Yahoo Autos Porsche Confirms It Will Build a High-Performance Panamera Hybrid
As far as hybrids go, the Porsche Panamera 4 E-Hybrid is pretty darn quick. With 462 horsepower and 516 lb-ft of torque, it can hit 60 mph in a scant 4.4 seconds. But if that regular Panamera hybrid isn't quick enough for you, Porsche will soon offer an faster version.
Speaking to Australia's Motoring, Porsche's head of product development Michael Steiner confirmed a high-performance Panamera hybrid is coming. "We will do one more hybrid version of the Panamera and this will be more in the direction of a high-performance variant," Steiner said. "It will be better performing than the existing one. Much more performance and agility and range."
Steiner didn't go into much detail, but the car he describes sounds like the Nurburgring-killing Panamera Turbo S Hybrid we believe is in the works. After all, why would Gernot Dollner, the man in charge of the new Panamera, claim the redesigned sedan could match the Carrera GT's lap time if the automaker has no plans to build a version that could do exactly that?
Unfortunately, Steiner also confirmed what we already suspected-the long-rumored Panamera Coupe is dead. According to him, it's not that Volkswagen Group is afraid a 928 revival would cannibalize Bentley Continental GT sales. It's because Porsche thinks other segments are better uses of its resources.
"With a given funding or investment in research and development, we have to decide which will be the next step to take," said Steiner. "From this point of view a coupe would not be in competition with other cars, but it would be in competition with other segments we could attract or move into."
For fans of the 928, that's obviously disappointing news. But if it's any consolation, Porsche still plans to build the Panamera wagon, and it's coming to the States. If it's as gorgeous as the Sport Turismo concept led us to believe, then we're in for a real treat.
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