Porsche Panamera: Test Drive Review

This is genuinely a Porsche offering 71g/km and an official figure 91.1mpg, as well as the ability to hit 167mph and cover the 0-62mph dash in 5.5 seconds.

The Panamera S E-hybrid is a plug-in that can run for a maximum of 22 miles on the 95hp battery alone, before switching to the 324hp 3.0-litre petrol engine. It’s a really impressive system that, once the battery is depleted, will still harvest energy under deceleration and then run on electric power later in the journey.

On a 130-mile trip from Sussex to the Midlands that started with zero battery charge, we still managed 20.2 miles of zero-emission running thanks to the hybrid system and the engine shut-off that switches automatically to hybrid mode when you lift off the throttle.

The system means the car coasts for impressive distances without really slowing down, which requires a slight change to your driving style in order to take full advantage of it.

The downside is the cost. While a 250hp 3.0-litre diesel Panamera costs £62,922, the plug-in is just under £89,000, although it was recently announced that as the E-hybrid is under 75g/km it will qualify for the Government’s £5000 ultra low-emission vehicle subsidy.

Getting under the same boundary will also make it eligible for the 100% discount on the London Congestion Charge, something no other remotely premium car will achieve for the best part of a year, when Mercedes plans to launch a plug-in S-class at 69g/km.

That means the luxury boardroom executive or chauffeur market could be key for the E-hybrid, as the £10 per day saving soon starts stacking up against more conventionally powered rivals and especially when the silent running is factored in. Plus, it qualifies for the 100% first-year writing-down allowance for firms that buy outright.

The only compromise versus the rest of the Porsche Panamera range is the loss of 110 litres of boot space, plus the need to stash the charging cable in the 335 litres that remains. That boot is long and shallow, but for a vehicle this size there’s a noticeable drop compared with the regular car, and practicality is impacted to a degree.