Porsche Panamera, through Western Norway

Bergen, the starting point for the fjords

Although, the first city we arrived in was Oslo, the starting point of this driving trip was in Bergen. It is a 7-hour train ride from Oslo to Bergen. Oslo train station is located in the center of the city, we dragged our luggage towards the train station, you can see stores selling traditional Norwegian clothing, woolen, hand-embroidered, wide skirts, sweaters, cloaks, hats, natural colors. These clothes are expensive, but they have endured in Norway. Norwegians are also said to be notorious in Scandinavia for their love of intricate 18th- or 19th-century country attire.

Norway because of the mountains, by the sea, so in nearly a day's train ride is difficult to see the vast plains, but more to see the mountains around the lakes, the countryside homes dotted with the scenery. As the train frequently passes through mountain tunnels, we are getting closer to Bergen. This is known as the entrance to the Norwegian fjords. And the fjords are some of the most spectacular scenery in Scandinavia. Norway is home to four fjords, Geirangerfjord, Sonnenfjord, Hardangerfjord and Lüsserfjord. Bergen is right in the middle of the two western fjords, Sonnenfjord and Hardangerfjord. In fact, people can choose to use different means of transportation to arrive in Bergen, self-driving, train, ferry, plane, different means of transportation can experience different scenery.

It was raining when the train pulled into Bergen's train station, giving us a taste of the "rainy city" we've come to know. In the days that followed, it was a constant rain and shine, reflecting the distinctive Nordic climate. A Porsche Panamera 4 E-Hybrid was waiting for us in Bergen. This plug-in hybrid four-door sports car would prove over the next three days how well suited it is to the characteristics of the Norwegian terrain.

From the moment you sit in the car, you can feel the character of the sports car, with a relatively low driver's seat, which can, of course, be adjusted in multiple directions until it is adjusted to the position the driver is used to. Rain falls on the body and windshield, and a small droplet of water gives this sports car, which retains Porsche's simple yet classic design, a sense of calm and crystalline. Putting the camera equipment and luggage in the trunk, we set off. Not knowing what lies ahead of us, we boldly follow the navigation to those unknown places.

The weather changed as we wound our way through the mountains

The plan for the first day's driving was to go from Bergen to the Jürungswang area at the end of the Hardangerfjord. The total distance is about 160 kilometers and a little over two hours of driving. From Bergen, it's a natural drive into the mountains. Because we left the city, we pressed the gas pedal and immediately felt the response of the engine. Thereafter, we traveled along the mountains, through one tunnel after another several kilometers long, and then on exiting the tunnel, we could every so often marvel at the change of scenery. The car's Lane Keeping Assist system can play an important role on highways with many tunnels. Whenever visual fatigue, the body is a little off its own lane phenomenon, the system will vibrate the steering wheel to give the driver a prompt, at the same time, the car is also equipped with a steering assistance function of the lane-change assistance system, the driver can clearly feel the car in the active fine-tuning of the steering wheel to help drivers to adjust the direction.

At the beginning, the mountain road is a two-lane road in both directions, with a speed limit of 80 kilometers per hour in general, and 40 or 60 kilometers per hour when it comes to road repairs or turning sections. The head-up display on the windshield of the Porsche helps the driver to pay attention to the speed limit changes and navigation information without being distracted. Perhaps it's the long stretches of mountains that challenge first-timers, or perhaps it's the change in scenery that makes driving in Norway less sleepy and tiresome. On the other side of the mountains is the sea, and before we even reached the fjords, we could appreciate that this country is just nestled in nature. It's not a country with a strong concentration of towns and cities; historically, villages and towns have dotted the mountain passes and waterfronts, each with a different dialect. And the journey and story of the Vikings, that journey of heaven and earth **** born, and the race of nature continues to the present day, reflecting the Norwegians' strong bond with nature, and the love of the country's mountains and waters is tightly linked to their love of their country.

In 1969, Norway discovered oil, since then out of the harsh natural conditions, and began to enjoy the wealth given by nature. So, driving in Norway, you can feel that the highways here are well built with all the safety facilities placed scientifically and fully. Although many times you will encounter continuous turning, but as long as the standardized driving, safety can be guaranteed. And this, too, is the reason why we can choose a sports car to drive ourselves. Because, in the country where the mountain road is well paved, a sports car can instead reflect its driving ability, so that people can feel the sound driving.

With its wide body, low height and wide tires, the Panamera 4 E-Hybrid is born with good ground-hugging performance. Its powertrain consists of a 2.9L V6 twin-turbo engine, an electric motor and an 8-speed PDK Porsche Doppelkupplungsgetriebe. It accelerates from a standstill to 100 km/h in 4.6 seconds and reaches a top speed of 278 km/h. When the driver is traveling on a mountain road, it's easy to get between tightening the pedal and stepping on the gas at corner entry and cornering. Not to mention its chassis capability, which is both comfortable and sporty. The car's chassis features PASM Porsche Active Suspension Management, an electronic damping control system. It actively and continuously adjusts the damping force at each wheel according to the driving conditions and driving style in order to minimize body movement and make every seat comfortable.

After gradually adapting to the Norwegian road conditions, we also approached our first day's destination, Hardangerfjord. It is said to be one of the gentler fjords in Norway, and idyllic scenery characterizes it. We parked the car at the foot of the hill, next to a small supermarket that not only sells food and household items, but also provides fresh lunch. This is a reflection of Norway's well-developed transportation, with towns within its borders having a variety of stores and even takeaways in addition to good road transportation. At some gas stations, there are already charging stations that comply with European and Japanese standards. This opens up possibilities for long-distance drivers like us in new energy vehicles.

As we gradually got to know the car's performance, we started to look at its interior. What gave this reporter the most good looks were its center console and instrument panel. The center console, which rises toward the front of the car, has a glass look that adds texture and technology. Touch-sensitive function buttons are spread down evenly. The display is a 12.3-inch, touch-controllable screen, which displays vehicle information, entertainment information, cell phone information, and other features. The dashboard has a more intense and sporty design compared to the center console. For Porsche, the tachometer must be placed right in the middle of the dashboard, the tachometer is flanked by two 7-inch displays, the left display contains the speedometer and temperature gauge, the right side displays other information, which include navigation, energy applications, basic vehicle information, etc., and on the far left side of the dashboard there is also a small area that displays real-time information about the speed limit.

The steering wheel of this car is not heavy and is easy for a lady to drive. On the right side of the steering wheel is a small driving mode selection dial that shows the four driving modes of this hybrid: "E-Power" (electric drive), "Hybrid Auto", "Sport" and "Sport Plus". Tapping the brakes while going down a mountain road, you can see the long battery compartment display change from the dashboard, and the battery is charging and discharging between throttle retractions. The car has a range of 51 kilometers in electric-only drive mode.

That's how you drive across the sea, according to the navigation

At the end of the Hardangerfjord is the üllensvang region. A five-generation hotel here is called the Jürundsvang Family Hotel. The hotel is said to be highly sought after by travelers and must be booked far in advance. However, what impressed this reporter the most is that although the hotel has a unique view of the Hardangerfjord, the hotel's décor and operation are very simple. At dinner time, guests staying in the hotel dining, fixed under the table number, the next day breakfast, we are still in accordance with the existing table number dining, this way to give a person a kind of old-fashioned sophistication and warmth. Although the discovery of oil, Norway jumped to the world's second richest country, although Norway is also the fifth largest producer of natural gas, although the beauty of the fjords for the Norwegian tourism resources, although the fisheries industry is equally developed here, but the Norwegian people are still giving people a sense of simplicity.

It's like the early morning cafes in Oslo, where people still get to work as early as possible. "In this country, it used to be that there wasn't enough food in the winter unless it was saved and stored in advance," Ingevie Slegstetler, CEO of Norges Bank Investment Management, has said. Perhaps it is a habit left in the bloodstream by their ancestors, Norwegians give people a sense of pragmatism and simplicity. In the fjord region, people choose outdoor sports such as climbing, hiking, biking and boating, while they are rarely seen spending their money on the construction of high-rise buildings.

Continuing southwest from Hardangerfjord, we're headed for Stavanger, which is the entrance to Lüsserfjord and also adjacent to the North Sea oil fields. My companion in the back seat of the car has become adept at setting the rear temperature and volume level for himself via the rear in-car entertainment control screen. As we move deeper into the southwest, the mountain road becomes a single lane in both directions, testing the driver's caution and the vehicle's reflexes. The fog that came through the tunnel caught us off guard. But the locals seemed to be used to it, and the speed of the vehicles did not decrease at all. It's the fog that makes the fjord a wonderland, not a naked world.

As you can see from the map, southwestern Norway consists of a long coastline and many islands. So, as we continue south, we will see that the optimal route choice for navigation is to cross the sea via road. At this point, the ferry becomes an aid to traveling by car in Norway. Driving the car to the ferry boat, people can board the deck to enjoy the scenery. The sea breeze is blowing, the boat is moving at an even pace, and the surrounding scenery is bright and exquisite. Within a short time, we reached the next island and continued our journey through the mountains. Stavanger is a lively city, and we arrived just as the sun was setting, people walking along the coastal sidewalks, music blaring from the corner bars, gradually revealing the revelry that comes with the night. Our car quietens down, too, and in pure electric mode it blends in even more with a city that champions the environment and the arts.

The drive strung us along on this journey. As we stopped and explored, each point on our navigation became a richer picture of a lesser-known Norway. But we can only do the best we can, because in just a short time, it's hard to fully understand a Norway that's so y embedded in nature.

People and driving, the quest for sustainability

Jackie Ickx, one of Porsche's most legendary drivers, recalled the Dakar Rally by saying that, although the whole race was very tough, "you could see 10,000 stars at night in the desert." Why is driving so fascinating? Perhaps it's because people have always been romantically involved in driving. Tougher environmental standards around the world now challenge automotive sustainability, but automakers are exploring a variety of solutions to satisfy the natural need to drive.

In 2018, Porsche, which is in a period of transition, achieved both high sales and profits. The product matrix, which reflects the brand's DNA, meets market demand and has an increasingly complete structure, contributed to the excellent results. In the increasingly full product matrix, electrified models will support half of the market in the future. "The Porsche 2025 Strategy states that half of the sales of Porsche models will come from new energy models, including pure electric and plug-in hybrids. The creation of the sports car of the future will combine Porsche's DNA and values with innovation. As with the development of the hybrid models, the aim is to be "performance-oriented".

In 2010, Porsche launched the Cayenne hybrid model, and in 2017, Porsche adopted plug-in hybrid technology as the powertrain for its flagship model, the Panamera. 2018, the Panamera led sales growth with 38% year-on-year growth, and in the European market, more than 60% of Panamera sales were hybrid models. powered models. In fact, Porsche's hybrid history dates back to 1900, when Ferdinand Porsche built the world's first hybrid car, the Lohner-Porsche "Semper Vivus". Porsche currently offers hybrid versions of its models in China, including the Cayenne and Panamera.

The transformation of the industry, while challenging the matter of driving, can also define new connotations of driving. Automakers need to invest heavily in this to have a say in the future. By 2022, Porsche will have invested more than €6 billion in electrification, up from the planned €3 billion. The extra 3 billion euros will be used to develop derivatives of its all-electric sports car, the new Taycan, electrification of existing models, and charging infrastructure, with hundreds of millions of euros spent on factory expansions and smart mobility.

Porsche is fully committed to digitalization, connectivity and the transformation of new mobility concepts, said Porsche's Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Porsche Global Executive. We can feel this change creeping in as we drive along the mountain roads of Norway. With the promise of dynamic driving, the use of more economical, environmentally friendly and smarter cars allows us to be more at ease in the midst of nature, with no ties to our hearts.

Highlights:

When we returned the car to the owner of Bergen, the owner was very confident to tell us how many times we filled up the gas tank on this trip, when we filled up the gas tank, and he knew that we had already returned to Bergen before we even contacted him. This is all a feature on the Porsche App. It also alerts the owner if the vehicle has been driven a safe distance away, if it has been stolen, and the owner can do remote locking of the vehicle. It's a kind of "supervision" that puts travelers' minds at ease.

This article comes from the author of the car home, does not represent the views of the car home position.