PORSCHE has raised the bar for superpowered four-door luxury with a new flagship for its Panamera line-up.
It’s the Turbo S model complete with an uprated 4.8-litre V8 twin turbocharged engine delivering a whopping 550bhp – some 10 per cent up on the standard Panamera Turbo.
Torque is also increased from 700 to 750 Nm during regular driving but rises to 800 when the Sport and Sport Plus modes of the Sport Chrono Package are in operation.
Upshot is lightning fast acceleration of 0-62mph in a fleeting 3.8 seconds when using launch control and a top speed of 191mph.
However, despite the increased performance, fuel consumption is the same as the Panamera Turbo at an average 24.6mpg.
Porsche says this is down to the use of improved turbochargers with titanium-aluminium turbine wheels and modified engine control management.
Several key driving dynamics control systems are featured as standard, including Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control which boosts cornering stability, Porsche Torque Vectoring Plus which applies a variable torque split to the rear wheels, and the Sport Chrono Package which tunes the suspension settings and engine controls.
There’s also a sports exhaust set-up, 20-inch alloy wheels, new side skirts and a four-way rear spoiler.
Inside, there is two-colour leather upholstery plus the exclusive option of black/cream or agate grey/cream combinations.
The Panamera Turbo S goes on sale in June and costs from £122,623.