Need4S

No doubt there is no real cheating physics, but how do we know the weight delta over a steel roof is really 60-100kg? That's quite a range, 130-220 lbs. Which is it? Certainly a double panel, insulated steel roof doesn't weigh zero. Of course, if you need the headroom taken away by the pano roof, you need it. Anyway, if you don't like it, for whatever reason, that's certainly your choice; that's why it's optional.

tejstar01

It has nothing to do with getting back the cost of the pano roof, it has everything to do with actually selling the vehicle at a fair price! The car will have to be deeply discounted to even sell it because 9 out of 10 buyers will absolutely require the pano roof for them to buy it!

white6speed

You are totally correct. That has been the point I have been trying to make. Resale down the road will have nothing to do with the original cost of Pano.

kkapoor

At the minimum the additional weight is 60kg. The weight is not only attributed to the double glass panels but also to the structural strengthening required. Steel roofs are extremely light relatively. The weight delta is given is based on average weights of pano panels on similar vehicles with panoramic systems within the VW group. You can google "panoramic roof weight" and get a good idea.

kkapoor

While the panoramic roof is an attractive option, no doubt, the discount attributable to the lack of the option is debatable at best. As for 9 out of 10 buyers requiring it I'm not sure if thats an anecdotal statement or you have actual stats on this. If you are selling a used Macan to buyer its not that hard to make an appealing case why the vehicle does not have a pano roof as part of the sales pitch i.e. based on handling characteristics, rear seat head room etc.

kkapoor

I'll give another example. I ordered a Macan S without Nav and without Pano roof. It arrived but the dealership ordered the wrong seats. So they ordered me a new car. The original car they sold within 30 days. No issue with not having Nav or not having a Pano roof, the two most popular options. Mind you it was a new vehicle so not exactly the same as selling a used vehicle; just to illustrate that there are all kinds of buyers out there.

The replacement vehicle they ordered me arrived with a Pano roof, which I did not order, but I took delivery anyway.

Now I have ordered a GTS having owned my S for a year and am ordering it without a a pano roof as I find I literally never use it. I want the best possible handling GTS I can get. One can definitely notice a difference in how flat a Macan corners depending on if it has a Pano roof or not.

Pearlcoupeg35

I have the pano roof on my Macan S.....love it....really brightens up the cabin with the screen open. My Cayenne GTS doesnt have it and i do notice it feels "darker" inside without it.

skiahh

Based on the 60-100kgs and a curb weight of 4244 lbs (or 1925 kgs), that's a 3-5% weight increase. Depending on the CG chart, that could be insignificant or could be something that will, indeed, change the handling characteristics of the vehicle significant manner. I suspect it won't... at least for us mere mortals.

If you're a professional driver with thousands of hours of seat time, you'd likely notice it, but if you're a weekend track type, you'll think you notice it because someone told you it affects the handling.

Again (and I am admittedly assuming a very favorable CG chart for the vehicle), I suspect that the addition of the roof would not correspond to a 3-5%, 0 degree (i.e. straight vertical) change in the overall CG, and therefore, the percentage impact to handling would be even less than that 3-5%, making it even harder to notice for us mere mortals.

I'm not sure I accept the premise everyone says that options are worth $0, but the bottom line for this discussion is that if pano is a must have option, than it will absolutely affect resale. If someone opts not to buy the vehicle because of no pano, the value of the option is infinity, effectively, for that buyer.

kkapoor

You are setting up the question to fit your answer i.e. your statement "the bottom line for this discussion is that if pano is a must have option, than it will absolutely affect resale". If a Pano is a must have option then a potential buyer would not consider a vehicle without that option. But that does not equate to the option exerting additional $ value to the vehicle vs a vehicle without that option. Not all buyers looking for a used Macan will necessarily consider it as a must have . Value is always an issue of perception and the market is very large. Buyers who are 'comfort oriented' would value a pano roof but buyers that 'performance oriented' would not. If you are looking specifically at Porsche buyers you will find a much larger percentage that are concerned with performance over other brands, even when purchasing an SUV.

kkapoor

You will notice better body control on a Macan without a Pano even in day to day driving.

skiahh

It would be interesting to see what percentage of Macans are sold with pano roofs. After all, anyone buying a new Macan is, by definition, a Porsche buyer.

Since previous posters have said most have them....

kkapoor

I would think the majority of new vehicles would have pano roofs at least in North America.

skiahh

You are contradicting yourself, then.

kkapoor

Nuance is not contradiction. Also, the issue being discussed here is the used market.

tejstar01

Apparently you are the only one that needs true track performance on the street out of an SUV! As far as your example goes I guarantee you that the dealer deeply discounted that Macan with no pano roof and no Nav!! Just go ask any Porsche sales guy what they think about resale without both of those two main options...lol... Again its a SUV with better than average handling and probably one of the best handling SUV's on the market and with that being said NO one is going to care about the minuscule difference in the way the car handles on the street because of not having a pano roof, again it's arguably the best handling SUV with the pano roof included on the market today so Who cares! The only thing anyone is going to care about is when the time comes for you to sell that Macan with no pano roof and no Nav and I guarantee you again you will take a bath on having to deeply discount it in order to sell it. The market place you are defending is extremely limited for a SUV to begin with, is that market place 5%, 10% who knows but most buyers are absolutely going to want those options period whether that be today or 7-10 years from now when you try and sell it. Now the only way your argument makes sense is if you are leasing the vehicle new than yes I agree who cares order it the way you want you have a guaranteed residual and can turn it in and let the dealer take the bath afterwards trying to sell it.