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New Porsche Panamera, the second generation finds the perfect touch

Diego Ávila @diego_motordiez 29 June 2016 5 min.

New Porsche Panamera, the second generation finds the perfect touch

Porsche unveiled last night the second generation of its Gran Turismo, the Porsche Panamera. A few days ago, the brand began to “tease” us with a teaser image of its rear end. Not much could be made out, but the line of the rear lights suggested the people from Stuttgart were on the right track. And yes, so it has been, they have won us over.

The Panamera had already been on the market for a good number of years and, despite having received some updates in that time, it was already due a generational change that would adapt to the times we live in and substantially improve its rear-end look, which was something that never quite convinced many potential customers.

Exterior

At the front, the essence of the Porsche remains. The headlights still have rounded shapes, and the sides sit higher than the central area, a central section that features prominent tension lines that give more muscle to its image. At the lower part we find a main air intake with horizontal and vertical grilles and, on either side, two smaller ones with horizontal grilles that end at the fog lights.

It grows 34 mm in length, 6 mm in width and 5 mm in height. The wheelbase is now 30 mm longerThe side profile is maintained, although the Stuttgart brand tells us that the height has been reduced by 20 millimetres at the rear, so it should lose some rear-seat headroom. There are also air outlets immediately behind the front wheel arches.

What changes most on the exterior is the rear, and it changes for the better. The LED tail lights create a sense of three-dimensionality and, in addition, they are “joined” to each other by a thin line that runs from their upper edge and travels across the entire rear horizontally. This gives it a very distinctive touch and a very modern, high-tech appearance.

Interior

Porsche has taken note and decided to considerably reduce the number of buttonsAnd since we are talking about technology let’s move on to the cabin. One criticism of the previous-generation Porsche Panamera’s interior was the excessive number of buttons in the centre console. It seemed they were running out of surface area to fit more and more buttons, practically one for every function in the car. It appears Porsche has listened to its customers’ criticisms and taken them on board.

We are now presented with an interior considerably cleaner in terms of buttons with configurable interactive screens. The one positioned in the centre of the dashboard is enormous, measuring 12.3 inches, and through it, as you can imagine, you control the audio, navigation, connectivity, vehicle settings, and so on. The centre tunnel, where previously there was a very high number of buttons, now features touch-sensitive buttons, which, while perhaps not the most effective option as it requires you to take your eyes off the road, the number is clearly lower.

The instrument cluster switches from analogue to digital with two high-resolution screens of 7 inches each. Porsche pays homage to the 1955 356 A through the placement of the rev counter, positioned in the centre. Finally, its boot offers a capacity of 495 litres, expandable to 1,304 if the rear seats are folded down.

Engines

In terms of mechanicals, the new Porsche Panamera is offered, at least for now, in three different versions, named Porsche Panamera Turbo, Panamera 4S and Panamera 4S Diesel. Although the Turbo name only appears on the first, all of them feature twin-turbo forced induction and direct fuel injection. All three versions (yes, the diesel too) can be paired with all-wheel drive and the eight-speed PDK automatic dual-clutch gearbox.

The Panamera Turbo is powered by a powerful petrol V8. At full performance it delivers no less than 550 hp, while its maximum torque is 770 Nm, available from just under 2,000 rpm up to 4,500. It can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 3.8 seconds and shave off another two tenths if fitted with the Sport Chrono package. Should the power demand be very light, it features cylinder deactivation, which saves a good number of tenths of fuel and emissions, although its homologated consumption is only 9.3 l/100 km.

Then we have the Panamera 4S. This variant is a middle ground using a 2.9-litre V6 petrol engine producing 440 hp and 550 Nm of torque. Thus, it can go from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.2 seconds if fitted with Sport Chrono. The homologated consumption of this variant is 8.1 l/100 km.

Finally, we have the diesel version, the Panamera 4S Diesel. It is the least powerful of the three, although it has little to envy from its predecessor. This engine is a V8 producing no less than 422 hp and 850 Nm, which makes it the fastest series-production diesel vehicle in the world, reaching a top speed of 285 km/h and capable of a 0 to 100 km/h time of 4.3 seconds with the Sport Chrono package. On the other hand, its average homologated consumption is only 6.7 l/100 km.