Porsche panamera turbo

C/D SAYS: The Boxster has a sublime chassis balance and smooth power, and blends comfort, backroad prowess, and daily driving fun with characterful brilliance.

An 11.0-kW onboard charger is said to allow the battery to be replenished in about three hours when plugged into a Level 2 public charger.

Fuel Economy and Real-World MPG

The EPA hasn't released fuel economy estimates for the Panamera Turbo models yet. While there are Sport and Sport Plus drive modes for this kind of work, the Active Ride system makes the softer Sport mode feel largely superfluous.

This thing represents some of the most ridiculous performance numbers ever seen from a four-door, primarily internal combustion–powered machine. We found some back roads around Santa Cruz, and with a quick twist of the steering-wheel-mounted dynamics knob into Sport mode, the comfy ride instantly switched to a taut, sporty one. Out here the power feels relentless thanks to the torque fill from the electric motor and the PDK’s near-seamless upshifts, but it’s the chassis that really steals the show.

It’s a combination that’s good for a 0-60 sprint in three seconds flat on the way to a top speed of 195 miles per hour, while the 25.9 kWh battery pack allows for roughly 30 miles of all-electric driving range.

More power is always welcome, but I’d argue that the secret sauce here is the newly-available Porsche Active Ride suspension setup.

The air suspension, while effective from both a comfort and sporting sense, is anything but licht. We're simply trying to contextualize for you how ridiculous the Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid is in a straight line.

Speaking of ridiculous, this Panamera stops from 60 mph in just 96 feet, which is borderline unbelievable.

Just go into it knowing that it’s going to cost you in more ways than one.

Photos by Bradley Iger

Few cars embody the jack-of-all-trades ethos like the Panamera Turbo E-Hybrid does.

Couple with that the Panamera Turbo’s already steep starting price and you’re looking at quite an investment, but this Porsche’s performance is well worth it.

More on the Panamera Turbo E-Hybrid Sedan

Range, Charging, and Battery Life

A 22-kWh battery pack should provide around 27 miles of electric driving per charge if you take it easy on the accelerator.

The Panamera works for that specific purpose, but at that point a full EV makes more sense (and only needs to be charged once a week or so). Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a 14-speaker Bose stereo system, wireless smartphone charging, the Amazon Alexa voice assistant, and spatial audio via Dolby Atmos are all standard. It’s similarly unfazed by the expansion joints and buckled sections of pavement that litter LA’s freeways without resorting to the floaty, disconnected feeling that can result from a traditional adjustable damper that’s paired with a soft spring.

I also quickly warmed up to Porsche Driver Experience layout.

With the hybrid powertrain turned all the way up to 771 horsepower, the Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid hit 60 mph in just 2.5 seconds during our testing.

Engine, Transmission, and Performance

While previous Panamera Turbos were with a nonhybrid turbocharged V-8 engine, the only versions Porsche's making now are turbocharged plug-in hybrids.

It was included on this tester as part of the $7,480 Sport Package, which also adds Porsche Torque Vectoring and rear-axle steering, but it’s standard equipment on the Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid.

A few minutes behind the wheel is all it took to understand the value of Active Ride. Which, again, hats off.

Are you buying a family sedan to brag about the numbers your car is capable of achieving?