Watch out BMW M5 – Porsche's long-awaited four-door, the Panamera, has been spotted on the road in these exclusive photos.
Expect the production car to look much more elegant than this rather bulbous test car, but it does back up Porsche's claims that the Panamera will be a proper four-seater. The roof stretches well back towards the stubby rear, which should provide the car with competitive levels of accommodation – especially next to the swooping low roof of Mercedes' CLS.
The long front end resembles that of the Carrera GT, with hints of the latest 911 Turbo in the cooling ducts, wheelarches and bonnet. The shut-lines hint that it will follow the example of its spiritual successor, the 928, and use a liftback.
Engines will include an all-new Volkswagen 3.5-litre V6 with around 300bhp, a naturally aspirated version of Porsche’s 4.5-litre V8 with 350bhp and a turbo version with around 560bhp — enough to give 0-62mph in under 5.0sec. A reworked version of the Carrera GT’s 612bhp 5.7-litre V10 may also be in the pipeline, as is a hybrid.
The Panamera goes in sale in 2009, after a debut at the Geneva motor show. For more information, check out the latest edition of Autocar magazine, out on 27 September.
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