Seeing more and more Porsche Panamera's on the road? It is no wonder when one realizes that this year alone, Porsche sold record levels of units here in Malaysia. The relative popularity of Porsche's here is giving comparative car marques a run for their money.
Report by The Car Guys for Zerotohundred.com
To build up on the encouraging sales and growth of Porsche here in Malaysia, Porsche Asia Pacific, via local importer Sime Darby Auto Performance, has launched two new variants; the Panamera S Hybrid and the Panamera Turbo S.
The Panamera Turbo S, currently the most powerful Panamera variant in Porsche's lineup, produces 543.1hp from a V8 biturbo powerplant, approximately upping the muscle by 50hp from its next-in-line, the Panamera Turbo. Grunt is also increased by 50Nm from 700Nm to all four wheels via a 7-speed PDK gearbox. And if, for some reason, that enormous combination of push is not enough, one can activate either the Sport or Sport Plus modes on the Porsche Sport Chrono Package Turbo (which comes standard on the Turbo S), giving an overboost total of 800Nm of torque! Note that all this comes at absolutely ZERO increase in combined fuel consumption from the Panamera Turbo.
The tuning philosophy behind this particular efficient use of hydrocarbons is termed Porsche Intelligent Performance. According to Porsche, these performance increases are due to two significant factors; improved titanium-aluminium turbine turbochargers and a different engine management setting. Of course, Porsche utilizes a host of other acronyms to justify their efforts in making each and every Porsche model and variant uniquely theirs; PDCC, PTV Plus, PDK, PCM, PASM, and PTM. I am sure that these acronyms play some part in pushing Porsche vehicles to the limits of technology and efficiency.
Launched concurrently with the top-of-the-line Turbo S is the Panamera S Hybrid, currently the most fuel-efficient production Porsche available yet. The S Hybrid is a sweet compromise between being sporty and energy efficient. At the heart of the S Hybrid is a V6 engine-electrical motor combo that produces 374.2hp, propelling the 2-tonne five-door sports saloon from standstill to 100km/h in a commendable 6 seconds. Its torque figures are no less amazing, producing a combined 580Nm of twist to the rear wheels at low 1,000rpm.
The S Hybrid's 8-speed Tiptronic S transmission also enables the best utilization of the powerband, making the S Hybrid the most economical luxury-class hybrid vehicle yet. Also lauded is the emission figures from the S Hybrid, producing only 159g/km of CO2 (meeting Euro 5 standards).
A notable aspect of the S Hybrid worth mentioning is its cruising capability with the engine completely switched off (Porsche terms this sailing)... up to 165km/h! This is possible due to a clever use of kinetic energy harnessed by the electric motor, generating enough energy to keep the car going at a constant speed.
The Porsche Panamera Turbo S is yours for RM1.36 million without insurance, and the S Hybrid is available at RM910,000 without insurance.
Coverage
The launch of the two variants were held at the new and prestigious Porsche Centre Bukit Bintang. It was immediately obvious that the event was planned with pomp and splendour, with Westin catering to the folks at Porsche (and us!). As we sifted through the many familiar faces in the automotive community, we noticed two extremely interesting gadgets lying in one of the rooms; race-car simulators waiting to be (ab)used! The simulators, currently loaded with the Panamera's specs, were pretty awesome, with full motion actuators, complementary audio systems and three screens for maximum realism.
Needless to say, most of us were attached to the simulator, while the Porsche guys and gals were buzzing around, trying to get everything in top-notch form before the commencement of the event proper.
The finger food was a nice touch, as was the backdrop that was used to photograph guests. Unbeknownst to us at that time, many of Porsche's main men were there, and that includes Porsche Asia Pacific Sales Manager Mr. Hannes Ruoff, Sime Darby Auto Performance CEO Mr. Arnt Bayer, Porsche Asia Pacific Managing Director Christer Ekberg, and General Manager of Sales (Asia Pacific, Australia, Japan) Peter A. Hettich.
Also participating during the launch is Minox, a manufacturer of focus optics and miniaturised camera replicas.
The event started with host dishing out the basic etiquette with anticipating journalists, and we saw many more journalists than usual. Understandable, given that this is Porsche, after all. Mr. Arnt Bayer gave the opening speech, followed by Mr. Christer Ekberg, highlighting the advances and development the two new Panamera variants.
The guys were then provided the honour of unveiling the new models in front of the journalists.
We were then presented with the new Panamera commercial video clip, after which the photojournalists was given their time with the Panamera's.
Lunch came soon after, and we were pretty pampered with rack of lamb, delicious pumpkin soup, a mix of different main-course cuisines, and assorted pastries.
In addition to the launch of the two Panamera variants, Porsche also gave a surprise unveiling of the new Boxster Spyder and the Porsche 911 GT3 RS 4.0. Porsche brought in the owner of the RS 4.0, and he was kind enough to demonstrate the sound of the engine by switching the car on.
It sounds pretty racy, though we wouldn't say the sound of the engine was anywhere as exciting as their Italian rivals'.
At the time of posting, the still-available Boxster Spyder retails for RM626,349, but it is confirmed that the RS 4.0 units are all sold out, apparently before Porsche themselves knew if they were going to bring any of them in.
A convoy of Porsche vehicles from Porsche Club Singapore also participated in the launch, and the plethora of different Porsche models is definitely a welcome sight to behold. Despite being Porsche owners themselves, they looked particularly excited at being able to fraternise with their Malaysian counterparts, and generally be part of the momentous occasion.
Porsche is currently imported by the sole factory authorized importer, Sime Darby, under its wholly-owned subsidiary; Sime Darby Auto Performance (SDAP) Sdn. Bhd. SDAP took the reins over from Jaseri Automotive Group since early 2010, when the latter relinquished its control of importation, marketing, public relations, distribution, sales, and after-sales service to SDAP.
For more information on the current Panamera model variants, please head over to: Panamera Overview - Models - Home - Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG
The Car Guys (TCG) Malaysia
