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| Message: | I have been lucky enough to see two Panamera's being cold-weather tested in Wanaka, New Zealand, earlier in the year. Well, lucky is a relative term, because seeing a dog-ugly car isn't that lucky I think! Close up there are many features which are clearly fake on the test mules: the noses are clearly not final, and the bonnet/hood is a clear fake, which will have a depression in the middle. So too are the side panels, rear lights and rear skirt. So much for the fake bits. What disturbs me most about the car is the absolutely hideous rear hatch: it is NOT a fake. You can't fake the metal parts of the car, and I am sorry to say it looks like a dog taking a dump - similar to the [Oops!] revolting Crossfire piece of crap. To bulge the rear deck like they have is to ruin the entire look of the car. It looks nothing like the lovely receding lines of the wonderful 928, nor does it inspire any confidence in the future of the vehicle when Lamborghini and other manufacturers are well down the road of producing gorgeous 4-seaters. Hell, even the Maserati Quatroporte (a helluva good looking car despite its age) makes the Panamera look like it was designed by committee! Just about the only good thing I can see coming from the Panamera development effort is the unavoidable 2-door coupe - the 928 replacement we all seek... Sadly, if the Porsche designers aren't slapped around the face and head vigourously before being sent off to do the coupe, we can expect another dog taking a dump. :( There are a number of absolutely brilliant looking 928 replacement renders floating around the web (My fav, is the one which looks like the 21st century 928, right down to the recessed rear light clusters, blending into the hatch) but after seeing the Panamera, it's clear to me that Porsche have forgotten how to design anything except a 911! Hell, they're so lazy they just dropped a 911 front onto the cayenne. And I don't mind the Cayenne's design at all. But I find it disappointing that they couldn't come up with something that was Porsche and NOT 911... The Porsche dealership owner in town is convinced the Panamera we see in the test mules is NOT like what the final will look like, but if they can't replace that ugly rear section, I can't see it ever being a classic, or even very well received by, well, anyone! -------------------- How many escape pods are there? "NONE, SIR!" You counted them? "TWICE, SIR!" | ||||
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