The Porsche Panamera caused quite an uproar when the German auto manufacturer first unveiled it a few years ago. A four door Porsche? Madness! Worse than a Porsche SUV! Still, after the car was a hit with many reviewers, and pitchfork-armed Porsche mobs settled done and enjoyed the car for what it is; an overpriced, fast, four-door sedan.
Now word has come down that Porsche is planning to make the Panamera into a hybrid. Grab your pitchforks!
Porsche has already announced that it will be building a hybrid Cayenne, its turbocharged SUV. The Panamera will use the same drive train, which consists of a 46-horsepower electric motor mated to a 329 horsepower supercharged V6 engine. The standard Panamera has anywhere from 296 to 493 horsepower, depending on the selected engine. The Panamera has a best combined mile of 21 mpg (18 city/27 highway) and a worst of 18 mpg (15 city/23 highway).
How much of a difference will a hybrid system make? No idea. Since the hybrid system is being added to the bottom tier Panamera, the 3.6 liter, which already gets the best gas mileage, I can only assume there will be a substantial improvement in gas mileage. Even a 20% improvement would bring the Panamera up around 25 mpg combined. Not too shabby, especially for a Porsche.
Source: Autocar | Image: Porsche
Chris DeMorro is a car enthusiast, blogger, and all-around crazy man who is as passionate about hybrids as he is about Hemis. You can follow his constant misadventures at Three Months In A Mustang.
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About Christopher DeMorro
Porsche is the best vehicle out there and I’m sure the Panamera will be fantastic!
Porsche is the best vehicle out there and I’m sure the Panamera will be fantastic!
I HAVE ONLY READ ONE NEGATIVE, “THE OPTIONS ARE VAST AND OUT OF SIGHT EXPENSIVE.”