2010 Porsche Panamara S

Speaking of new(er) cars we don’t cover much on these pages, how about the Panamera? By my reckoning, we’ve never covered one here. They seem quite new, but in reality they’re now over a decade old in the market place, and a funny (and quite predictable) thing happened – they’re now very, very inexpensive. Of course, this is a relative scale, but we’ll get there in a minute.

The Panamera S grabbed the 4.8 V8 from the Cayenne, which was good for 400 horsepower, and stuck it into Porsche’s first attempt at a four-door sedan. Yeah, I’m discounting their involvement in the W124 500E, the RS2, and the Volvo 850, because those were not sold in their dealerships. So we got a hatchback design that sorta looked like a 911 imagined as an ex-collegiate swimmer, and you could have it in typical Porsche style – a ton of configurations and with multiple engine choices. Bottom of the barrel was the V6, top-tier was the twin-turbo V8, with all-wheel drive optional between. Dynamically, these were regarded as good driving cars if not great to look at. And Porsche-quick they were – 0-60 for the S was 4.8 seconds, and the quarter mile was disposed of in 13.3 seconds. Of course you got tons of tech, and in also typical for Porsche-style optional equipment would push the S’s $91,000 base price up towards six-figure territory quickly. But today? Not so much:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2010 Porsche Panamera S on eBay

Year: 2010
Model: Panamera S
VIN: WP0AB2A76AL060435
Engine: 4.8 liter V8
Transmission: 7-speed automatic
Mileage: 45,400 mi
Location: Reno, Nevada
Price: $30,000 Buy It Now

Stock #:
C060435
Exterior Color:
GT Silver Metallic
Interior Color:
Black
Body Type:
Sedan
Transmission:
7 speed automatic with auto-shift
Drivetrain:
Rear-wheel Drive
Engine:
V-8 cyl
Mileage:
45,417

The dealer doesn’t offer you much info, but I think they’re also wrong about the color. This one was optioned well, in Platinum Silver Metallic over ‘soft ruffled’ black leather. Optional equipment includes a heated steering wheel, 19″ Turbo wheels, Bluetooth integration, ParkAssist, variable-assistance power steering, and a few other nice items. This one also carries option code 762 – Launch Car – so it was probably one of the first to arrive in the country. MSRP, according to VIN data, was $124,565. Today? With only 45,000 miles, it’s $30,000. Let’s look at a same year 911. This 911 Carrera Cabriolet has 75% more miles, is not the top-tier model, is not the most desirable configuration, and is not the most crazy color combination, yet it’s ask is almost $12,000 more despite a $25,000 lower entry price. The math is simple; if you want to retain value, the large executive sedans are not where it’s at.

Down the road, is this the car to own? This one looks nice and is cheaper than a mildly-equipped brand new Prius. It probably won’t surprise you to find out that the V8 has coolant system issues and can consume oil at an alarming rate. This model is rear-drive only so it’s a bit less complicated and heavy, but you’re also looking at generation-old technology. So in a lot of ways, it seems like you could do worse, but it also seems like you could do better. Whether these cars really hang around much longer in this condition will be interesting to watch, because I’m not sure there’s a group pining to get into them, unlike the 911. But if you’re willing to accept a few more miles, you can drop the price on these down even lower – like this $25,000 Carbon Grey Metallic one that’s fully loaded. They’re at least interesting to consider at this price, no?

-Carter