The newest edition of Porsche's iconic four-door performance sedan, the Panamera, was unveiled recently at the “Icons Of Porsche” event in Dubai. This event drew one of the greatest crowds of Porsche fans in the Middle East and provided an excellent platform for showcasing the new 2024 Panamera. Even if you haven't been a part of the “Icons Of Porsche” show in Dubai, you still have a chance to see this all-new tech car in the UAE saloon. Alternatively, you can also rent GMC Yukon XL in Abu-Dhabi or an older Porsche model to run a test-drive and see how the vehicles behave. Navigate the city comfortably!

What’s Special About The Car?

The 2018 Panamera has been updated in terms of appearance, with new interior amenities and a more powerful hybrid engine. In addition, the facelifted performance sedan now has an all-new semi-active and completely active suspension, which promises to improve driving significantly. Before final tweaks in Europe, the new Panamera prototypes traveled across four continents:

• The big fastback visited the United States for evaluation of drivetrain performance at low oxygen levels and high altitudes, as well as verification of engine cooling system and air-conditioning system performance in extreme heat.
• In Scandinavia, the car was driven in very cold temperatures.
• In South Africa, the car was driven in “difficult” road conditions.
• In Asia, car’s performance in high air humidity paired with hours of megacity stop-and-go traffic were tested.

 “We test every new car thoroughly in order to address our and our customers’ demands,” said Panamera development manager Marcel Hönemann. “We always set the standard as the development targets defined in the specifications. The new Panamera must shine right away, especially in terms of performance, comfort, and acoustics.” With this in mind, it is no wonder why Porsche is considered to be a king of endurance and economy.

Technologies Used In The Car

The new range of Panamera is hybrid-focused, following parent company VW Group's electrification ambitions, and has an updated variety of power plants with state-of-the-art “sustainable” drivetrains and economy. The 971 Panamera already has three E-Hybrid options, and the 972 gets a fourth plug-in hybrid model, which Porsche claims is “in response to the enormous demand from our customers.” In certain countries, the percentage of Panamera E-Hybrids sold is over 100%, which has influenced the development of the 972 model.

Thomas Friemuth, the director of the Panamera product line, called the fourth Panamera PHEV “a high-performance model that deserves to be a part of the versatile line-up.” “We are boosting the electrical performance of the car in all E-Hybrid models, addressing the important considerations of electric range and charging speed, as well as driving dynamics,” Dr. Friemuth added. “During our tests, we're driving up to 70 percent further only on electric power than we did in the previous model.”

After “in-field” testing, Porsche engineers revealed that the active chassis establishes new standards that could be felt on every meter of the test drives. On the twisting rural roads outside the city, they remarked that it is incredibly lively and nimble. According to Dr. Friemuth, the new Panamera has an extraordinarily broad range thanks to a semi-active chassis with new 2-valve shock absorbers that can modulate the compression and rebound phases independently of each other as standard. This is believed to greatly broaden the range of chassis settings in the new standard chassis between comfortable and high-performance.

Updates To The Powertrain

The third-generation Panamera Turbo E-Hybrid has an improved hybrid powertrain system that produces 680hp and 930 Nm of torque. The Turbo E-Hybrid accelerates from 0-100kph in 3.2 seconds and has a more powerful electric motor inside the 8-speed dual-clutch gearbox casing, increasing regen capability by 35kW to 80kW. The new battery, with a capacity of 25.9kWh, increases the electric-only range by 70%. This makes it one of the best luxury cars today.

 The Panamera and Panamera 4 now have a turbocharged 2.9-litre V6 engine that produces 348 horsepower and 500 Nm of torque. The base model's V6 accelerates to 96 km/h in 5.0 seconds and has a peak speed of 272 km/h. The all-wheel-drive Panamera 4 does the same thing in 4.7 seconds, with a peak speed of 270 km/h.

Suspension Upgrade

The third-generation Panamera has two new suspension systems: semi-active and completely active. For quicker and more accurate reflexes, the semi-active system employs a two-chamber air spring configuration. It has shock absorbers that can manage rebound and compression separately. Aside from autonomous control, the suspension system has a much larger damping force. The third-generation Panamera's completely active suspension employs a single-chamber air spring for design simplicity and improved dynamic performance. It adapts to road conditions dynamically, applying force as necessary, removing the need for anti-roll bars, and simplifying handling dynamics.

Enjoy The Ride To The Max!

It has never been so easy and exciting to drive a car, this is especially true about brand new models. Modern technologies, focus on driver comfort, and a lot of cool features — all these bring a driving experience to a whole new level. If you cannot find the new Panamera in the UAE, then you can always rent GMC in Abu-Dhabi and enjoy a good ride!