Crown

Not that anyone cares but just wanted to share my personal observation of the car.  I hope I don't come across as a jack ass to the owners as this is MERELY my personal view.

While I was at the gas station filling my tank I noticed that a new Panamera Turbo pulled up to the next pump.  The car was in sliver and the driver seems like a nice gent.  I made a comment that the car looks beautiful of course but in reality here is what I observed.  It looks way smaller (shorter) than I imagined. The "Porsche" lettering in the back looks very cheezy but I believe it needed to be there since nobody could recognize it as a Porsche.  The owner himself told me that he was surprised I knew what Panamera was but we didn't get in the discussion of I was a rennteam member .

The car looks smaller than I thought and saw in the pictures.  The rear looks even worse in person (I have no idea what the designers were smoking when they designed the rear).  The front actually looks better in the pictures than in person.  It looked so plasticy, in particular the fog lights looked like an after thought add-on by the owner, it didn't look good at all.  I like the front in the pictures much better.  As to the engine sound, there wasn't any, so quite that you would think it has a Toyota Prius  engine in it .

I believe, hands down, MB S class and BMW 7 series looks way more luxurious than the Panamera (at least the exterior design).

The car to me looks like a Japaneese made car not German, sorry.

If anyone is interested in Panamera I highly recommend to wait a year and you can pick up a slightly used one for probably 50k or 60k less, I guarantee.

Sorry if I come across harsh but as I said my writing reflects ONLY my personal view.

Ron: taste and like/dislike is personal. I do not think that it has the looks of a Japanese car - these days the Beamers and Mercs do. But... do yourself a favor, go drive one, ask for an extended test drive and then please report back. 

--

_________________________________________________________ 

A. Dias --- 997.2S (ordered). Previous cars: Corvette C6,  996 C4.

I agree with you Tony, but the first impression is what stays with you.  I have no doubt in the performance front Panamera excels but specifically in the design area doesn't give you the fell of OMG I have to get one of these.

Why drive a car that you think is ugly?

The first and most important quality of a car is looks, second is sound, third is handling, and then it is speed.

Seems like the panny is failing big time.

Anyways I notice Denver in your bio Ron, is that very recent? 

We moved to Denver a year go due to job change.

What can you say about the climate? I know the area had like 3 feet of snow at Halloween time. Have you had a lot, is there a lot on the ground? How does the altitude feel? Is the snow in Co. dependent on altitude, meaning some areas might not get as much.

I have been considering that "region" because of the looks and some other factors but I had my fill of snow on the ground.

We love it here .  The kids enjoy the heck of the snow but based on what I hear this winter has been very warm and snowless.  I lived in Houston for 23 years and my wife was born and raised there and to be honest we don't miss it a bit.

The altitude affected us probably the first week but no issues whatsoever.  nature is so beautiful no matter what part of Colorado you are, we love it.

Same as Ron here on the Panamera. First time in real, the rear design feels totally unfinished and rushed out. Unique yes, but not really in a good way.

This combined with a price 15% higher than the Cayenne will make it a hard sell in the US.

OK, I don't agree with Ron. Yes, the rear is horrible but one can get used to it. The Porsche lettering is horrible too but I've never seen a car in Germany with this lettering on it, so I suppose most owners don't like it too much either. I also think that the Panamera is huge but maybe it was standing next to a huge SUV , so maybe this is why it looked smaller than usual.

The price tag is a different story, this is where my criticism jumps in. I'm in Austria right now on a ski vacation and just met a nice guy from Germany who is a lot into cars like me, he owns a 740d now, fully optioned. He actually wanted to get a Panamera S instead, he really loved the interior of the Panamera. The reason he didn't go for it? Money. Although both, the 740d and the Panamera S had practically the same price tag, the monthly lease payment AND the down payment were HALF on the BMW. He went for the BMW of course.

I like the Panamera a lot, even if I think that this car won't have a huge success due to the controversial design and the price tag.

Ron actually brought up an interesting point: I always thought that Americans LOVE the Panamera, this is the first time I heard a negative comment about the Panamera from the US. Interesting.

RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor 997 Turbo, BMW X5 M (03/2010), BMW M3 Cab DKG, Mini Cooper S JCW

Big SUV ? I don't know what you're talking about .

Ron (Houston):

We love it here .  The kids enjoy the heck of the snow but based on what I hear this winter has been very warm and snowless.  I lived in Houston for 23 years and my wife was born and raised there and to be honest we don't miss it a bit.

The altitude affected us probably the first week but no issues whatsoever.  nature is so beautiful no matter what part of Colorado you are, we love it.

I visited Denver area in late September last year. Nice area. We went to Denver, Boulder and Colorado Springs. Again, very nice area of USA IMHO...

KresoF1:

Ron (Houston):

We love it here .  The kids enjoy the heck of the snow but based on what I hear this winter has been very warm and snowless.  I lived in Houston for 23 years and my wife was born and raised there and to be honest we don't miss it a bit.

The altitude affected us probably the first week but no issues whatsoever.  nature is so beautiful no matter what part of Colorado you are, we love it.

I visited Denver area in late September last year. Nice area. We went to Denver, Boulder and Colorado Springs. Again, very nice area of USA IMHO...

Next time make sure you let me know, so we can meet.

In Colorado one needs Turbos. 

_________________________________________________________ 

A. Dias --- 997.2S. Previous cars: Corvette C6,  996 C4.

ADias:

In Colorado one needs Turbos. 

Exactly.

Cabin pushed forward for about 1 -1.5 cm  and down (into the lower body)  for about 2cm.

lol Misha, your posts should be labeled "spot the 7 differences" , bro I can't see the difference.

  maybe you can take it to GCZ  as a teaser .

Ron (Houston):

We moved to Denver a year go due to job change.

 
Are you going to change your username to Ron (Denver) 

 
RT Moderator - 997.1 Carrera S GT Silver/Cocoa, -20mm/LSD, PSE, short shifter, SportDesign rims, Zuffenhausen collection

sayyaaf:

lol Misha, your posts should be labeled "spot the 7 differences" , bro I can't see the difference.

Same here.

The secret of life is to admire without desiring.

easy_rider911:

Ron (Houston):

We moved to Denver a year go due to job change.

 
Are you going to change your username to Ron (Denver) 

Err, I thought it was John Denver?

The secret of life is to admire without desiring.

easy_rider911:

Ron (Houston):

We moved to Denver a year go due to job change.

 
Are you going to change your username to Ron (Denver) 

I tried last year but won't let me do it .

Ron (Houston):

Not that anyone cares but just wanted to share my personal observation of the car.  I hope I don't come across as a jack ass to the owners as this is MERELY my personal view.

While I was at the gas station filling my tank I noticed that a new Panamera Turbo pulled up to the next pump.  The car was in sliver and the driver seems like a nice gent.  I made a comment that the car looks beautiful of course but in reality here is what I observed.  It looks way smaller (shorter) than I imagined. The "Porsche" lettering in the back looks very cheezy but I believe it needed to be there since nobody could recognize it as a Porsche.  The owner himself told me that he was surprised I knew what Panamera was but we didn't get in the discussion of I was a rennteam member .

The car looks smaller than I thought and saw in the pictures.  The rear looks even worse in person (I have no idea what the designers were smoking when they designed the rear).  The front actually looks better in the pictures than in person.  It looked so plasticy, in particular the fog lights looked like an after thought add-on by the owner, it didn't look good at all.  I like the front in the pictures much better.  As to the engine sound, there wasn't any, so quite that you would think it has a Toyota Prius  engine in it .

I believe, hands down, MB S class and BMW 7 series looks way more luxurious than the Panamera (at least the exterior design).

The car to me looks like a Japaneese made car not German, sorry.

If anyone is interested in Panamera I highly recommend to wait a year and you can pick up a slightly used one for probably 50k or 60k less, I guarantee.

 

Sorry if I come across harsh but as I said my writing reflects ONLY my personal view.

 Hats off to you Ron

Finally, someone with enough balls to say that the car doesn't look good at all!! and don't get me started on how ugly the back is!!

please guys don't bother telling me that's a new look and it needs time to grow on u, It will NEVER happen!! the CLS was a very new/different look and i loved it the first time i saw the pics and i loved it even more the moment i saw it. Also, don't tell me to go drive one cause we all know that Porsches drive really well even the entry level models are amazing to drive

 Here in the Arabian Gulf area where most people buy cars based on hype, are not really buying it. Yes they did buy a bunch with crazy mark ups but that quickly fizzled. more than enough are available at sticker price.

Personally, I never sad that the Panamera design would grew on me, it can't grow on me, simply because I don't like it too much.

However: the technical part and driving the car are a completely different story, the Panamera Turbo is a lot of fun to drive and I never really cared too much about looks and hype. Of course I care about public perception for the various reasons I mentioned in the past but I never bought a car because it looks good. I usually buy my cars based on my driving experience and enjoyment.

The Panamera Turbo is a technological masterpiece from Porsche, a very very nice product. I would have bought it but like I said before, it has the wrong size/size perception, only four seats and it is waaaaaayyyy too expensive compared to the Cayenne.

I really think that Porsche missed an opportunity to offer a sporty sedan with a smaller and sportier look at a very competitive price tag. Without the financial crisis worldwide, the Panamera might have found its customers but right now, I don't see it happen.

The Cayenne was the right product at the right time for the right price. The Panamera isn't I'm afraid.

Again: I like the Panamera, I just don't like what Porsche made out of this project and I don't like the design.

With the introduction of the new 5 series and the Audi A8, I think Porsche lost again some customers to these brands. I may be wrong but right now, the Panamera is just out of my price league and I heard MANY people saying the same. 

Time will tell but I can't really see how the Panamera is going to be a huge success right now.

--
 

RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor 997 Turbo, BMW X5 M (03/2010), BMW M3 Cab DKG, Mini Cooper S JCW

You have to see the first couple years sales totals are before you can determine if this car is a success or flop. But a car's looks should be well liked from the beginning. Porsche messed up on that and we all know why.

Now they have an opportunity to get it right with the coupe version. They have seen the look that has received overwehlming support on all forums that I visit. Let's see if Porsche can get it right or are they talentless and/or too arrogant to do what their potential customers want.

The Coupe could actually become a huge success if the price is right.

RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor 997 Turbo, BMW X5 M (03/2010), BMW M3 Cab DKG, Mini Cooper S JCW

RC:

The Cayenne was the right product at the right time for the right price. The Panamera isn't I'm afraid.

I Agree

I just wonder how much are they gonna price the V6

Unfortunately the price has been set by Porsche and the Coupe won't be off by too much. And ... usually Coupes are more expensive than their 4 doors counterparts.

RC:

I really think that Porsche missed an opportunity to offer a sporty sedan with a smaller and sportier look at a very competitive price tag. Without the financial crisis worldwide, the Panamera might have found its customers but right now, I don't see it happen.

I was actually excited when first learnt that Porsche was going to build a sedan and thought that the only sedan that fit the Porsche name would be a 4 door sports car that could compet with M3 and RS4.  How wrong I was.  Mr WW wanted a limo. 

I don't mean to offend anyone who is going to or has already bought a Panamera and appologise in advance, but I think Panamera has the biggest appeal to empty nesters.  Both Cayenne and Panamera are super engineering achievements but they impose a wrong image on Porsche.  To the young teens and 20 somethings, Porsche is luxury car company like MB.  They don't see Porsche like the 40+ (which I have a feeling most rennteamers are), we idolized Porsche since young, we made owning a Porsche a goal in our life.  I think Porsche is borrowing from their hard earned image to mortgage sales success in recent years.

Just my complain that I need to get off my chest.  

93' Guard Red 968 Coupe

Monster:

I was actually excited when first learnt that Porsche was going to build a sedan and thought that the only sedan that fit the Porsche name would be a 4 door sports car that could compet with M3 and RS4.  How wrong I was.  Mr WW wanted a limo. 

I don't mean to offend anyone who is going to or has already bought a Panamera and appologise in advance, but I think Panamera has the biggest appeal to empty nesters. 

No offense taken

I'm an almost empty-nester and I have, indeed, felt the siren call to a Panamera Turbo.  Perhaps Porsche realized that there is an awesome quantity of people about my age (baby-boom demographics) that can afford a Porsche and are attracted to a four-place sedan-like car that is, in fact, a Porsche.  I sure am.  What is wrong with supplying a niche market with the perfect solution?  Porsche is a niche supplier, after all.

I already own a kick-ass Porsche two-seater and once had way too many variants of 911s in my garage simultaneously.  Now, instead of an SUV, I can have a real Porsche sedan to drive around and also occasionally haul some large-format packages.  What's not to like?

I have already driven the Panamera and seen plenty of them.  The shape may be personal,, but I happen to like it and so does a world-famous designer friend of mine.  I don't really care what other people think because I'm happy with just about every aspect of the car.

Mine should be here in another week, or so.   I can hardly wait! 

I only wish some R-compound rubber were available in the right sizes so I could whip up on some 911s at the track.

Mike

2005 Carrera GT - Signal Yellow + 2008 Tesla Roadster - Thunder Gray +1972 BMW 3.0 CSi - Nachtblau +2009 Bentley Arnage T - Black Saphire

Mike, I saw a white 4S today(20" wheels)  and I have to say..... it was great

I had 2 911's and a turbo, so I am def blinded a little by porsche , but I like the pan alot.

good luck, enjoy a GREAT car.