The Next Car After the Panamera

Since last fall, we’ve been talking about replacing our Panamera, as I mentioned in a previous article. The Panamera’s inspection is due this October, so we’re considering switching to another car by then.

However, even though we say “just switch,” it’s not that simple. It’s been about half a year since last fall, but we still haven’t decided on the next candidate car.

It’s not that we haven’t thought about it or discussed it as a couple; we’ve gone to dealers for test drives and had many “this way and that way” discussions, but the situation keeps changing and twisting, so we’re still undecided.

Candidate: Porsche Taycan

The first candidate we considered as a replacement for the Panamera was Porsche’s first EV, the Taycan. We even attended a preview event and learned a lot about the Taycan. My husband was very curious about “what kind of EV a sports car maker would create” and even made a reservation for it at one point.

However, we felt the rear seats were narrower than expected (not cramped, but definitely less spacious than the Panamera), and on top of that, we heard delivery would be way off in 2021. So we thought, “Hmm, that’s quite a wait… Maybe we should squeeze in another car in the meantime… We need to consider this more.”

Around that time, my husband also said,

I think a base 911 instead of the Panamera would be nice. I want to try driving a base 911; I think it would be really fun.

But I replied,

No way… We already have a 964 and a GT3, so why on earth would we buy another 911? That’s just crazy.

and that ended the conversation.

Bentley Continental GT

Next up as a candidate was the Bentley Continental GT. My husband has always liked luxury coupes and had been interested in the Continental GT for a while. I suggested, “If we’re replacing the Panamera, how about a luxury car so different that you wouldn’t even compare it to the Panamera?”

So, at the end of last year, we went for a test drive in the Continental GT as a couple. It was sportier than we expected (of course, it was more refined and luxurious than the Panamera, and a wonderful car), but

Hmm, I was expecting something more luxurious, but this still makes me compare it to the Panamera. And the Flying Spur is ridiculously expensive…

So the Continental GT was dropped from the list.

Porsche Cayenne

After that, the Porsche Cayenne came up as a candidate. My husband was impressed when he test drove the current Cayenne and said, “I think the Cayenne is great too.” But I hesitated, saying, “But it’s so big…”

…I feel bad that I always seem to be shooting down my husband’s ideas.

Still, the Cayenne has a spacious rear seat, so we decided to consider it since the kids would be comfortable even on long trips. But while browsing used car sites, my husband started muttering,

The Cayenne’s depreciation is more than I thought… Considering resale, I hesitate to buy a new one. It’d be great if there’s a good used one. But I definitely want PDCC, and it’s hard to find a base Cayenne with PDCC…

Meanwhile, our Nissan Note e-POWER NISMO S was delivered as my husband’s commuter car, and he started saying almost daily,

This car is amazing! The acceleration of an electric car is incredible! If the Note is this good, the Taycan must be out of this world. The Taycan is definitely not off the table!

So we had a reason to visit the Porsche Center, and since there was a Cayenne Coupe on display, we consulted with our sales rep, Mr. H.

The Cayenne Coupe we saw was very cool, and my husband said, “If it’s this spec, I really want it!” But after talking it over at home,

But the Taycan is non-negotiable… Considering the delivery time for the Cayenne Coupe, if we buy it, we’d probably switch to the Taycan after a while, which feels like a waste… The Cayenne can be bought anytime, but if we don’t reserve the Taycan now (reservations close on 2/28), we might not be able to get one for a while… Hmm…

and the candidate car discussion completely stalled.