For those still dragging their feet, bemoaning that a hybrid car is synonymous with the boring, loveless existence that is a Toyota Prius, the new 2018 Porsche Panamera 4 E-Hybrid is here to change their minds. And it’s got 462 reasons right off the bat.
Okay, so it’s not a ballistic hybrid like the P1, the LaFerrari and the 918 Spyder are, but it’s a performance hybrid that people are more likely to buy. Because, you know, it’s not a million dollars.
Or, at least, I don’t believe that it will be, because we don’t know how much it costs just yet.
Unlike the previous hybrid Panamera, the 4 E-Hybrid is all-wheel-drive. Together, with the 330 horsepower, 331 lb-ft twin-turbocharged 2.9-liter V6 and the 100 kW electric motor, it produces a combined power output of 462 HP and 516 lb-ft of torque. All of that is connected to an eight-speed PDK dual-clutch gearbox.
Porsche says that it will crack zero to 60 in just 4.4 seconds. That’s pretty quick, considering the fact that it weighs close to 5,000 pounds.
The 4 E-Hybrid also comes standard with the Sport Chrono Package, which lets you do all kinds of fun performance-y stuff with the car. In the “Sport” and “Sport Plus” modes, the V6 stays active. In “Sport,” the “battery charge is maintained at a level to ensure there is sufficient e-boost capability when needed.”
“Sport Plus” is where you can goose the Panamera up to 172 MPH—its top speed. When you set the car in this mode, you also recharge the battery as fast as possible with the engine, while also squeezing the maximum amount of performance out of the system at the same time.
Porsche also notes that the electric power is available at all times, which is a step up from the older model. Previously, you needed to press the accelerator at least 80 percent of the way down in order to dip into the “E-Boost” mode.
For all the other, slower, situations in life, the Panamera has modes that will increase efficiency and save gas. It will always start in pure electric mode, with a range of about 31 miles and a max speed of 86 mph.
From there, the driver can select a bunch of modes where the gasoline engine and the electric motor will balance each other out, depending on whether you want to save gas or charge the battery.
The Panamera 4 E-Hybrid will be on sale here by next summer.
I’m fascinated by this car. It’s the first production car I’ve heard about that’s taken lessons from one of the Big Three hypercars. Sure, they’re wildly expensive and exclusive, but if you give it long enough, you’ll start to see some of the tech and engineering trickle down into the regular cars.
On top of that, Porsche finally sculpted the ass-end of the Panamera into something that I find attractive. I can’t wait to drive one.
Come back later today on Jalopnik for our full first drive test of the new, non-hybrid Panamera too.