Panamera

[Broch]

So my wife to took her suv to the shop for inspection and ended up needing brakes so they gave her a loaner panamera for a few days. It was the 4s version, which is all wheel drive and 4.8 8 with ~400hp, identical to my wifes suv, even the interior is the same.

So I decide to take it for a ride to see if it was any good and was amazed. For some reason I expected a sedan version of my wife's suv. Almost same dimensions except height. However, it reminded me ALOT of the first time I drove my 3s off the lot back in the day. Its size, handling and feel was amazing. Traction and grip and power was fantastic. It just had the 3s feel that I miss..

If they end up making the 2 door 928 version, I have to say this may be the first GT car that I've driven that makes me not miss the 3s. I would even trade the 997 for it at this point.

Yes it is ugly, at least from the rear. But the hood lines are very close to the 3s, especially from the drivers seat. The pop-up spoiler is neat, another 3s reminder.

I know some of us hate porsches, yada yada, but if you get a chance, I'd highly recommend taking one for a drive.

http://i117.photobucket.com/albums/o45/jmprog/panamera.png

[AdamVR4]

Wait, so what cars do you own today? You used to have the '97 VR4, then a Viper, right? Now it's a 997? You've got good taste, that's for sure :D

[Broch]

Wait, so what cars do you own today? You used to have the '97 VR4, then a Viper, right? Now it's a 997? You've got good taste, that's for sure :D

Well since you are a 3s owner, I can say the same back at ya! :) Just the cayenne and the 997s. I've been forced to trade in each time by the wife. It was a 98' vr4. Yeah, a 997s.. some days I love it but people on the road love to rage at you. When I had the challenger I'd get all kind of thumbs up and conversations at the gas station (even the 98' 3s people loved), but no love for the porsches.

Wife just got from store with the panamera and can't stand it LOL.. said she went through a puddle that her cayenne would have not even noticed. I got a cold stare when I asked about trading the 997 for a panamera.

[AdamVR4]

Well since you are a 3s owner, I can say the same back at ya! :) Just the cayenne and the 997s. I've been forced to trade in each time by the wife. It was a 98' vr4. Yeah, a 997s.. some days I love it but people on the road love to rage at you. When I had the challenger I'd get all kind of thumbs up and conversations at the gas station (even the 98' 3s people loved), but no love for the porsches.

Wife just got from store with the panamera and can't stand it LOL.. said she went through a puddle that her cayenne would have not even noticed. I got a cold stare when I asked about trading the 997 for a panamera.

Damn, a '98? The thought of trading that in hurts my soul :( haha

I see what you're saying about the ass-end of the Panamera.. Woah. If she's going to have the Cayenne, what difference does it make to her if you daily the Panamera instead of the 997 Carrera S? Purely from a looks perspective, I'd keep the 997 and Cayenne over the Panamera :)

[UTRacerX9]

So you must have a 2008 CS or higher then. I've had to leave my CS at the dealer once, but they definitely didn't give me a Panamera for a loaner, they gave me a Cayman haha. A friend of mine has one and drove 4 of us to dinner a few weekends ago, it's definitely a nice car, and handles much better than you would expect from the size/weight of it. Also a bit quicker than the Cayenne since it weighs about a thousand pounds less.

[Broch]

Damn, a '98? The thought of trading that in hurts my soul :( haha

I see what you're saying about the ass-end of the Panamera.. Woah. If she's going to have the Cayenne, what difference does it make to her if you daily the Panamera instead of the 997 Carrera S? Purely from a looks perspective, I'd keep the 997 and Cayenne over the Panamera :)

The panamera s with all the stuff you would expect it to have is ~$130K and the full loaded turbo is $185K ouch!

[Broch]

So you must have a 2008 CS or higher then. I've had to leave my CS at the dealer once, but they definitely didn't give me a Panamera for a loaner, they gave me a Cayman haha. A friend of mine has one and drove 4 of us to dinner a few weekends ago, it's definitely a nice car, and handles much better than you would expect from the size/weight of it. Also a bit quicker than the Cayenne since it weighs about a thousand pounds less.

I had a guy who just bough a new cayman leave the dealership the same time when I picked up my carerra. Totally cocky guy. Guy was racing it and weaving through traffic with in 5 minutes. For the money, however, the cayman s is a great track car. I just hate the ass on that one too and the thin tires bother me. 255 vs my 305 in the rear.. kinda biased there.

Leaving the panamera in sport is a must, otherwise it floats (for a porsche) way too much. Unfortuantely, unlike every other porsche model you can't set the suspension independent of "sport". So you get the throttle remap and hard suspension. In her suv, those are independent.

[MR2]

if you still have it, can you take a wheel of and measure the brake diameter + clearance, also a few photo's showing the calipers clearance from the outer part of the rotor? :p