Re: Ferrari California T ‘Vettel Edition’
I think the problem with the Panamera is that, although Porsche should be marketing it as a luxury performance GT sedan, they really aren't. Instead, they are positioning it as, "The dream of a sports car. But without any compromise in terms of everyday driving." Whatever exactly that is supposed to mean other than the pretense that it's a sports car, not a luxury sedan. It's not a sports car, though, and, ironically, in terms of at least possible interior finish, it lags behind the 911 and the Cayenne.
(I don't think the problem is the styling, the "hump", or that it only seats 2 in the back. These are the things that actually differentiate it and give it its unique character and I think it is a mistake to change them and make it more generic looking, as they seem to intend to do.)
For example, it's a small detail, but on the 911 and Cayenne, you can get the "Air Vents in Leather". In the Panamera, you can only get the "Air Vent Slats in Leather" so you are stuck with the plasticky surround of the air vents in what is essentially a "luxury car", which isn't exactly luxurious. And there are other plastic bits that can't be gotten rid of. In a car like this, there ought not be plastic on the dash, or at least you ought to be able to get rid of it easily by just checking a box and handing over cash.
Also the interior and exterior colors are pretty much the same as the rest of the Porsche lineup, but more restricted, and less appropriate to its character (They recently eliminated Yachting Blue as an exterior color option and replaced it with another gray. Yet, they still offer the Sapphire Blue, which has no place on this car, even if people are buying it, it's just too large a car for such a bright color and offering it results in people driving around in tacky looking examples of the model. (Personally, I've not seen a Sapphire Blue Panamera, but an image search confirms that there are.)) There's no longer a two-tone natural leather interior option available, and the headliner offered with the espresso leather option is questionable, at best. In fact, it seems like Panamera interiors are a second thought at best. Exterior options have similar problems, particularly in the way they are bundled.
They should drop the pretense that the Panamera is a sports car and acknowledge what it really is, and focus on actually making it that. (Maybe there is little love for it inside Porsche?) And they should not water down it's appearance and make it look like all the other luxury sedans out there. There are very few cars in that category that have any actual personality in their appearance, and I can't see that making the Panamera more like the rest of them is a winning strategy.
