Did the Panamera just pop out of thin air?
Far from it.
Porsche has been flirting with a four-door sedan for ages — going back to the first Auto Union P52 designs by Ferdinand Porsche, in fact, that had a central driving position and twin seats beside him.
In later studies, the rear-engine design would be the biggest difficulty in bringing a four-door sedan to market.
So when the 928 and its front-engine setup was present, the idea seemed like a natural fit.
In fact, the 1988 Panamera concept that came a year later was a strong hint at future 911 993 generation design ideas as well as laying the overall template for a 928 re-style that was expected, but never came, in the early 1990s.
1988 Porsche 989 Panamera Concept
~1991 Porsche 932 Panamera Concept II
1987 Porsche 928 Studie
~1968 911 4-Door Custom
Tom Burkart is the founder and managing editor of Car-Revs-Daily.com, an innovative and rapidly-expanding automotive news magazine.
He holds a Journalism JBA degree from the University of Wisconsin – Madison. Tom currently resides in Charleston, South Carolina with his two amazing dogs, Drake and Tank.
Mr. Burkart is available for all questions and concerns by email Tom(at)car-revs-daily.com.