Spies break first photo of Porsche Panamera mule in testing

The decision is made: Porsche’s all new four door sports coupe Panamera is going to be assembled in Leipzig/Germany thus creating 600 new jobs. The body will come from the Volkswagen plant in Hannover, and the engines will come from Porsche’s home base in Stuttgart. Plans are to produce 20,000 units per year from 2009 on.

So far only prototype mules of the so-called fourth Porsche model range have been sighted. They come hidden under the body of BMW’s M5, the company’s own Cayenne, or an Audi.

Last week, at Nürburgring – engineers were doing high speed testing with truly smoking tires – one of the Panamera mules under an M5 body gave a first impression of the Panamera’s future top performance. It will be a front-engined four seater, has rear- and all wheel drive and power comes from V8’s and V10’s delivering between 340 and 600 HP. The car is supposed to cost 70,000 to 100,000 Euros.

Here is a photo of the mule



Christa Lehmann/ Hidden Image

phantom330 - 5/23/2006 7:18:59 PM

+1 Boost

I don't know what's under the hood of that car, but that M5 looks hot!

montz - 5/23/2006 9:46:54 PM

+1 Boost

Is that legal? Do they have BMWs permission to do that, do they need it?

chewy - 5/23/2006 10:46:10 PM

+1 Boost

Sure they can, if thety bought it, they can do anything they want with it.

JUGNU - 5/24/2006 4:44:45 AM

+1 Boost

I think mont is right.There is no lawsuit for such an act,but i think Brands don't do that.

BMW is not conncetd with Porsche,I think the mule maybe of a new M5 CS.It can be anything but BMW.But not PORSCHE

JUGNU

JUGNU - 5/24/2006 4:44:45 AM

+1 Boost

I think mont is right.There is no lawsuit for such an act,but i think Brands don't do that.

BMW is not conncetd with Porsche,I think the mule maybe of a new M5 CS.It can be anything but BMW.But not PORSCHE

JUGNU

porsche993 - 5/25/2006 9:12:36 PM

+1 Boost

This car WILL be INCREDIBLE!!!

valorin - 7/12/2006 11:09:47 PM

+1 Boost

What? How do they have recourse to drag them into court - over what? Putting another engine in a BMW?

Once you purchase a car, you own it - they can do whatever they like with it. You don't see Porsche suing Gemballa or RUF because they produce modified versions of Porsches.

Porsche disguised the original 928 in an old mercedes when it was testing it all those moons ago. Its nothing new.

Where only talking about a mule here - they are simply testing components.

It would be a different case if they simply copied the M5 - made some changes - and viola - Panamera!