In its design, profile and silhouette, Porsche’s unique four-seater stands out clearly as a new member of the Porsche 'family'. Designed as a four-door grand touring sports car, the Panamera combines numerous talents in typical Porsche style: sporting driving dynamics, a generous and variable interior, and the supreme driving comfort of a Gran Turismo.

Joining the 911, Boxster and Cayman sports cars as well as the Cayenne, the Panamera is Porsche’s fourth model line.

The designers of the Panamera have succeeded in positioning this unique car as a brand new and truly different model while retaining the looks of a typical Porsche. Through its proportions alone, the Panamera stands out clearly in its market segment: measuring 1,931 mm in width, the Panamera is wider, and measuring 1,418 mm in height, lower than comparable four-door models. The unmistakable, sleek GT silhouette is highlighted by the car’s overall length of 4,970 mm and short, sporting overhangs front and rear.

In its styling and details, the Panamera follows the design philosophy refined over decades on the 911 and successfully implemented also on the Boxster, Cayman and Cayenne.

Through its design language alone, the Panamera will establish a new segment versus the competition. The symbiosis of sports car DNA derived from the looks of a coupé, the unique interpretation of the classical saloon body and the benefits of a variable space concept give the new Porsche its truly unmistakable appearance. As an example, the Panamera comes with highly individual, strongly contoured air intakes at the front instead of a conventional radiator grille. Striking wheel arches and the long and sleek bonnet provide that typical 911 'look' at the front which Porsche aficionados have recognised for no less than 45 years.

The V-shaped creases along the bonnet and the tapering rear window convey the features characteristic of a sports car to the new, highly individual Panamera. The striking, 'muscular' haunches over the rear wheels, the dynamic sweep of the roofline, and the visible tailpipes again bear out the DNA typical of a Porsche. The roof arch extends over the generous interior.

Like all Porsche models, the Panamera is oriented in every respect to the needs and wishes of the driver. But now, thanks to the new concept of space and the sporting architecture of the interior, the car’s occupants are also able to experience this special “feeling” from all four seats. All four occupants enjoy supreme ergonomic comfort on both the front seats and the two firmly contoured single seats at the rear. The luggage compartment takes all passengers’ luggage, the variable space concept with its folding rear seat backrests enabling the driver and passengers to adjust the luggage space to their personal requirements. And last but not least, the coupé tailgate in the sporting rear end combines superior suitability for daily use with stylish elegance.

Porsche has developed superior and up-to-date engines for the Panamera. The V-engines come in six and eight cylinder configuration and range in power from 220 kW to 368 kW (300 to 500 bhp). Some of the engines use turbocharger technology, Direct Fuel Injection making them both fuel-efficient and powerful all in one. The flow of power to the wheels goes either through a manual six-speed gearbox or Porsche’s seven-speed Doppelkupplungsgetriebe, or PDK double-clutch gearbox for short.

In addition to sporting rear-wheel drive, the top version of the Panamera comes with even more sophisticated all-wheel drive, which is also available on other versions as an option.

As a further highlight, Porsche is preparing a particularly fuel-efficient version of the Panamera with hybrid drive. Further details on the engines, transmissions, performance, prices and equipment will be disclosed in the first half of 2009. The Porsche Panamera will be built at Porsche’s Leipzig Plant, where a production hall measuring some 22,000 square metres (almost 237,000 square feet) and a logistics centre are currently under construction. While the engines featured in the Panamera are built at Porsche’s main plant in Zuffenhausen, the painted body shells will be supplied by the Volkswagen Plant in Hanover. The Leipzig Plant will then assemble the Panamera for final delivery, with an annual sales target of 20,000 units.

Porsche is once again co-operating largely with German suppliers in the production of the Panamera, with some 70 per cent of the car’s overall value being sourced domestically. Hence, the Panamera is most definitely a car “Made in Germany”.