German tuner Edo Competition presents the Hellboy, an elaborated rendition of Porsche Panamera S. Thanks to a new exhaust system (35kg lighter than the original) and to a new ECU mapping, the power has gone from 400 up to 465 hp, with 550 Nm of torque. The car can now go from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.6 seconds and reaches top speed at 305 km/h .

Air intakes and side skirts have been modified and carbon fiber was used for rearview mirrors, diffuser and rear wing. New 21″ wheels made by Edo Competition have been specifically designed and built for this tuning, which also uses a different suspension setting that lowered the ride height by 30 mm.

View the full Porsche Panamera S Hellboy photo gallery

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TopCar’s tuners have come up with a really “eccentric” version of Porsche Panamera Turbo S. The exterior is enhanced with the well known Stingray GTR kit - which provides the car with larger wheel arches and sporty bumpers - but the real novelty is in the passenger compartment: cabin and trunk are completely upholstered in white leather with crocodile inserts, while most hard bits are made of gold and fine wood. Buttons, handles, seat controls and pedals are also made of gold. No mechanical variations have been done as the car comes with the standard 550hp Twin Turbo V8. This exclusive Panamera has a price tag of 423,810€.

View the full TopCar Porsche Panamera Turbo S photo gallery

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The Porsche Panamera diesel is on its way, announced by Porsche president Matthias Muller in an interview with German magazine, Westfalen-Blatt. The Panamera diesel should be ready as early as the second half of 2011 and will expand the range, which will also include a future Panamera hybrid expected to appear next year as well.

The Porsche Panamera diesel will build on the success of the Cayenne diesel, although no technical details have been released. The same mechanics of the Cayenne will probably be used in a large part though, likely extending to the 3.0 TDI V6 engine with 240 hp and 550 Nm of torque. The new Porsche diesel will probably use the eight-speed Tiptronic S gearbox and early calculations suggest acceleration time to 100 km/hr could be around seven seconds.

Clearly the Panamera diesel development is part of the Porsche Intelligent Performance program - the fancy name given to the project of reducing fuel consumption across the Porsche range. Porsche has managed to reduce some of its consumption already, with the Cayenne down by 23 percent, the 911 down by 16 and the Boxster and Cayman managing a 15 percent reduction. This has been managed by a combination of direct injection, Start&Stop technology and weight reduction. The expanding Porsche range will also include the famous baby SUV Porsche Cajun, which will share the Audi Q5 platform and will debut in 2014 or 2015.

Source | Westfalen-Blatt via Autoblog.it

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Reports from France suggest the Porsche Panamera could have a diesel version as early as summer 2011 in what would be another departure from the traditional sports image of the Porsche brand, but a probably a necessary one given the type of vehicle that the Panamera is. Automobile Magazine reports that the Porsche Panamera diesel would be equipped with a 3.0-litre TDI V6 twin turbo unit with 300 hp and 600 Nm, that would go to fit-out the Audi A6, A7 Sportback and Audi A8.

The magazine goes on to say that we could even see the Panamera Hybrid revealed in 2011 with the 3.0 TSI V6 combined to an electric motor of 47 hp for a total of 380 hp. We’re convinced that a diesel Panamera makes a lot of sense but we’re less sure we’ll be seeing a hybrid model that soon.

In the meantime, Autocar reveals that Porsche could look to Bentley for more collaboration on future Panamera cars, to produce further variants of the model. While there might be a little too much internal competition for comfort on this front, especially as the Bentley Continental GT could get in the way of a Panamera GT model, Porsche CEO Matthias Muller has said it makes sense for Porsche and Bentley to collaborate to consolidate platform development and cut costs. He says:

What we want to do, in conjunction with Bentley, is to have a common architecture, a common performance in purchasing, and so on. That is just an offer to Bentley; you have to understand. Everybody will be keen to get synergies and reduce costs, and at the end of the day, have a better revenue

Specifically referring to the Panamera model, he says:

To have only a four-door limousine is a boring option for the future…. You can imagine a coupé with two doors, a longer version, maybe a van, a combi, or something else. There are a lot of ideas about the Panamera line-up but we cannot do all of these derivatives at the same time, and we need to look at the customers, whether they are keen to have a derivative of the Panamera.

We have to look at our competitors, and our internal competitors. Maybe there is a Bentley; we have to look at whether the Porsche can fit in with the strategy there. It would be stupid to have a car, a derivative, which substitutes, or is substituted, to 100 per cent by another brand.

So far the Panamera has proved there is a market for it and that it’s a popular model so there’s no reason why Porsche shouldn’t look to develop it, as long as that doesn’t mean stepping on Bentley toes or making investments in models where others are already playing.

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In order to reduce overall CO2 emissions across the Porsche range, the company is planning at least one hybrid drivetrain in every model line. There is already a Porsche Cayenne hybrid and the Porsche 911 GT3 R Hybrid proves that they can make whopping sports cars with hybrid technology, although there are no plans in the near future to go to production across the coupé line.

The Porsche Cayenne hybrid will be joined by a Panamera hybrid sometime in 2011 and which will use the same platform as the SUV. The only electric-powered sports car to appear at this stage will be the 918 Spyder which will have a smaller production run and should appear in three to four years’ time.

While the 911, Boxster and Cayman are currently off the list, development manager at Porsche, Wolfgang Duerheimer said: “We want to learn how we can electrify all our sports cars in the future with the help of this short production run.” No time frame has been given for those models, but the hybrid roll-out plan is to meet the goal of reducing CO2 emissions to 216 g/km by 2015, from 255 now.

Other measures being considered are the use of smaller, four-cylinder engines and lighter-weight vehicles. The use of carbon fibre will likely spread across the Porsche range, saving around 50 kg on each new model. It’s a big challenge for a brand like Porsche, and it will be interesting to see just how it tackles the problems in coming years. Still, it’s good to see the investment being made while still keeping to the brand’s core values. Aston produced the Cygnet, Porsche is going hybrid….

Source | AutomotiveNews

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The Porsche Panamera could get a coupé version soon as the company looks to reach 150,000 sales a year by 2015. The aim would be achieved by broadening the Porsche offering and the development of the Panamera could prove as important as the emergence of the Cayenne SUV.

The Panamera coupé, currently called the Panamera GT, would be a front engined model which would mark Porsche’s re-entry on the market after its final front engined model, the 928, was abandoned back in 1995. According to the (persistent) rumours, Volkswagen has also specified that the Panamera GT should not compete with the Bentley Continental GT, which will be significantly lighter than the current model (and would likely appeal to a different customer, anyway).

With the Panamera GT and the small central-engine spider which Porsche will develop with Volkswagen, we will see a third option that will widen the range: the compact SUV, or “Baby Cayenne” as it has been known. Its development was shelved by Porsche, but if it manages to be comfortable positioned alongside the Audi Q5, it could be a key model in Porsche’s drive to achieve more sales.

Source | Automobile Magazine

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It took more than 50 legendary Porsche cars, two insane helicopter pilots and 36,000 feet of asphalt to make the Porsche Panamera family tree commercial. But it seems to be worth it as Porsche gets its message across that although the Panamera might be a sedan, it’s nothing sedate - fully participating in the Porsche sports tradition.

The “family tree making of” video is as much as a commercial as the finished product, but I like it. And we’ve seen enough videos to be convinced that the Panamera can drive as good as most others in the Porsche family. See the making of video above, and the full family tree commercial after the jump.

Continue reading: Porsche Panamera family tree commercial and making of video

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The Porsche Panamera is better than a Mercedes S-Class and Bentley Continental, and is just like driving the sedan version of the Porsche 911 Turbo, according to Fifth Gear. I must say, this Panamera Turbo is very sexy in white and being a girl myself, I’m quite jealous that Vicky gets to take a spin. The handling is lovely, the speed and power impressive for a car of this size and weight, and overall, it’s far more exciting than you’d expect from any other luxury sedan. “Sexy”, “super-racy” and “super-quick” and at 500 hp, you’d believe all of that, too. If I was very very rich, with a couple of kids, I think I would just about purchase this…

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The 10,000th Porsche Panamera has rolled off the production line, and if yours is not exclusive enough already, you could think about doing a few modifications to make it more exciting. This SpeedART Panamera turbo tuning was presented at the Essen show, and is called the PS9-650. The sedan has both body kit and engine modifications, with an increase to 650 hp and 890 Nm of torque.

This has been achieved thanks to changes to the turbine and intercooler system, new aspiration system and exhaust with bypass valves. Engine mapping was also modified, with the Panamera now having a top speed of over 320 km/hr and acceleration to 100 km/hr in 3.5 seconds. If 650 hp is too much for you to handle, other power steps of 520, 550 and 600 hp are available.

Aerodynamics and the body kit get a new look with new bumpers and side skirts, and a rear wing and extractor. The Panamera tuning includes 22-inch wheels and air vents in the bonnet. On the inside, we get coloured carbon fibre finishes, three spoke steering wheel and PDK paddle shift.

Continue reading: SpeedART Panamera tuning: PS9-650 pics

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If you thought about 60 years of Porsche legends and icons, you might not put the Panamera on your list just yet. This new Panamera US commercial suggests otherwise, with the ad celebrating 60 years of Porsche tradition and its world famous status, finishing with the Panamera. So far the model has showed signs of success so at least the commercial shouldn’t be a flop in the future if sales are disappointing. But maybe the “legend” message should be left for the 911 at this early stage…

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From today the Porsche Panamera gets its own debut at the Porsche Museum in an exhibition called “Panamera Moment”. It takes its name from a book recently dedicated to the first Porsche sedan ever built.

In addition to the Panamera itself, documents and memorabilia are on display that trace its story from the initial idea, through the development process, road tests and finally the market debut. The exhibition focuses on the technological innovation of the model and includes multimedia aspects. The exhibition, with the space seen in the photo above, will conclude on February 28 next year.

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The Auto Trophy 2009 awards have been given by Auto Zeitung after reader surveys of about 105,000 participants. Obviously the local German cars were very successful, with Audi taking home a total of 40 percent of votes across all categories, but there have been a couple of surprises, too.

A special mention goes to the Opel Astra for its quality-price ratio, while the new BMW 1 Series won the best advertising campaign award. Across the categories, readers voted on 370 different models in total. In the small car category, the Volkswagen Polo won with 32.9 percent, while for imported small cars the Fiat 500 won with 20.6 percent. Among the mid-size range was the Volkswagen Golf 6, and for imported cars in this category, the Skoda Octavia won a divided contest, with 18.5 percent of votes.

The mid-size, top range cars featured some of the larger German models, with the Audi A5 Sportback winning with 27.2 percent of votes, and the Volvo V70 winning in the imported category. The luxury category was dominated by the Mercedes E-Class with 42.7 percent of votes, while the Jaguar XF took the title for imported vehicles. Among the flagship models, the Porsche Panamera won and the Aston Martin Rapide won in the imported category with 33.7 percent.

Continue reading: Auto Zeitung Auto Trophy: SLS AMG top supercar

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