The Panamera Station Wagon - 9 Things to Expect and Not Expect

1. Expect it to Look Like the Sport Turismo Concept

The first inkling anyone had that Porsche might want to expand the Panamera lineup came at the Paris auto show in 2012. While teasing the new generation of Panamera, with more 911 like the rear, Porsche showed a vehicle that was a cross between the sedan and the Cayenne SUV, dubbed the Sport Turismo. Instead of a fastback roofline, or 4 door coupe, there was a more upright hatch, a 3rd window, and a D-pillar, the textbook definition of a wagon. The response was positive from the crowds, so engineering and a business plan started moving forward.

2. Don't Expect it to be Anything Like a Traditional Station Wagon

The humble station wagon was cobbled together from the basic sedan many years ago to offer more room for both passengers and cargo. Sure, there have been a few interesting station wagons over the years, and some were even fun to drive, but to the general public, they are the antithesis of cool, but oh so practical. You can expect Porsche to turn out a wagon that the kids would not be embarrassed to get out of in front of the school, and the valet might even park out front at the trendiest restaurant. The Porsche engineering department doesn't know how to build boring cars.

3. Expect it to Aim Squarely at Mercedes CLS Shooting Brake Shoppers

Mercedes created the current trend of the "4 door coupe" with the first low and sexy CLS with its sweeping fastback roofline. Taking that car and making it into the wagon like Shooting Brake then seems like a contradiction of the whole idea, but it managed to look good, and sell. Of course, Porsche could not sit still and have their cross-town rivals making a cooler, sexier, sportier car than them, so they put on a fresh pot of coffee and sharpened their pencils.

4. Don't Expect Wood Grain Exterior Trim

No, I have no explanation for the Cayenne with fake woodgrain applied to the sides pictured above, but it does exist. It is not a factory option, and probably just a one-off created for an eccentric millionaire who already had everything. You should not expect Porsche to offer this most traditional of wagon options on the new Panamera wagon, though there is no telling what the aftermarket will come up with. Wealthy buyers hate to think that anyone else might have the same car as them, and it leads to some unique mods.

5. Expect it to be Faster than the Mercedes E63 AMG Wagon

The friendly rivalry and race between the automakers allow us, consumers, to get our hands on some exceptional machines. Why other than bragging rights would Dodge create the 750hp Hellcat cars? Cadillac built the CTS-V for a few years just to have the fastest station wagon ever, just for the press buzz. Now the mom-mobile that gets the kids to soccer the quickest is the special order Mercedes E63 AMG wagon, with 577hp, and a 0-60 mph time of just 3.6 seconds. The current top of the line Panamera Turbo has almost that much power (570hp) and is nearly that fast (3.7 sec), so it looks like it will be a close race.

6. Don't Expect a 3rd Row Seat

One of the reasons station wagons were so popular for so long was the 3rd-row seat that could be deployed to take all the kids in the carpool when needed. Don't expect the Panamera to come equipped with a 3rd-row seat and room for 7 or 8 passengers. The concept shown just does not have enough headroom in the back for 3rd-row passengers, even if the seat were the old style rear facing type that has fallen out of favor. But, as a kid, how awesome would that way back seat be to watch as dad blew the doors off some jerk on a Camaro as the light turned green? However, the Cayenne does have the 3rd row, but it faces forward.

7. Expect it to Have Available All Wheel Drive

They get plenty of snow in Germany, and that is partially the reason the original VW and Porsche were rear engined and rear wheel drive; superior traction. With a traditional front engine, rear wheel drive car, the majority of the weight is not over the driven wheels, so bad weather traction is limited. The Panamera solves this problem with the option of all-wheel drive, which sends power to the wheels with traction, as well as helping you through corners with torque vectoring. You can expect the wagon version to be no different, in fact, it may even come standard on the wagon, like Mercedes and BMW do on their wagons.

8. Don't Expect it to Swallow Sheets of Plywood

The American car companies for years sized the cargo areas of their wagons based on the standard 4' x 8' sheet of plywood. Even compact, and intermediate wagons, like this Ford Torino, had room between the wheel wells, and between the front seat and tailgate, for sheet goods to lay flat. The Panamera is just not wide enough nor long enough to fit anything near that size. Still, it should be slightly better at cargo hauling than the sedan version.

9. Expect it in Dealers in late 2017 as a 2018 Model

With a barely camouflaged version of the Panamera wagon already running around Europe, and seen lapping the Nürburgring, you can tell this is nearly ready for sale. US certification always takes a little longer once the final European model is done, but you should expect to see a Panamera wagon hitting Porsche showrooms in the later half of 2017 as a 2018 model, with all the options and available extras offered on the sedan version.

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