2015 Porsche Panamera V6: the practical sports car

No mistaking here, the Panamera is every bit a Porsche.

Whenever a car manufacturer, known for producing a particular type of vehicle at a very high level, decides to produce an altogether different vehicle from its usual model lineup, question marks start popping up, doubts surface, and a big elephant is inside the room.

There have been epic failures, but there have also been surprising discoveries along the way. Porsche’s Panamera, thankfully, belongs to the latter.

The Zuffenhausen-based sports car manufacturer raised eyebrows when it released the Cayenne in 2002, and again in 2009 with the launch of the Panamera. Both cars, insiders say, are critical to Porsche’s survival, allowing the modestly-sized manufacturer to continue the development of the much-loved 911 sports cars and more models, such as the Boxster and Cayman and the hybrid-infused 918 Spyder hypercar.

On the highway, the Panamera’s refinement is such that at 100 kph, it feels like you’re moving at 20-30 kph.

But to drive and even own (for the well-heeled and lucky few) the Panamera is a revelation in itself. Cynics might argue that you’re simply buying the badge, and that the engineering, the involvement and the performance are simply lacking. Rest easy as the Panamera is every bit a Porsche.

The Panamera received a modest upgrade in late 2013, which saw powertrain changes and refinements.

The main difference is that the Panamera S variant loses its base normally-aspirated 4.8-liter V8 in favor of a twin turbocharged V6 that delivers more power and torque yet weighs lighter than the V8, and thus offers better handling and fuel efficiency.

But for all model variants, the face-lifted version can be identified with new front and rear bumpers, revised lighting, new wheel designs, and some new interior color combinations.

Lush leather interior enhances the 14-way electronically adjustable seats.

There’s also a long wheelbase version for a full-on, chauffeur-driven luxury car wafting exclusive to LHD (left-hand drive) markets.

The Panamera V6 is the most popular version sold in the Philippines. Power comes from a normally-aspirated 3.6-liter V6 engine with dual overhead camshafts and four-valve heads.

It features direct fuel injection to help improve fuel consumption, minimize emissions and give an impressive 300 horsepower and 400 Newton-meters of torque to the rear wheels via Porsche’s seven-speed PDK dual-clutch transmission.

The biggest difference that contributes to an even better, smoother drive is the transmission: Porsche’s PDK is smoother, more responsive and more intuitive than ever, making it a real pleasurable treat for everyday driving.

Almost all dual-clutch, transmission-equipped cars have some jerkiness, particularly at low speeds such as during heavy traffic, when parking or transitioning from reverse to forward motion. The Panamera V6’s PDK feels as buttery smooth as a normal, torque-converter-equipped automatic transmission.

Our Panamera V6 came with two-tone-light and dark-tan leather interior with some matte aluminum accents, quad-zone climate control and excellent BOSE Premium Surround sound system that turns the Panamera’s interior into a concert hall despite playing crappy, bootleg MP3 files from my mobile media device.

Inside, the Porsche’s 14-way electronically adjustable seats look more at home in a sports car than in a luxury saloon. Well-bolstered, body-hugging yet surprisingly comfortable rather than the torture/S&M contraptions they resemble, you feel comfortable even after 4-5 hours behind the wheel.

The three-spoke steering wheel is a large 365-millimeter affair, with buttons for the multimedia system and cruise control that tilts and telescopes to suit a wide variety of drivers. The center console houses the PDK gear shift lever, plus buttons to activate the Sport settings, Suspension settings, climate control and the optional sports exhaust valve that frees up more decibels for a more intoxicating and more aurally-pleasing driving experience.

There’s surprisingly plenty of cargo space in this sports car.

The ride has also seen some improvements. Riding on large 18×9-inch alloy wheels shod with 275/45R18 Michelin Pilot Sport III tires, it feels firm as all driver-focused cars should be, but it also feels compliant and quite comfortable even with big nasty bumps, potholes and road debris.

Thanks to the standard Porsche Active Suspension Management, or PASM, you can tune both ride comfort and ride height to suit your taste and mood.

Driving the Panamera during the Christmas holidays through mega-carmageddon traffic up to Tagaytay, the missus feel asleep inside as the climate-control system, matched with the ultrarefined interior and ride comfort, lulled her to easy zzz’s.

This was with the suspension set in comfort, and the ride height raised for the longest and smoothest suspension movement possible.

Later that evening, coming home through Cavite and navigating via Waze through dark, deserted and traffic-free roads, the suspension was set at its lowest and firmest setting for some fun canyon carving.

The steering was also set to its weightiest, the throttle response to its sharpest, and the PDK in manual-mode. The HID and LED headlights illuminated the dark, giving confidence to push harder and harder, faster and faster, despite the lack of familiarity.

Having been driving through three- to four-hour traffic jams at an almost daily basis for almost a month during the 2014 Christmas holidays, being able to drive freely, and in a truly special car, was divine.

This is the magic that is Porsche: Some cars can be faster but none inspire confidence to continually push and find the limits (of both yourself and the car) as does a Porsche. It’s a most intense, invigorating and refreshing experience.

It’s also a very safe car to be in: Porsche utilizes the best brakes in the business from Brembo, thus the Panamera features four-piston brakes up front and two-piston brakes at the back, with large ventilated discs all around. The brakes are enhanced with ABS-EBD function, and there’s both traction and stability control, too. You also have LED daytime running lamps to increase your visibility during the day.

The inside comes with eight airbags as standard (dual side-front, dual side-rear airbags, and four head airbags), plus some niceties such as tire pressure monitoring system and Adaptive Cruise Control, which helps improve safety by limiting the distance from the car ahead of you on cruise control.

On the highway, the Panamera’s refinement is such that at 100 kilometers per hour it feels like you’re moving at 20-30 kph. I accidentally found myself cruising well beyond the speed limit but it felt like it was simply getting into its stride while having a lively chat with the missus. Thankfully the brakes are more than a match, hauling down the admittedly 1720-kilogram-heavy Panamera to 90 kph.

That’s another amazing feature about the Panamera: You know it feels heavy, but it doesn’t get in the way of dynamic driving as the PASM skillfully balances and transfers weight through its four corners with amazing grace and dexterity.

For comparison’s sake, a Nissan R35 GTR is just as heavy as a Panamera, but it lacks the organic fluidity and dexterity as the Porsche, moving like a hyperactive video game manifestation straight out of “Tron.”

The Panamera competes in a rarefied field which features the Mercedes-Benz CLS, the BMW 6-Series Gran Coupe, the Maserati Quattroporte and soon, the Aston Martin Rapide. But the Porsche feels most like an honest-to-goodness sports car that just happens to have two more doors, a useful thing, while its competitors feel like very sporty variants of what is ultimately a regular sedan.

The Panamera’s styling might still be polarizing to some but that just adds to the charm. As the very old advert says: Porsche. There is no substitute.