The 2024 Porsche Panamera is easily overshadowed by Porsche’s better-selling SUVs, its more exciting sports cars and its more future-forward sedan, the Taycan. The Panamera’s body style, dimensions and driving demeanor also stand in sharp contrast with other sedans at its high price point, which are big, comfy limos like the BMW 7 Series and Mercedes S-Class. It’s a different kind of Porsche and a different kind of luxury sedan to be sure.
But you know what? Different can be fantastic. Hasn’t that been Porsche’s M.O. from the very beginning? I mean, the damn engine was dangling off the rear end. If you want a regular sort of luxury sedan, the Panamera is quite obviously not it. It’s a Porsche. It looks like a Porsche and drives like a Porsche. Now, unfortunately, there are a few areas where this updated Panamera has drifted away from the Porsche norm. I’ll be calling those out below, but mostly, my time in what is almost the base Panamera was delightful.
While I got a chance to drive the updated Panamera E-Hybrid versions in Germany this year, this was a 2024 Porsche Panamera 4, meaning it had the base 2.9-liter turbocharged V6 good for 348 horsepower and 368 pound-feet of torque. As the 4 in the name would indicate, it had all-wheel drive. Base price is $108,550, but a vigorous box-checking campaign on the configurator resulted in an as-tested price of $140,230. Ka-ching.
The air suspension is wizards’ work.
My test car did not have the wacky-pants Active Ride Suspension I sampled in Germany that does things you just don’t anticipate a car doing. The standard air suspension, on the other hand, does a masterful job of providing a lovely ride (my tester’s tasteful and reasonably sized 20-inch Panamera Design wheels no doubt helped too) and impeccable body control. There’s a series of undulations at the bottom of my closest highway on-ramp that flummoxes most suspensions into bounding about, but the Panamera just sliced through it all. Wildly impressive. I’d stick with the stock suspension.
Wait, this is the slow one?
The Panamera 4 hits 60 mph in 4.7 seconds. And remember, this is the base car. The 4 shaves a tenth of a second off the rear-drive literal base car’s time, but I would have to imagine that’s because of the greater launch grip provided by four tires versus two. At no point did I ever think, “you know, this seems slow.”
I can’t say I’d want or need AWD, either.
The one-tenth of a second very much aside, I don’t see why I wouldn’t stick with rear-wheel drive. I live in Southern California and I really doubt removing the front axle from the occasion would hamper the experience. Less weight probably would improve it.
Not a great showing by PDK.
This is the first time I’ve been disappointed by Porsche’s dual-clutch automated manual transmission (PDK). I occasionally needed to put the car into Sport mode just to wake the transmission up and goad it into dropping down a gear – it was too often one or two north of where I’d want it. In the mountains, though, I even found Sport not exactly up to the task, and my test car lacked Porsche’s Sport+ mode that typically eliminates any thought of using the paddle shifters.
Speaking of which, I couldn’t figure out how to keep the transmission in manual mode. I would tap the down paddle to downshift, but it would eventually upshift by itself. This, despite the fact I was just using manual mode to control my speed downhill. Apparently, I needed to hold down the shifter for three seconds, which isn’t exactly typical.
Wow is the steering good.
A Porsche with superlative steering, now that’s the norm. Note that there aren’t multiple settings. Note that it isn’t unpleasant to steer at slow parking lot speeds. Note that it connects you beautifully to the car whether you’re puttering out of that parking lot or blazing through a canyon road.
Also, a shout out to the steering wheel itself, which is lovely to hold, and is mounted at a noticeably vertical angle that’s another pure Porsche element.
Drive elements now in touchscreen.
And now for the bad. Everyone who complained about all the buttons that used to reside on Porsche center consoles needs to go sit in the corner and think about what they’ve done. Instead of quickly tapping a button or even a touch-sensitive icon to soften the suspension or, in a different car, change the exhaust note, you must now click-click-click through a touchscreen. Worse, the touchscreen doesn’t recreate those old buttons. It’s more like a website drop down. This is not in keeping with the Porsche spirit. If center console buttons are no bueno, at least come up with a wheel controller like Mercedes-AMG has for finer drive mode adjustments.
Touchscreen air vents are ridiculous.
This Panamera generation continues to have air vents controlled by a touchscreen and it continues to be ridiculous.
“Oh for the love of …” my wife blurted when I showed her how to change air direction in the car.
Pretty sure Porsche already knows this, as the power vents didn’t migrate to subsequently introduced models.
Wireless charge pad good, it’s bin lid bad.
By moving the shifter to a pleasingly tactile tab next to the instrument panel and consolidating the climate controls, Porsche freed up space on the center console for a deep, easily accessed wireless charge bin. That’s good. Unfortunately, the bin that covers it is flimsy and struggled to close smoothly. Not good enough, Porsche.
Piano black trim looks cheap.
Also not good enough: the piano black finishings on the center console. There’s a ton of it, and I struggle to see how it looks any better than what’s on the center console of my wife’s Kia Niro that cost $95,000 less than this Panamera. Bluntly, it just looks cheap.
Worse, that glossy black trim constantly reflected the sun into my eyes (above right)
Barrique Red Club Leather looks like a $5,920 option.
By contrast to the piano black, my test car’s Barrique Red Club Leather option looked, felt and smelled like … well, not a million bucks, but the $5,920 it costs. It’s on almost every surface that isn’t piano black or matching Barrique Red plastic. The intricate criss-cross stitching on the dash is a beautiful detail. This is obviously an expensive option, but it looks expensive.
This is probably the most comfortable back seat ever.
The most spacious it isn’t. I would probably struggle to sit behind my 6-foot-3 self, but this test car’s Individual Comfort Power Rear Seats are probably the most comfortable back seat I’ve ever sat in. And no, not in a comfy couch kind of way, but rather the exact way that the Panamera’s front seats are probably the most comfortable I’ve ever sat in. They’re snug, supportive and, yes, adjust to make your body perfectly content. Among the adjustments is seat tilt, which increases under-thigh support for those longer of leg. There’s even power thigh extension, and of course, a power recline to keep you relaxed on the long haul.
While my Panamera luggage test showed that the old Sport Turismo is a more functional body style, it’s hard to argue about this Panamera’s ability as a long-distance cruiser for four people. The driver will be pleased and so will their passengers.