Porsche->ke1 has filed a trademark for the "Pan Americana" moniker with Europe's Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (OHIM). The application was filed on July 28th, 2015, for "automobiles and structural parts therefor," AutoGuide reports.

Though there's no hint as to what this trademark might bring to the market, it wouldn't be the first time Porsche used the name. At the 1989 Frankfurt Motor Show,->ke235 the Germans debuted the Panamericana, a concept car->ke169 designed by Harm Lagaay and built on the 911->ke282 Carrera 4.

The concept featured carbon-fiber and plastic body panels and wide wheel wells that had enough room for various sizes of rims and tires, including off-road rubber. The car lacked traditional bumpers and its roof was sleeker than a standard 911's. Though Porsche's growing financial crisis at the time put an end to production plans, the Panamericana had some influence in the design of subsequent 1996-1998 Porsche 911 Targa models and the 1997-2004 Porsche Boxster, also designed by Lagaay, which arrived in 1996.

The name is also a tribute to the Carrera Panamerica, an endurance race held in Mexico between 1950 and 1954. The Carrera Panamerica is of great importance to Porsche, which adopted the word carrera (meaning race in English) for both the 356->ke666 and 911.

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Why it matters

So what will Porsche do with the "Pan Americana" name, you ask? That's a big dilemma as there's more than just one possibility. The most likely scenario in my book is a new concept car that could be unveiled as early as the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show in September. However, I doubt that Stuttgart will showcase a vehicle similar to the original Panamericana concept. Instead, Porsche could reveal a special-edition model that pays tribute to the Carrera Panamericana race based on one of its current sports cars. A Boxster Spyder Pan Americana would be a tremendous choice, mostly because the Boxster Spyder is the only Porsche somewhat related to the 550,->ke1156 which scored the brand's best result in the Carrera Panamerica, but I'm only taking guesses here.

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