Auto Special: Porsche brings sport and luxury to China with new Panamera

Porsche China announced its wheelbase stretch plan for the new Panamera sporty luxury sedan, after the already sold out first batch of V8 Turbo and demonstrated the lineups' power for an excellent market performance.

Porsche's new Panamera made its Asia premiere in Shanghai on Nov 7 with systematic improvements and blurred the boundary between an ambitious sports car and a comfortable luxury sedan.

"The Asia premiere of the second-generation Panamera emphasizes Porsche's long-term commitment to the Chinese market," said Franz Jung, president and CEO of Porsche China.

The second generation of the Porsche Panamera debuted to the world in June in Berlin with two versions available: the V8 engine-powered new Panamera Turbo and the new V6 Panamera 4S.

The new model is expected to become a popular seller worldwide, especially in China, after receiving very positive feedback from customers and media in the European and United States markets.

Jung told a group of reporters that the long-wheelbase version of the new Panamera will join the Turbo and 4S on the Chinese market late next year.

Although Chinese customers will receive their keys to the new Panamera after months of waiting, the V8 bi-turbo engine-powered Turbo has already been fully pre-ordered.

"The company is convinced it will perform excellently in the largest single market. The second-generation Panamera is expected to beat its predecessor in market performance," Jung said. "The Chinese market is now Porsche's largest single market. We will continue to offer better products and services to our Chinese customers."

The Chinese market contributed more than 46,000 units to the global sales volume of the Panamera series, the largest portion around the world, since the first-generation model's launch seven years ago.

Looking beyond the glories brought about by the new Panamera, Porsche AG is pinning high hopes on the Chinese market for the brand's overall performance.

Porsche China achieved annual sales of 58,009 units last year. In addition, in the two-door sports car segment (911, Cayman and Boxster segment), Porsche enjoyed a market share of over 50 percent. This achievement was recognized as a great success, as sports cars' sales volume remains relatively low in China.

Jung attributed the achievement to Porsche China's excellent relationship with the 94 professional Porsche Centres, as "the dealers are always the strongest arm for Porsche in China."

"Our dealers are profitable in the business, but our primary concern is not about how units many are sold. As a luxury carmaker, Porsche focuses not necessarily on sheer volume, but cares more how healthily we grow," he said.

The carmaker focuses on dealers' profitability when expanding their network. Very careful survey and investigation is required to find the place where a dealership would be most sustainable.

Even while Chinese customers are becoming price sensitive and nervous, and many carmakers are developing aggressive pricing strategies, Porsche is avoiding a downgrade.

Jung stressed: "We try our best to keep the value of Porsche cars, not only for us but also for our customers."

Luxury and sporty

"As the newest sports car in the D segment, the new Panamera is one of our masterpieces with a unique design," Jung said. "The new Panamera reconciles two contrasting characteristics more than ever before: It's a true luxury sedan with pure sports genes."

In July, the new Panamera Turbo registered at 7'38" on the North Loop of Nurburgring in Germany.

The sports carmaker re-engineered the engine and transmission, perfected the chassis for the new Panamera, which reinforced rear-axle steering, active-roll compensation and three-chamber air suspension.

The newly developed V6 and V8 bi-turbo engines have been made more powerful, yet more economic with lower emissions.

The 4-liter bi-turbo engine accelerates the new Panamera Turbo from zero to 100 km/h in 3.8 seconds, while the 4S powered by 2.9-liter V6 bi-turbo has a sprint time of 4.4 seconds.

The new Panamera is the first Porsche model featuring an eight-speed Porsche Doppelkupplung dual-clutch transmission that shifts gears without power interruption to reduce fuel consumption.

The sporty luxury four-door sedan has been redesigned and restyled down to the details. The true Porsche's characteristics are emphasized with the distinctive appearance of long and dynamic proportions, a sharpened sporty silhouette, athletic flanks and a fast roof line.

Inside this new model, the display and control concept are reinterpreted for the future with multi-touch gesture control. Touch-sensitive panels and individually configurable displays dominate the new Porsche Advanced Cockpit.

The new Panamera's overall upgraded size lengthens the proportions to become a 5.05-meter body with a 2.95-meter wheelbase, 30 mm longer than its predecessor.

"A customer would like to drive the car all by his or herself, because Porsche cars are nice to drive. They are sportier, more responsive, and have higher torque," Jung added.

(China Daily 11/14/2016 page19)