Porsche Panamera Sport Turismo Turbo S E-Hybrid: Born To Roam (Fast)
PORSCHE PANAMERA TURBO S E-HYBRID SPORT TURISMO
BORN TO ROAM (FAST)
Words by Alessandro Marrone / Photos by Jay Tomei
Not a grand tourer, but a Sport Turismo, something that doesn’t stop at elevating the trip and celebrate it above the destination.
With the time it takes to read the entire name of this car, if I’d put it more than a couple of times throughout the next few pages, you should take holidays just to read this article. But the real question is whether it really makes sense to give a name to everything, to define what stands in front of us at all costs. We hear all sorts of things, especially in our beloved automotive world, but the Sport Turismo is different and Stuttgart – not by chance – wrote the Divine Comedy on the back of the car: reality is that simple and definitions are not enough for it. It may seem like an excuse like so many to fill the trunk of equipment and to leave for some little-known mountain roads, but what I am about to do is a journey within the journey itself. This is the discovery of a model that definitively paves the way for the Shooting Brakes takeover – family cars with a sportier design and characterized by a more pronounced tail than usual – and then not just a grand tourer, but a Sport Turismo, because Porsche wants to put in your head that this trip, even if able to pamper you on board of 5 meters of technology and luxury, will also be an accelerated heartbeat experience. There is hybrid technology too, that fundamental attention to a world that is inexorably changing and that in the mind of those who are used to lead instead of following, represents an opportunity to show everyone that hybrid should not always be traced back to boring appliances on wheels, it is no coincidence that we refer to this car as a 918 Spyder for the family. Too much? Not one bit.
We have just finished playing tetris with the camera gears and we note that in reality we have brought a good dose of perfectly useless material just for the sake of appreciating what is the most visible feature of the Panamera Sport Turismo, its loading capacity. Not that driving enthusiasts will ever choose their next car based on this factor, but being aware that they can count on a luggage compartment worthy of being called such, justifies the mammoth dimensions of the car, with a look made even more titanic thanks to the best specifications you could ever ask for. Chalk exterior, a set of 21-inch wheels painted in metallic jet black that barely embrace the equally huge lime-colored brake calipers – as usual for the brand’s hybrid models. 420mm with 10 pistons at front and 410mm with 4 pistons at the back, the artillery needed to stop this over 2 tons torpedo, once there is way to unleash it and give free rein to the performance side of its double engine unit.
Let’s start from here, with the 4-liter combustion engine, a twin-turbo V8 that on its own delivers 550 horsepower for 770 Nm of torque. Combined with what would be already enough to ground the end of the world dressed as a vicious shooting brake, we have a 100kw electric motor, which is able to add something like 136 horses. Do not be fooled, in this case math is just an opinion, in fact the total real power output reaches 680 horses and 850 Nm of torque, made available through the four-wheel drive and the surplus of the steering rear axle that emulates a virtually shortened wheelbase. Porsche call it PDCC Sport (Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control Sport), we limit ourselves to invoking it with a sign of gratitude, especially when we find ourselves on the hairpin bends of the Col de Vence at speeds that would make a 911 go pale. Wait, you haven’t heard anything yet.
Before you condemn me to the stake, let me explain to you the reason for this statement. The Panamera Turbo S e-Hybrid Sport Turismo (from now on abbreviated as “the beast”) is not only able to pulverize what lies in between point A and point B or to shock any more optimistic conviction and expectation for the innate qualities of grinding grand tourer. What leaves you speechless is the constant dialogue that it has with the driver, even though you are dealing with a frame that does not communicate with us in the most traditional way. The cornering behavior is predictable in the most rapid movements, even if in Sport + the Sport Turismo does not hide its substantial bulk, but the elasticity of the engine and the readiness of the electric unit are combined with total traction on the enormous four wheels, aspect that pulls the Panamera away from every corner as if it were on a track. Not even the time to realize how you’ve came through a demanding corner that you must literally jump on the brakes and bite the carbon-ceramic discs (as standard) with a violence usually unknown in the wonderful GT club.
Here is the difference that Porsche wants to emphasize, not a grand tourer, but a Sport Turismo, something that doesn’t stop at elevating the trip and celebrate it over the destination. A Sport Turismo is designed to make the journey something equally hectic, in perfect Porsche style, loving mother of anyone who has the desire for speed in his blood, that goes for road and track as well. The Panamera Sport Turismo is obviously not only available in this version which is capable of deflagrating everything around it, but the test of strength and the technological/engineering capacity demonstrations of the Turbo S e-Hybrid are a one-way tug-of-war. Right now it is not only the undisputed queen, but the complete chessboard, a checkmate that costs at least € 80,000 more than the first alternative that comes to mind, currently only available with petrol engine and by the name of Audi RS6 Avant .
We talked about ballistic performances, so here are the classic figures that sweep away all doubts with the universal language of purest speed. From 0 to 100 kph in just 3.4 seconds, from 0 to 200 per hour in 11.6 and a top speed of 310 kph, for a five-seater capable of loading luggage for the holidays and with a diabetic weight of 2,325 kilograms. Despite its generous dimensions, certainly not easy to leave in the middle of boring Mercedes destined to disfigure in its presence, once seated on board you have the feeling of properly being in the cockpit, with comfortable but sporty seats, surrounded by all Stuttgart’s technology and the dashboard updates of the second generation Panamera. Behind the steering wheel we have a digital display with the classic analog tachometer in the center, while in the middle of the dashboard there is a large 12” touch screen through which to manage the excellent satellite navigation, the audio system and the countless parameters of the car, including of course the maximum connection with a smartphone and above all the possibility to set and memorize your favorite driving settings.
Do you think it’s possible to fall in love with a car that does not represent the most classic sports car cliché? I am sure of it and in fact I almost believe I prefer this particular scenario precisely because the spark strikes where you least expect it. Let’s face it, who among us doesn’t drool at the sight of a showy rear wing and a car body that seems to be borrowed from the most intimate dreams of a child raised on bread and Scalextric? In the same way, we must give credit to Porsche for creating an aesthetically impressive car, but above all as effective as a nuclear bomb. The fuel consumption of the Turbo S e-Hybrid is equally surprising and the constant support of the electric unit makes realistic figures that with a traditional Turbo S would be science fiction, summarized with an average consumption in the combined cycle of only 3 l/100km. All these pages and not even a word to pay homage to some of the most beautiful roads hanging to the Alps, luckily we have some photos. In this case the fault is not mine, but it is rather merit of the Sport Turismo that has been able to maintain all the interest on itself and on its innumerable qualities. A bit like its ability to be the ideal car, an excellent ride for long distances, a silent companion to tackle the city and an effective missile when you need to stretch your right foot. I was ready to welcome a nice surprise in my hands and instead I realized that I had discovered the closest thing to the ultimate machine, the one I would prefer even at the expense of numerous supercars. This is a situation that must make us think and put on paper the fact that hybrids can actually be used to improve traditional combustion engines. If the future will develop on these arguments, our passion can sleep peacefully and we will still be able to vent our desire for speed on cars that will never become simple mass mobility tools.
PORSCHE PANAMERA TURBO S E-HYBRID SPORT TURISMO
Layout – front-engined, all wheel drive
Engine – V8 cylinder 3.996cc – turbo + electric
Transmission – 8-speed automatic gearbox
Overall Power – 680 hp @ 5.750-6.000 rpm
850 Nm @ 1.400-5.500 rpm
Weight – 2.325 kg
Acceleration – 3,4 sec.
Top Speed – 310 kph
Price – from € 191.942