Panamera S Hybrid
Discussion
Sooo - My Gen1 Cayman S went in to Cambridge OPC to have some work done on a leaking air-con condenser and, instead of the 981 I was promised, I was given a brand new Panny S Hybrid for the day, and, since it's quiet in the office thought I'd put a few thoughts on it down - hope it's of some interest to somebody!
First the spec Big Turbo rims, privacy glass, basalt black, Bose, full extended black leather, power tailgate, sunshine roof, quad zone climate, full PCM, heated front seats... Not a good looking car, but probably amongst the best looking Panameras I've seen, and I reckon would have cost, at list, nigh on £100k on the nose.
The interior was a revelation after the Cayman and my wife's A3 - perfectly screwed together and felt every inch as though it belonged in a £100k car. The latest PCM in particular really impressed - intuitive and a much more pleasing set of graphics. I've not spent any proper time in either a 991 or 981, but if this is what they're like, that's got to be a good thing - a proper luxury interior that, at the same time, is focused on the driver.
Once I'd got the quad-zone a/c set as I wanted it I set off. First impressions around town were superb - with the dampers in normal mode and the battery taking the strain at low speeds the car is effortless and utterly hushed - the ride better than I think I've experienced in any car, including S-Class Mercs that I'm driven in from time-to-time. The transition between battery and petrol power was seamless and made for an extremely relaxing drive. The only thing that i wasn't sure about were the brakes - when, I assume, charging the battery the retardation is a bit hard to predict and not as progressive as I'm used to in the Cayman - something I'm sure you'd get used to. Later, at maximum attack, the brakes were superb.
Pressing on a bit the car was still impressive, but the powertrain feels strangely anodyne when you're going for it - far too hushed and puts on speed much more quickly than you'd imagine, and with no fuss. Great on the motorway, but not so good when you want to connect. PDK with buttons didn't help the feeling of 'connection' either - paddles would be better I think, manual better yet (though not available on hybrid Pannys I don't think). The steering is weighty enough, but doesn't communicate as well as that of a Cayman by a fair margin, though still better than most BMWs I've driven in recent years. Handling balance pushes to understeer, but you can easily bring oversteer in with a lift of the throttle (in my short time I couldn't get it to wiggle its hips with power alone, mostly down to the PDK I think). You have to be much quicker with the Panamera if you're a bit hamfisted like me - it is far less forgiving than the smaller cars in the range when you take liberties.
Overall it's pretty much as I expected - as a tool for covering long distances it's almost peerless, but when pressing on there's no substitute for a proper sports car, and a much lighter chassis. Still a fabulous piece of engineering and, at £100,000, so it should be!
First the spec Big Turbo rims, privacy glass, basalt black, Bose, full extended black leather, power tailgate, sunshine roof, quad zone climate, full PCM, heated front seats... Not a good looking car, but probably amongst the best looking Panameras I've seen, and I reckon would have cost, at list, nigh on £100k on the nose.
The interior was a revelation after the Cayman and my wife's A3 - perfectly screwed together and felt every inch as though it belonged in a £100k car. The latest PCM in particular really impressed - intuitive and a much more pleasing set of graphics. I've not spent any proper time in either a 991 or 981, but if this is what they're like, that's got to be a good thing - a proper luxury interior that, at the same time, is focused on the driver.
Once I'd got the quad-zone a/c set as I wanted it I set off. First impressions around town were superb - with the dampers in normal mode and the battery taking the strain at low speeds the car is effortless and utterly hushed - the ride better than I think I've experienced in any car, including S-Class Mercs that I'm driven in from time-to-time. The transition between battery and petrol power was seamless and made for an extremely relaxing drive. The only thing that i wasn't sure about were the brakes - when, I assume, charging the battery the retardation is a bit hard to predict and not as progressive as I'm used to in the Cayman - something I'm sure you'd get used to. Later, at maximum attack, the brakes were superb.
Pressing on a bit the car was still impressive, but the powertrain feels strangely anodyne when you're going for it - far too hushed and puts on speed much more quickly than you'd imagine, and with no fuss. Great on the motorway, but not so good when you want to connect. PDK with buttons didn't help the feeling of 'connection' either - paddles would be better I think, manual better yet (though not available on hybrid Pannys I don't think). The steering is weighty enough, but doesn't communicate as well as that of a Cayman by a fair margin, though still better than most BMWs I've driven in recent years. Handling balance pushes to understeer, but you can easily bring oversteer in with a lift of the throttle (in my short time I couldn't get it to wiggle its hips with power alone, mostly down to the PDK I think). You have to be much quicker with the Panamera if you're a bit hamfisted like me - it is far less forgiving than the smaller cars in the range when you take liberties.
Overall it's pretty much as I expected - as a tool for covering long distances it's almost peerless, but when pressing on there's no substitute for a proper sports car, and a much lighter chassis. Still a fabulous piece of engineering and, at £100,000, so it should be!
Edited by Actus Reus on Thursday 16th August 20:25
Pope said:
Just a note - 8 speed tiptronic, not PDK in Hybrid models.........
Thanks - I'll change that - did wonder where the 8 speed box had come from and perhaps goes some way to explain why I wasn't that keen on the box. And yes, one day these will be superb cars for the money. Just a normal 'S' for me I reckon...Gassing Station | Porsche General | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff