Porsche takes Panamera wagon to the max

PORSCHE has transplanted the blinding 500kW petrol-electric powertrain from its Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid sedan into its wagon-style Panamera Sport Turismo to create a new plug-in load-lugging flagship for its sports limo range.

To be sold in Australia only by customer order, the Panamera Sport Turismo Turbo S E-Hybrid will cost $466,400 plus on-road costs – $6000 more than the liftback equivalent.

Australian deliveries of the 13th and most expensive variant in the Panamera range are expected to start in the second half of next year – about a year after initial stocks of Panamera Sport Turismo mainstream variants land in Australian showrooms in about November or December this year.

Those Sport Turismo variants include a more sedate plug-in hybrid wagon – the $255,800 4 E-Hybrid – that combines a turbocharged 2.9-litre V6 petrol with an electric motor.

Now, the Sport Turismo Turbo S E-Hybrid tops that by combining the 404kW biturbo 4.0-litre V8 from the Panamera Turbo S with a 100kW electric motor to create a 500kW all-wheel-drive powertrain that can rocket the vehicle from zero to 100kmh in 3.4 seconds, making it one of the fastest wagons on the planet.

Yet, it sips just 3.0 litres of petrol per 100km on the European combined fuel consumption test cycle and can travel up to 49km on a full charge of its 14.1kWh lithium-ion batteries.

It can hit 140km/h on battery power alone, but when the blown V8 kicks in, the top speed rises to 310kmh.

Porsche says maximum torque of 850Nm is reached at just 1500rpm when the engine and motor are working in unison.

This torque is delivered to the wheels via Porsche’s eight-speed dual-clutch PDK transmission and an all-wheel-drive system pinched from the 918 hybrid sportscar.

The electric motor is decoupled from the V8 powertrain via an electro-magnetic clutch when running on the batteries which take between 2.4 and six hours to charge, depending on the charger.

Porsche describes the seating arrangement as 4+1. In reality, the vehicle is a four seater, with two full-sized front and two rear seats. At a squeeze, a fifth person can ride in the middle of the rear seat, but probably only for short distances.

Like all Sport Turismo Panameras, the rear roof line is taller to allow easier access by rear-seat passengers.

With the split-fold 40:20:40 rear seats up, 425 litres of luggage can be carried, extending to 1295L with the seats folded. This is less than the 520L and 1390L of the conventional Sport Turismo variants, due to space required under the rear floor to house the battery pack.

An active roof spoiler automatically kicks in above 170 km/h, or at 90 km/h when the driver selects Sport or Sports Plus driving modes.

Twenty-one-inch alloy wheels are standard, along with a full suite of chassis performance systems such as three-chamber active air suspension with multiple modes and roll stabilisation, torque-vectoring differential, active rear-axle steering, ceramic composite brake discs and Sport Chrono driving package.