The Porsche Panamera puts the brand’s sporting ethos into a sedan-like 5-door hatch, but what does its name mean? Find out here.
The Panamera gets its name from Carrera Panamericana, a race that was held on the newly opened Pan American Highway from 1950 to 1954. The course covered around 2,178 miles (3,507 kilometers) from the north of Mexico to the south.
Like contemporary events, such as the Mille Miglia and Targa Florio, the Carrera Panamericana was touted as being extremely dangerous, with a number of drivers dying from accidents during the race.
For Porsche sedan-like 5-door hatch, Panamericana is shortened to Panamera. The Carrera name — Spanish for race, incidentally — is used across a number of models in the 911 range, including the Carrera, Carrera S, and Carrera 4S.
