Porsche Panamera C One

As far as body kits for the first-generation Porsche Panamera go, Mansory鈥檚 C One tune is up there with similar products from TechArt, Lumma Design and a few other tuners. The collective goal was to make the ungainly Panamera more aggressive, while also boosting power in various stages - although not all tuners did both. Mansory takes pride in their extreme creations and the C One package for the Porsche Panamera 970 certainly qualifies. According to the German tuner, the 4.8-liter turbocharged V8 received new electronics, larger turbos and a stainless steel sports exhaust system, raising power output to 690 PS and pushing torque to 850 Nm. Straight line acceleration thus improved to 4 seconds dead for the 0-100 km/h sprint, whereas top speed is now 328 km/h. On the outside, the Panamera C One features a custom front fascia with LED daytime running lights, a carbon fiber bonnet, wider wheel arches, side skirts and a custom rear fascia with a massive diffuser and a fixed rear wing. This particular car, spotted in Warsaw by DannyZDR, doesn鈥檛 appear to have the carbon fiber bonnet though.

A marked departure from the automaker's countless sports cars before it, the original Cayenne was a five-passenger sport utility vehicle that boasted both on- and off-road prowess and a choice between six- and eight-cylinder front-mounted, water-cooled powerplants. It was unlike anything that had ever worn a Porsche badge. If its design and primary mission weren't enough to petrify stubborn loyalists, the fact that it shared platforms and many of its components with the Volkswagen Touareg (and Audi Q7) was sure to have them choking on their salted pretzels. Regardless, the 2.5-ton Cayenne flew out of showrooms faster than the venerable 911 - it soon became the automaker's best-selling vehicle. In truth, it is argued in many circles that the sports car company was saved by its SUV. Eight years later, Porsche is rolling out the all-new 2011 Cayenne - arguably one of the company's most important debuts ever - especially if one considers sheer sales volume and potential profits. Like its predecessor, the new Cayenne shares its platform and components with its Volkswagen siblings, but Porsche has taken this model much more seriously.

While the first-generation Cayenne was very competent, it was burdened by a heavy four-wheel-drive system and an appearance that never really looked completely cohesive. With its engineers fresh out of SUV-rehab, the new Porsche model emerges with a purpose. The engaging new sheetmetal (all-steel fully-galvanized body panels) wrapped around the unibody platform speaks Porsche - from the raised fenders sitting higher than the hood to the instantly recognizable ovoid headlights. The designers blacked-out the B-pillars on the new model, and lowered the waistline, so it no longer looks like it's wearing its pants too high. The rear lights now wrap onto the liftgate, and the exhaust has been more cleanly integrated. While the overall package appears much sleeker, the drag coefficient has actually increased a tenth to .36 - styling took precedence. Influenced heavily by the Panamera sedan - and moved upscale in appointment as a result - the Cayenne's cabin is greatly improved. The five-ring main instrument cluster is cleaner as it now features the familiar multi-function flat-screen display to the right of the tachometer. Dash vents have been lowered to flank the large navigation screen, while the center console picks up the HVAC controls.

The buttons are overwhelming at first (when you get done with those, there are a dozen more overhead), but familiarization helps. Porsche will offer four Cayenne models in North America in 2010. The first to arrive in just a couple months will be the eight-cylinder Cayenne S and the flagship Cayenne Turbo. The Cayenne S Hybrid and Cayenne V6 won't arrive until later in the year. As of now, there are no plans to offer the Cayenne Diesel on our shores. Like the outgoing model, the 2011 Cayenne features fully independent double-wishbone suspension up front, and an independent multi-link design in the rear. Ground clearance, for the standard steel springs, is 8.7 inches. The Turbo model is also fitted with a self-leveling air suspension that adds variable ride height. The front brakes are Porsche's six-piston aluminum "monobloc" calipers over 14.15-inch iron rotors on the S and S Hybrid models. The Turbo we spent most of our time driving wears similar six-pot calipers with larger 15.35-inch two-piece rotors - the rear rotors on all models are only slightly smaller in diameter, although clamped with four-piston aluminum calipers.

As is the case with the rest of the automaker's lineup, Porsche's formidable "PCCB" carbon ceramic brakes (above) are optional. The standard wheel package includes 18-inch alloys wrapped in 255/55R18 tires on all four corners (all are "square" setups - none staggered). The Turbo is shod with 19-inch alloys wearing 265/50R19 tires (the one we drove on the track was fitted with optional 21-inch wheels wearing 295/35R21 tires). The 2011 Cayenne S is fitted with a 4.8-liter V8, the same direct-injected 32-valve unit as last year's model, but minor tweaks have improved the engine's power slightly so it's now rated at 400 horsepower and 369 lb-ft of torque. The 2010 Cayenne Turbo bolts twin turbochargers to that direct-injected 4.8-liter V8 to produce 500 horsepower and 516 lb-ft of torque. Both powerplants share a new slick-shifting eight-speed "Tiptronic" automatic transmission with sliding shift levers on the steering wheel spokes. While all of this sounds rather enticing on paper, the assemblage of German SUVs currently sold in North America includes not only the Porsche Cayenne, but the BMW X5 and Mercedes-Benz ML-Class - heavy hitters.