Porsche has officially confirmed it’ll build a four-seat, four-door sport coupe for the 2009 calendar year (2010 model year). To be called Panamera (supposedly for the Carrera Panamericana race), it’ll become the fourth car in Porsche’s lineup (911, Cayenne, Boxster/ Cayman) and will not share its platform or development with any other carmaker.
Its V-8 engines are from the Cayenne, the 340-horsepower naturally aspirated and 450-horse, 4.5-liter twin-turbo, although Porsche certainly has the capability to raise the power for each by the 2010 model year. Porsche’s Leipzig factory will build the front-engine, rear-drive Panamera alongside the Cayenne SUV and the Carrera GT supercar.
Porsche will fund the $1.2-billion-plus project on its own and expects annual worldwide sales of at least 20,000 (it had previously said it could break even on 10,000). If history is any guide, about half that will be sold in the United States and Canada. The four-door Panamera’s code name is E2B, and Porsche may design a sport-wagon variant off it.
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