Porsche could team up with Bentley for Panamera variants

November 24, 2010 Omar Rana Matthias Muller, Porsche Panamera, Sedans

Official sketch hints at Porsche 928 successor

Porsche’s new CEO Matthias Muller is keen on sharing platforms and technology with Volkswagen Group stablemate Bentley. However, he admits that Bentley’s own plans could affect the chances of putting further variants of the Panamera into production.

Porsche, which is keep to improve its economies of scale on the Panamera platform, has been considering different variants of the sedan including a large two-door coupe as a successor to the 928.

“I think we have to discuss with Bentley whether we can put together our performance, our engineers,” Muller said. “It should be possible. “What we want to do, in conjunction with Bentley, is to have a common architecture, a common performance in purchasing, and so on. That is just an offer to Bentley; you have to understand. Everybody will be keen to get synergies and reduce costs, and at the end of the day, have a better revenue.”

Muller went on to say that Porsche has a lot of ideas for Panamera variants but needs to understand first what customers are looking for.

Refresher: The $89,800 Porsche Panamera S is powered by a 400-hp V8 allowing for a 0-60 mph time of 5.2 seconds with a top speed of 175 mph. The $93,800 Panamera 4S is powered by the same 400-hp V8. The $132,600 Porsche Panamera Turbo is powered by a turbocharged V8 making 500-hp allowing for a 0-60 mph time of 4.0 seconds with a top speed of 188 mph. The Porsche Panamera V6 and Porsche Panamera 4 are powered by a 3.6L V6 engine making 300-hp and a peak torque of 295 lb-ft. Prices start at $74,400 for the base V6 Panamera and $78,900 for the V6 Panamera 4.