Porsche Panamera Mule Hints At A Turbo GT Performance Flagship

The second-generation Porsche Panamera premiered in 2016 and received a subtle facelift in 2020, however, camouflaged mules spied in Europe reveal that the Zuffenhausen company is working on another development of their luxury sports sedan which could be another facelift or a more track-focused Turbo GT performance variant (or both).

Following earlier spy pictures from a few months ago, the new set of photos is showing two different mules of the Panamera. Both of them feature an additional air intake above the license plate which will be the most notable visual change over the current range.

The prototypes had different exhausts (quadruple round pipes VS dual trapezoidal pipes) and one of them featured slightly larger side intakes on the front bumper which could be a sign for additional cooling.

The models were spied testing at the Nürburgring and on public roads in southern Europe wearing slightly less camouflage than before, a sign that the development program is well underway. The covered dashboard could hide interior updates, with the latest version of Porsche’s infotainment system and possible changes on the design of the center console.

According to insider information from our spy photographers, a Porsche Panamera Turbo GT is under development. It will reportedly share the powertrain with the Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT. This means it would be fitted with the 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 producing 631 hp (471 kW / 640 PS) and 850 Nm (626 lb-ft) of torque, sending power to all four wheels through a revised eight-speed Tiptronic automatic transmission.

As with the Cayenne, the Turbo GT variant of the Panamera is expected to have a more aggressive suspension setup compared to other variants, resulting in better track times. Standard equipment will most certainly include version-specific lowered active air suspension, rear-wheel steering, stronger carbon-ceramic brakes, and improved torque vectoring. Given that the facelifted Porsche Panamera Turbo is already the quickest executive car on the Nurburgring Nordschleife with a time of 7:29.81, the Turbo GT could go for another record.

The second-generation Panamera is expected to march on until 2024, when Porsche will reportedly launch an all-new third-generation with a focus on electrification.