New Porsche Panamera readies for global launch in Dubai

Dubai: Ahead of its global launch in Dubai in November, the latest iteration of the Porsche Panamera is going through its final round of test drives in Barcelona. The tests will check out the powertrain and a newly built chassis with active damper control.

The full reveal will happen November 24 at the Icons of Porsche Festival to be held in Dubai.

“After already offering three e-Hybrids for the second Panamera generation, we will be adding a fourth plug-in hybrid in the new Panamera,” said Dr. Thomas Friemuth, head of the Panamera line up. “In some countries, the proportion of e-hybrids in the Panamera is almost 100 per cent.”

The sports saloon has completed the majority of the test procedures, which included tests in the US to check the drivetrain performance at high altitudes and low oxygen levels, or the performance of the engine-cooling system and the air conditioning in extreme heat.

In Scandinavia, the Panamera was driven at very low temperatures, while in South Africa, it went through testing road conditions. In Asia, the ‘high air humidity and hours of stop-and-go traffic in megacities posed particular challenges for the overall package’.

A more ‘powerful’ electric motor is integrated in the transmission housing of the new dual clutch transmission. “It offers higher drivetrain and recuperation performance values than its predecessor at a lower weight,” said the German sports car maker.

An on-board charger with a power of 11 kW shortens the charging time despite the increased energy content.

“We are increasing the electrical performance of the Panamera in all e-hybrid models with regard to driving dynamics and the important disciplines of electric range and charging speed,” said Friemuth. “During our tests, we’re driving up to 70 per cent further purely on electric power than we did in its predecessor.”