Porsche Panamera Turbo S: meeting the highest standards
Thursday 31 March 2011, 8:27AM
By Porsche
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Porsche has raised the bar for luxury four-door sports cars by yet another notch with the introduction of the new Panamera Turbo S. The 4.8 litre, V8 twin turbocharged engine now delivers 410 kW (550 hp) – an increase of 10 per cent or 37 kW (50 hp) over the already very powerful engine in the Panamera Turbo. At
the same time, torque also increases from 700 to 750 Nm. In the “Sport” and “Sport Plus” mode and during kick-down in normal mode a full 800 Nm is available through ‘overboost.’
This power punch bestows the Panamera Turbo S with phenomenal acceleration. With Launch Control (part of the standard Sport Chrono Package Turbo) the 0-100 km/h sprint takes just 3.8 seconds and top speed is 306 km/h. Despite the increased performance, fuel consumption remains at the moderate level of the Panamera Turbo – yet another example of “Porsche Intelligent Performance”. In the NEDC the Gran Turismo returns 11.5 L / 100 kms; falling to 11.3 L / 100 kms when fitted with the optional 19 inch, all-season Michelin tyres with optimised rolling resistance.
The increased performance compared with the Panamera Turbo is due to two main enhancements: Improved turbochargers with titanium-aluminium turbine wheels and modified engine control. The use of the innovative titanium-aluminium alloy reduces the weight of the turbine and compressor wheel. This results in a lower moment of inertia and therefore improved and more agile engine responsiveness.
The new top-of-the-range Panamera boasts an extraordinarily comprehensive level of standard equipment. Just like the Panamera Turbo sold in New Zealand the Turbo S features Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control (PDCC) which is active anti-roll bars used to eliminate body roll during cornering, as well as Porsche Torque Vectoring Plus (PTV Plus) which applies a variable torque split to the rear wheels combined with an electronically controlled rear differential lock to ensure superior traction and therefore greater agility in every driving situation.
However, additional standard equipment for the Panamera Turbo S over the Turbo now includes Servotronic steering for improved manoeuvrability and the Sport Chrono Package Turbo which provides the ‘overboost’ torque function, Launch Control and sportier chassis set-up. The sports exhaust, generating a cracking engine soundtrack, is also standard.
The sporty character of the new Panamera Turbo S is also reflected on the exterior. The 20-inch Turbo II wheels with increased rear axle track width, side skirts from the Porsche Exclusive range and the adaptive extending four-way rear spoiler in the exterior colour ensure particularly sporty performance and looks. The fusion of exclusivity is conveyed in the interior by the standard bi-colour leather finish. The new combination of black/cream is offered exclusively for this model with agate grey/cream also being added as an exclusive combination later in the year.
Final New Zealand specification and pricing will be announced closer to the vehicles expected arrival date in date in September.