Plethora of new Porsches by 2010

PORSCHE’S facelifted 911 Coupe and Cabriolet will mark the first in a series of new Porsche models, culminating with the all-new Panamera sedan and redesigned Cayenne, when they are released in Australia on September 20.

Details of the DFI and PDK-equipped 997-series C2 and C2S have been covered already, as have the highlights of the Cayenne range-topping Turbo S, which debuted at the Beijing motor show in April and goes on sale here around the same time.

Priced at $265,500, the Turbo S will not only be the most expensive Cayenne, but also the most powerful. With 404kW/750Nm on tap, it out-muscles the outputs of both the 368kW/700Nm Cayenne Turbo and Porsche’s top-shelf 911 GT2 (390kW/680Nm).

Next cabs off the Porsche rank are facelifted versions of the all-wheel drive 911 Carrera 4, which will be launched in Europe in six weeks and, like the C2/C2S, should arrive in Australia about three months later.

Porsche Cars Australia (PCA) has fought hard to receive new models sooner than ever before following their European releases, and the result is that our vehicles are now loaded onto ships sooner than new models bound for the UK, one of the world’s leading right-hand drive markets, are dispatched by truck.

As such, the facelifted Boxster convertible and Cayman coupe, which are due to make simultaneous global debuts at this October’s Paris motor show, should arrive Down Under in early 2009. Expect the sister models’ 2.7 and 3.2-litre boxer engines to be redesigned in a similar fashion to the 911’s 3.6 and 3.8-litre flat sixes, which gain direct-injection and the new PDK dual-clutch transmission.

Left: Panamera Hybrid and upgraded MY09 911 coupe and cabriolet line-up.

Next year will also host the release of a facelifted 911 GT3 and the all-new four-door/four-seat Panamera grand tourer, in that order.

While the latter could emerge in the metal as early as next January’s Detroit motor show, the manual-only GT3 homologation special will not feature direct injection because European racing legislation doesn’t allow it.

The Panamera is scheduled for series production from April 2009 and is expected to first appear in rear-drive naturally aspirated 4.8-litre V8 guise, badged as the Panamera S, before being joined by all-wheel drive turbocharged Turbo, entry-level six-cylinder and, within two years, petrol-electric Hybrid guises. The first Panameras could reach Australia as early as September 2009, or as late as January 2010.

“From next year, the launch of the four-door, four-seater gran turismo Panamera will accelerate our journey towards success even more,” Porsche AG executive vice-president for research and development Wolfgang Durheimer told GoAuto last week.

“I'll promise you one thing today: the Panamera will create a worldwide sensation. It will leave both high-end coupe and sports limousine sectors absolutely reeling.”

Facelifted versions of the turbocharged 911 GT2 and 911 Turbo will follow this year’s upgraded 911 C2/S after a traditional 12 to 18-month hiatus, so do not expect the upgraded 911 flagships to appear before 2010 – the same year the second-generation Cayenne SUV is due to appear.

Initially mistaken for an Audi Q5-based compact SUV dubbed the Roxster, which Porsche continues to steadfastly deny it will ever produce, the redesigned Porsche SUV has already been seen virtually undisguised in spy pictures.

The German sportscar-maker has promised to release its Cayenne Hybrid “before the end of the decade” (read: by the end of 2010) and a petrol-electric version of what will then be an eight-year-old Cayenne is out of the question, so expect hybrid power to closely follow petrol V6 and V8, and diesel V6, versions of the all-new Cayenne in 2010.

Porsche said it would continue to employ a traditional automatic transmission in its SUV, because its torque converter is better suited to off-road and towing applications than its new double-clutch PDK automated manual.

PCA managing director Michael Winkler said predicting how many Cayenne Hybrids could be sold was one of the most difficult forecasting decisions he had ever made, but confirmed that up to 20 per cent of total Cayenne sales would be regarded as a good result.

Porsche has long said diesel will never be part of its product portfolio because “with diesels the fun stops at 4000rpm and that’s where it starts in a Porsche”. But as Porsche increases its shareholding in the Volkswagen Group (to more than 50 per cent this year), it seems access to some of the world’s best turbo-diesel engines will eventually become an option too logical to resist for its petrol-only SUV.

Porsche AG chairman Dr Wendelin Wiedeking has said the company will not rule out any power options for the Cayenne and speculation of a diesel Cayenne gained further weight at last week’s 911 launch, where Mr Durheimer said that while his position on diesel hasn’t changed, “what has changed is our business relationship with Volkswagen”.

Mr Durheimer indicated an economical turbo-diesel, most likely a version of the V6 oil-burner that powers the Audi Q7, is the most likely diesel option for the Cayenne, but emphatically ruled out diesel power for any Porsche sports cars.

He said Porsche’s iconic 911 coupe is unlikely to ever change its fundamental body shape or traditional rear-engined layout. “Styling is the number one reason people by the 911,” said the Porsche R&D chief. “You pay for the design and everything else you get for free.

“I could give you four reasons why the next 911 will be faster than the one before it, but the styling will change only a little. A flat six in the rear is (another) unique concept that won’t change.”

Further afield, Porsche sources have told GoAuto that new entry-level versions of the Boxster and Cayman, plus an eventual successor for the discontinued Carrera GT supercar, are also on the table.

While the latter is in its embryonic stages and could be built on either the 911 or Panamera platforms, some Porsche insiders suggest a less expensive version of its mid-engined sportscar model line, employing a 2.5-litre boxer engine offering about 180kW, could also be a good fit for the hallowed German brand.

what's coming:
MY09 911 C2/C2S Coupe/Cabriolet	Sep
Cayenne Turbo S variant	Sep
MY09 911 C4/C4S Coupe/Cabriolet	Nov
Boxster/Cayman facelift	2009
911 GT3 facelift	2009
Panamera sedan	2009
911 GT2/Turbo facelift	2010
Cayenne redesign	2010

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Beijing show: Turbo S is most powerful Porsche