CARS OF THE WORLD

Porsche Panamera Turbos S 2021.

Porsche Panamera Turbos S 2021. Porsche marketers put the Panamera on a par with the titans of the executive segment — BMW 7 Series, Mercedes-Benz S-Class and Audi A8.

All of them are really comparable by dimensions and prices, but it is difficult for me to imagine that someone seriously chooses between luxurious sofa of «Eski» and close, dark cocoon of the second row of «Panamera».

And it’s even more absurd to compare portraits of people who want to sit behind the wheel of these cars in person.

Price: 7,440,000 — 15,680,000 roubles
Maximum speed: 263 — 315 km/h
Dimensions: 5049/1937/1423 mm
Engine: V6 2.9/V8 4.4/hybrid, 330 — 700 hp
Acceleration to 100 km/h: 5.6 — 3.1 sec

And the customers agree: the extended Executive version accounts for only 2% of sales, the Sport Turismo station wagon didn’t sell either — they praise it for its design, but they don’t buy it.

And all because Panamera has established itself in the status of pure Gran Turismo — the heir of dynasty of front-engined Porsche, interrupted with 968 model in the middle of the nineties.

There is no need to hang additional senses on this car — the increased number of doors is enough.

It is by no means mistake of Germans: having put the first generation on its feet, they have logically decided to probe the surrounding ground — what is needed, what is interesting?

And it turned out that people prefer to consume «Panamera» undiluted, like any real Porsche — which means that soon the liftback should finally gain an identity. It’s starting to do so now.

Look: the coolest and fastest version in the lineup is again the Turbo S — natural, without hybrid additives. It holds the Nürburgring record and unequivocally supercar-like 3,1 seconds up to a hundred.

It is half a second better, than the restyled Turbo, and ten seconds faster than the nominal flagship Turbo S E-Hybrid — the latter has lost 0,2 seconds of acceleration after updating, but now is considered in the runner-up. And not because the engineers couldn’t squeeze out more.

The decision is exactly political. In fact, if earlier the usual Turbo and electrified E-Hybrid were equipped with the same four-liter V8 rated at 550 hp, now there was discrimination: the hybrid was added 20 powers, and the gasoline version — the whole 80, to the final 630!

More than weighty reason to refuse from the name Turbo and to return «imperial» nameplate Turbo S. However, they did not take away magic letter from the hybrid not to finally declassify it.

But, actually, it happened exactly that: it is not necessary to make absolutely strong emphasis on ecology with alive Taikan — advocates of zero emissions will faster pass to pure electricity, than they will change for half-measures.

Adepts of pure speed don’t need to carry extra 300 kg of batteries, sacrificing dynamics and steerability — so everyone gets his own.

It is not the fact that in the next generation Panamera will not have hybrid versions, but such outcome is possible: look at the forthcoming Macan that is decided to be divided into two families — usual and electric.

However, it is tomorrow’s business, but today we should know the following: The Panamera Turbo S is awesome.

Simply activate low control, having sunk both pedals into the floor, release the left one — and whipping butt will beat at once any doubts that it is exactly a sports car.

There is so much power in this engine, that even full drive does not save from light slipping, and exciting gravity recedes from a body only at the border of the third hundred. The almighty car!

And the magic of «Panamera» impresses most of all not «in a vacuum», but on real country roads.

To ride with a flock of three cars, unanimously overtaking long trains of trucks — an occupation rather fascinating and a little bit shameful: time after time reveling in these rushes, it costs nothing to lose connection with reality, limitations of speed and road marking requirements.

But there are too few moments of true freedom left in this world to give them up voluntarily, aren’t there?

Moreover, even on a far from ideal asphalt such «teleportation» doesn’t turn into a reckless extreme: the solid chassis of the Panamera Turbo S perfectly keeps the contact of wheels with road, doesn’t «break through» on bumps and stoically copes with compression loads, when the car collapses into a low place from a bend.

By the way, now the «Panamera» has a new program of control of air struts and adaptive shock absorbers — the standard mode should become softer, and the track Sport Plus, on the contrary, is even more collected. In reality, these nuances are difficult to feel, and nothing except an intermediate hypostasis of Sport the car does not need: it goes most harmoniously in it.

How good the Panamera is in turns! Grip reserve of Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires is infinite, but it does not lead to impassive rail: having enjoyed instant and accurate response on entrance, you may always add gas and make an arc in slight slip — for this purpose you don’t even need to switch off the stabilization system.

Not for nothing, these liftbacks often used by instructors branded schools Porsche as drift-taxi: a full drive does not prevent to give the corners, and the emotions of the rear passengers, who tosses from side to side with a giant amplitude, are priceless.

Certainly, 911 will be much faster on a track, and 718 will give more fun, but this car does not make you rhyme words «Panamera» and «half-measure» for a second — you get pleasure from it without any compromises.

One can only complain about weak for grand touristo noise isolation, and on light nervousness in very flat and oh-so-quick arcs: in these modes the elevator back slightly walks on a trajectory, and overly sensitive steering wheel interferes with its correction.

Perhaps such ambiguity is due to the steering rear axle, which is included in the standard equipment Turbo S, but there was nothing to compare it with.

Because the second version, which we managed to drive, was Panamera GTS — for it, unlike Turbo S, the full-steering chassis is optional, but our copy had it.

Nervousness in the same modes of GTS is even a little bit more due to more sports settings of the chassis, but it is absolutely nuances — much more appreciable loss in dynamics.

Do not understand a wrong way: GTS also drives great — as restyling has gifted it with additional 20 horsepowers (there are 480 now), new firmware with more «high-altitude» character of the motor and ability to drive out of four seconds up to a hundred: it was 4,1, became 3,9.

This is a damn, even excessively powerful car, whose capabilities will suffice always and everywhere. Just be ready, that full throttle will make you inwardly smile, instead of childish ecstasy.

Whether it is worth the difference between 11 and 14 million rubles is a question for those, who is capable to spend such money on the car.

However, the GTS is just for those who are used to count the finances. Yes, it is almost by two million more expensive than the modification 4S, but this gap is easily compensated with a «package offer».

Much of that, that for 4S it is necessary to make in the configurator is included into the price here: a package Sport Chrono, sports seats and exhaust system, bodykit and other «trifles» which add up to tidy sum. Plus the engine!

If younger «Panameras» are equipped with 2,9-liter V6, here V8 4.0 — simpler, than at Turbo S, but nevertheless.

And also it is a cool investment: after years, cars with nameplates like GTS are valued much higher than usual ones, even if in fact there are almost no technical differences.

Therefore, have no doubts that the similar version will be at the next generation too, and then, look, other «heated» variants will follow in the manner of 911 and 718: there is no image necessity to represent at once a limousine, a station wagon and the defender of polar bears at Panamera any more, and it’s the sweetest thing to complicate life of Mercedes-AMG GT once again. And it is fine.