The Porsche Panamericana is a concept

automobile A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarded ...

produced by Porsche AG. It was designed by Dutchman Harm Lagaay along with Steve Murkett (designers) and Ulrich Bez (technical director) to preview some design features that would be on the upcoming 993 generation 911. It was also built as a gift for Ferry Porsche for his 80th birthday. The name comes from the famous

Carrera Panamericana The Carrera Panamericana was a border-to-border sedan ( stock and touring and sports car) rally racing event on open roads in Mexico similar to the Mille Miglia and Targa Florio in Italy. Running for five consecutive years from 1950 to 1954, ...

race that was held in the 1950s. The Porsche Panamericana was intended to be only a concept car, and although Lagaay hoped that his creation would be produced at least in small series in 1992, the growing financial crisis at Porsche put an end to his wishes. However the car had an influence in the development of the 993 911 Targa and Boxster. The Panamericana was shown at the 1989

Frankfurt Motor Show The International Motor Show Germany or International Mobility Show Germany, in German known as the ''Internationale Automobil-Ausstellung'' (''IAA'' – International Automobile Exhibition), is one of the world's largest mobility shows. It cons ...

, after a development period of only six months. It was built on the chassis of a 911 ( 964) Carrera 4 cabriolet and its bodywork was built with

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and

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panels. An outstanding characteristic of the car were its wide wheel covers with the objective to have enough room for various sizes of rims and tires, so if necessary it could be transformed into an off-road car. The three part Speedline rims used on the concept were made exclusively for this Panamericana. The roof line was homogeneously streamlined and sloped gently towards the rear engine deck. It featured a removable waterproof fabric top that could be attached by a pink zipper. Various roof configurations were possible and the car was in fact a hybrid of a

targa Targa or TARGA may refer to: Car racing events *Targa Adelaide, in Australia * Targa Canada West, in British Columbia *Targa Florio, in Sicily, Italy, 1906–1977 * Targa Florio Rally, in Sicily, Italy, from 1978 * Targa High Country, in Victoria ...

convertible A convertible or cabriolet () is a passenger car that can be driven with or without a roof in place. The methods of retracting and storing the roof vary among eras and manufacturers. A convertible car's design allows an open-air driving expe ...

coupe A coupe or coupé (, ) is a passenger car with a sloping or truncated rear roofline and two doors. The term ''coupé'' was first applied to horse-drawn carriages for two passengers without rear-facing seats. It comes from the French past parti ...

and off-roader. When viewed from the front its style has a resemblance with the

996 Year 996 ( CMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Japan * February - Chotoku Incident: Fujiwara no Korechika and Takaie shoot an arrow at Retired Emp ...

and the Boxster—as could be expected, since Lagaay also has designed the Boxster. In spite of its un-streamlined wheels, its aerodynamic drag coefficient was only 0.30. File:Porsche panamericana 1989 porsche museum stuttgart3.jpg, Panamericana interior with top off File:Porsche Panamericana Prototype based on 964 Carrera 4 1989 backleft 2010-03-12 A.jpg, Panamericana rear end

References

{{Porsche vehicles Panamericana All-wheel-drive vehicles