Porsche unveiled its entry into the luxury sedan market here on Sunday night, the eve of the Shanghai auto show. It was the latest confirmation of the importance of the Chinese auto market and the first time that Porsche has entered a new market segment at an auto show outside Europe or North America.
Auto sales rose 10 percent last month in China to a record, and exceeded sales in the United States for the third month in a row as the world’s largest single-country market. That has prompted automakers from around the world to pay particular attention to the Chinese market, with a range of models to be introduced here.
The global economic slowdown, which trimmed Chinese growth to a still respectable 6.1 percent in the first quarter, has hurt luxury car sales, although less than in many other markets. Luxury car sales fell 8 percent in the first two months of this year compared with the period a year ago, according to the research firm J. D. Power and Associates.
“This year there will be some impact, but when the economy recovers, this segment will also grow,” said Yale Zhang, a Chinese market forecaster in the Shanghai office of CSM Worldwide, a global automotive consulting firm.
Porsche executives said that they expected the car to have better fuel efficiency than most luxury sedans, describing this as necessary for “social acceptance” at a time of international worries about global warming. They did not provide gas mileage statistics for the Panamera, however.
A dark gray Panamera rolled onto a stage Sunday night on the 94th floor of the 1,614-foot Shanghai World Financial Center, the tallest building in mainland China, having been wedged nearly vertically into an elevator barely wide enough for the task. With long, smooth lines, the Panamera looked like a Porsche — arguably more so than the much taller Cayenne. The New York Times
Porsche’s Gran Turismo sets new standards in its market segment in terms of performance, driving dynamics and efficiency, benefiting from Porsche’s traditional core competences and years of experience in motorsport, since efficient and powerful engines, lightweight technologies, and optimised aerodynamics are crucial to success also on the race track. All models in the Panamera range come with Porsche Direct Fuel Injection, low-friction drive systems, and weight-optimised lightweight bodies.
Moving on to the suspension, the customer can choose among steel suspension or adaptive air suspension with a fully-controlled damper system. And thanks to its intelligent chassis concept, the Panamera combines the driving comfort of a luxurious grand touring saloon with the driving dynamics of a thoroughbred Porsche sports car. Depending on his individual style of motoring or current traffic conditions, the driver can choose either a particularly comfortable or an especially sporting set-up most conveniently at the touch of a button. YTN
| 
|