Exterior and Interior
98.2012 Porsche 928 GT Coupe
Logically, this successor of the 928 will be technically based on the Panamera. Featuring the same drive-train layout, the two cars will share more than 60% of their components, including engines, transmission, and suspension. It is even said that the decision of building a new FR coupe was taken in order to render the new Panamera technical platform more profitable. The cost-reduction fight doesn’t forget anyone, and there are few cars these days that don’t share technical components with others. Compared to the Panamera, the 928 GT Coupe will have a shorter wheelbase and will lose some weight. This will make it sportier than the sedan.
In an interview with Autocar, a Porsche insider was a little more restrained in spilling the beans, but still left the door open on the possibility of this car becoming a reality. “At the moment, derivatives of the Panamera are not planned for the first generation, the source said.
"We hope to add them to the second generation, provided we can find necessary capacity.”
Performance
There’s no word yet on exactly what kind of powertrain the new 928 GT Coupe will have, but seeing as this could potentially be a derivative for the second-generation Panamera, don’t be surprised if it carries the same engine options similar to the company’s new luxury sports sedan. The normally-aspirated and turbocharged V8 (used in the Cayenne) will be the first option. The V8’s displacement will rank between 4 and 6 liters and will produce power values amid 300 and 650 horsepower with a GT Coupe version coming in a 5.7-liter V10 engine set up, producing an impressive 605 horsepower.
The Direct Fuel Injection (DFI) technology first used in the Cayenne could also find its way in the GT Coupe. This technology lowers the fuel consumption of individual models by over eight percent (NEDC). In real driving conditions, savings of up to 15 percent are possible.
The new Coupe will also borrow the transmission choices from the Panamera, which include a six-speed manual as standard and a seven-speed automatic, dual-clutch DSG as an option. With all the technologies being borrowed from the Panamera, Porsche would have to use something from the old 928 to justify the name. This will be the rear-wheel drive system, with a transaxle helping to balance the weight distribution.
Should all these come to fruition, the 928 GT Coupe could end up becoming a Porsche supercar that can hit 0-60 mph in 3.8 seconds with a pretty impressive top speed of 198 mph.
Pricing
Don’t expect Porsche to be throwing out figures for the new 928 Coupe until the car is officially unveiled. But if we were to make our best guesstimate on the car’s price tag relative to the market it’s going to fall under, we’d price it at a base amount of around $100,000 with a high-performance version capable of stretching that sum all the way up to around $150,000. These figures are by no means official, but if the car is supposed to be all that it’s supposed to be, then consider this price range to be in the ball park of the actual figures.
Competition
2012 Porsche 928 GT Coupe
When the new Porsche 928 officially breaks into the market, you can expect it to draw some pretty significant competition from a number of rivals in the industry, including the Bentley Continental GT, the Aston Martin DB9, and the recently-introduced Jaguar XKR-S.
Taking into account the high-powered GT Coupe’s 5.7-liter V10 engine set up that produces an impressive 605 horsepower with a 0-60 mph time of 3.8 seconds and a top speed of 198 mph, you can bet that the Continental GTC will have plenty to say about it. The GTC’s 6.0-liter W12 powertrain delivers a total of 567 horsepower and 516 lb/ft of torque and its got a 0-60 mph time of 4.4 seconds and a top speed of 198 mph.
As for the two other models, Aston Martin’s DB9 Coupe is powered by a 6.0-liter V12 engine delivering a significantly less powerful 470 horsepower and 442 lb/ft of torque compared to the 928 GT Coupe with a 0-60 mph time of 4.6 seconds and a top speed of 190 mph. The newly launched Jaguar XKR-S - the most powerful car Jag has ever built - comes with a 5.0-liter supercharged V8 engine that produces 550 horsepower, a 0-60 mph time of just 4.2 seconds, and a top speed of 186 mph.
Taking all these into consideration, only the Continental GT has the engine to compete with what’s expected to be found under the 928 GT Coupe. We like the DB9 and the XKR-S for what they are, but when pitted against what the new 928 Coupe is expected to be, these two probably won’t stand much of a chance.
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