 928 cues that still look GREAT! Unfortunately I think it will be more like the pic at the beginning of this thread where it has the side windows that mimic the 911 and Panamera...

Nicole

I'm not sure I believe a source that claims Ferdinand Piech is CEO of both Volkswagen and Porsche. I thought he long retired from this post at VW, and has never had it at Porsche.

Oh well, what do I know?

Here is another version of this story:
http://www.leftlanenews.com/report-v...-panamera.html

This time there is strange information about the Cayenne: No more updates after 2011. What??? They are introducing an all new Cayenne this year, and they won't do anything to it past next year? No way! You cannot run a model for the average 6-year cycle without updates. Particularly not in this class.

If they ax the Cayenne, they will likely have to ax the Panamera and close Leipzig, as well as ax the V8 engine production in Stuttgart. Either of them alone won't make sense, as would a V8 Coupe by itself.

But that would go against VWs goal of growing Porsche to at least 150,000 cars/year. If they'd try to achieve that with an entry level Porsche in place of the two large ones, they would have a serious problem with their margins. It just doesn't make sense...

This rumor leaves a lot of questions open:

What will happen with the Leipzig factory - will it become a VW or Audi facility?

What will the dealers sell and fix in the cold weather months, when sports cars are not practical? Will they hire seasonal workers? Hard to retain good talent that way.

What will they do in emerging markets where the Cayenne is strong and makes a Porsche presence feasible in the first place? Close the dealers and give-up? Have VW dealers do Porsche service?

...

Tony

I like that one. Atleast it has some of the right DNA in it!

hacker-pschorr

True or not, we can dream that he has some influence

blau928

The Panamera, or any derivative of it is nowhere near this car. I have had the great fortune of being inside both cars. I drove the panamera, and was allowed to sit in, but not drive the 177 here in Carmel.

The 177 is just in another galaxy, you would have to see, smell, touch, feel, and hear the 177 in person to understand...

Having said all that, the Panamera drives really well.. I hope they do a coupe, it mught encourage me to buy one.. Then again, a DBS or 599 are still cool too...

Hmmmmmmmm...

pcar928fan

Richard, I agree totally! The One-77 is OUT OF THIS WORLD! The Panamera is just an ASTONISHING CAR...not to pretty but AMAZING from the drivers seat!

SharkSkin

OBs don't have rear wings to delete, unless someone added them later.

pcar928fan

^^^^^^^^
Wing...DELETE... he put delete in there...as in wing and wiper delete...