Porsche is good at keeping the faith. A less determined carmaker - or a less rich one - might well have chosen to axe a slow-selling saloon given the world’s love for SUVs shows no signs of abating. But despite the fact the Panamera is only spared the wooden spoon in the company’s sales figures by the aged 718 Boxster/ Cayman, Porsche has opted to give it another chance.
The basics remain pretty much as before. The third-generation Panamera’s proportions and dimensions have barely changed over the outgoing model, with much underlying technology carried over. It is lower and sleeker than the Cayenne and Macan, less practical in terms of its ability to lug people and stuff, but with all the handling benefits that come from a lower centre of gravity. Seen from the other end of the range the Panamera is never going to match a 911 on ultimate dynamic ability, yet it is a genuine four-seater - something its coupe sister never will be. Christian Wittke, the engineer who has overseen development of the new Panamera’s chassis, describes it as Porsche’s best compromise. Yes, he’s biased - but that doesn’t make him wrong.
We’ve had plenty of time to look at the new Panamera since images were dropped last year. It definitely isn’t a radical change, but in the metal I can report it is handsome and projects more visual confidence than either of its predecessors, Porsche having helpfully brought along the earlier cars for direct comparison. Both the first-gen 970 Panamera from 2009 and its 971 successor from 2016 were trying to do what the aborted 989 concept had tried to do in the late ‘80s - to integrate 911 design themes into a four-door. Trying too hard, really - the original Panamera’s back end now looks cartoonish, and the second was still showing its influences as obviously as a covers band. For my money, the new one is far more harmonious, especially at the rear where a full-width light bar runs across the tailgate.
The new interior is bigger on tech, but definitely shorter on character. I really liked the second-generation Panamera’s cabin, even if - as with the 991-gen 911 it was closely related to - it was hard to track down individual controls on the button-strewn centre console. But the new model has followed the herd with an XL 12.3-inch touchscreen and lots of shiny black plastic. As with the revised Taycan, the Panamera will be offered with a triple-screen configuration that adds another 10.9-inch display in front of the passenger, this having a unidirectional mesh on it which means it can’t be seen from the driver's seat. Meaning it can legally stream video when the car is moving. The Panamera has also sadly followed the Cayenne with air vents that require a two-deep dive into the UI to adjust their aim.
There is plenty of legroom and headroom up front, but the sheer width of the centre console makes the Panamera feel more cosy than spacious. That’s doubly true in the back where there is a distinct lack of limo-like legroom and two individual seats rather than a bench (there is a third seatbelt for an occupant to perch in the middle, but doing so will require putting one leg on each side of another chunky console.) The high glassline also cuts into visibility; the Panamera isn’t one of those upper-class saloons that was designed for its rear seat passengers first.
Porsche had exclusive use of the Monteblanco circuit near Seville to give us the chance to put the Turbo E-Hybrid and its clever electro-hydraulic active suspension through its paces. But the experience of the V6-powered derivative was road-only, hardly an imposition on some of the spectacular, quiet Andalusian mountain roads. Even without the full active system, the Panamera is still heavy with tech; all versions now get air suspension and dual valve adaptive dampers as standard. Even without the weight of a V8 and a sizeable lithium-ion battery, the rear-drive Panamera is still a chunky 1,885kg on Porsche’s numbers.
It doesn’t feel that big or heavy on the road. With impressively keen front-end responses and plentiful grip balanced well across both axles the Panamera turns enthusiastically and corners hard without drama. Pushed hard on dry Andalusian roads there was never any shortage of traction; the all-wheel driven Panamera 4 will come into its own on slippery surfaces, but perceivable differences on grippy Tarmac are minimal.
The smart suspension means that even the cheapest Panamera doesn’t feel like a base car dynamically. Body control stayed excellent over rougher surfaces and at higher speeds. Sitting closer to the floor does indeed bring a closer sense of physical connection; the Cayenne is a hell of a piece of engineering, but the Panamera is always going to feel more responsive when pushed hard.
The V6 itself is effective but never destined to make any list of Porsche’s most charismatic powerplants. The engine is the long-serving 2.9-litre ‘hot vee’ twin-turbo V6 as seen in various Porsche and Audi models, here retuned to make peaks of 353hp and 368lb ft of torque. The V6 revs cleanly to its 6,750rpm limiter, but never finds a very compelling voice when pushed hard. More impressive is the broadness of its mid-range, and the eight-speed PDK transmission’s happy knack to find the right gear when left in Drive. Porsche might have long since given up on compression ignition, but driven at a rapid everyday pace there is something diesel-like about the Panamera V6’s effortlessness. And I mean that in a good way.
But the brawnier Turbo E-Hybrid is going to be where the excitement starts - even with the prospect of an even punchier Turbo S E-Hybrid that will ultimately sit above it. The Turbo is a plug-in hybrid that combines the efforts of a 511hp 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 with a 190hp electric motor integrated into the gearbox, drive then delivered to all four wheels. Total peak output is 680hp accompanied by 685lb ft of torque, with a sizeable 25.9kWh battery pack giving up to 56 miles of EV range on the WLTP test cycle. To no great surprise given the spec, it’s also a bit of a porker: a 2,360kg DIN weight meaning it is 200kg heavier than the V8-powered Cayenne S Matt drove last week.
This is a large part of the reason for what will be the option of the Porsche Active Ride suspension. This is basically the same setup that will be offered on the revised Taycan, combining the standard air springs with an electro-hydraulic system that can send pressure to individual shock absorbers to counteract body motion in what is effectively real-time. Active Ride removes the need for mechanical anti-roll bars and also means the Panamera can counter pitch and dive under braking and acceleration, as well as lateral roll. It can also over-compensate with what are called Active Tilt and Active Pitch, the first of these leaning the car into a turn - like a bike cornering – the second raising the front end under braking, and the rear under hard acceleration.
Before getting to experience the Turbo E-Hybrid on the Monteblanco track itself, Porsche laid on a technical demonstration laid out in the circuit’s car park. The highlight of this was a track consisting of a carefully constructed series of undulations, one with 90mm of height difference between peaks and troughs positioned 1.5 metres apart. So not far off a set of hump-type speed bumps laid back to back.
The Active Ride equipped Turbo could drive over these at an indicated 50km/h with the suspension keeping the cabin calm and almost level, wheels dropping and rising quickly enough to maintain order where a normal car would undoubtedly be thrown all over the place. It wasn’t quite the magic carpet of a hydraulically-suspended Citroen, but it wasn’t far off. On level ground there was also the chance to make an emergency lane change between cones and an anchors-down stop to confirm the lack of roll and dive.
Moving onto the 2.7-mile circuit itself – following a 911 pace car – proved the Panamera Turbo is hugely fast. The electrically-enhanced powerplant has instant reactions, the motor delivering torque even as the V8’s turbochargers are building boost and it quickly proved adept at shortening Monte Blanco’s longest straights. In Sport Plus mode Active Ride works to maximise cornering grip and there is certainly a huge amount from the Michelin Pilot Sport 5S tyres.
But the basic laws of physics still apply when asking so much mass to change direction, and despite the additional presence of active rear steering, on the circuit’s tighter turns throttle discipline was necessary not to send the front pushing wide. Porsche’s engineers say that there are still two grippier tyre options to come - one of which will be a track-spec Cup on which the Turbo S will undoubtedly set some kind of Nurburgring lap record. And which almost no actual buyers will ever specify.
Slower laps gave the chance to experience the Active Tilt and Active Pitch systems, which are only available in the Normal dynamic mode. Active Tilt is barely noticeable as it rocks the car into a corner by up to 3 degrees, much less so than the similar Curve mode that Mercedes has offered on a few cars fitted with its electro-hydraulic anti-roll system, although it does undoubtedly slightly reduce the effect of cornering forces. To be honest, the best impression I had of it working was when following another car and seeing its body move. And Active Pitch felt silly, pushing up the front of the car under even slight braking to what felt like a cartoonish effect.
Driving the Turbo E-Hybrid on road proves that the magic of Active Ride is best experienced by leaving it in its default mode, the car smoothing imperfections and digesting bumps without ever feeling floaty or disconnected. The Active Tilt and Active Pitch features were experienced briefly, and then turned off. The cynic in me wonders if they have been added largely to justify what will be an expensive option on the basis it’s easier to persuade somebody to pay for something extra rather than - in the default mode - less of something. It’s still a seriously impressive system, though, and one that is certain to spread beyond the Panamera and Taycan in years to come.
The Panamera’s core proposition seems largely unchanged in the third generation. It’s a true executive express, a going-very-fast machine that combines performance with luxury levels of refinement, and delivers a driving experience that will be familiar to anybody who has experienced Porsche’s sports cars, even if its size and mass deny it their superlative level of dynamic connection. It’s certainly set to remain a much more original choice than a Cayenne, and one inevitably that fewer people will make. But we should be glad that Porsche has opted to throw the dice one more time.
Specification | Porsche Panamera
Engine: 2894cc twin-turbo V6
Transmission: Eight-speed double clutch, rear-wheel drive
Power: 353hp@6700rpm
Torque: 368lb ft@1900rpm
Kerbweight: 1885kg
0-60mph: 4.8 seconds (with launch control)
Top speed: 169 mph
MPG: 26.9 (WLTP)
CO2: 239 g/km (WLTP)
Price: £79,500
Specification | Porsche Panamera Turbo E-Hybrid
Engine: 3996cc twin-turbo V8 with electric motor
Transmission: Eight-speed double clutch, all-wheel drive
Power: 511hp@6000rpm (680 hp system peak)
Torque: 567lb ft@2400rpm (685 lb-ft system peak)
Battery: 25.9kWh, lithium-ion
EV range: <56 miles (WLTP)
Kerbweight: 2360 kg
0-60mph: 3.0 seconds (with launch control)
Top speed: 195 mph
MPG: 166 mpg (WLTP)
CO2: 38 g/km (WLTP)
Price: £141,400
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