The Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid is being released in November, ostensibly as a direct competitor for the Tesla Model S 85kWh Performance, but how to they compare?
First, the Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid starts around $100,000, while the Tesla Model S starts at about $70,000. Of course, tick all the option boxes on the Tesla Model S, and you come up with a Tesla Model S P85+, worth $120,000. Both vehicles are priced pretty much in the same range, so what else is there to look at?
Performance of these two vehicles is fairly close, but only if you are looking at horsepower, better than 400hp for the two vehicles. The Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid is rated at 416hp, but we can’t look at horsepower alone. The Panamera is a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle [PHEV], and the smaller electric motors only provide 95hp of the total 416hp, the rest provided by the gasoline engine.
The fun-to-drive aspect, the instant torque of the electric motor, is somewhat lost on the Panamera. Compare this to the fully-electric Tesla Model S, whose electric motors provide all the power, all the time, and the results can be felt when you mash the accelerator to the floor. The zero-to-sixty times are separated by a full second, Tesla Model S 4.2s versus Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid 5.2s.
Perhaps the thing that will separate the Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid from the Tesla Model S 85kWh is available range. Granted, the Panamera PHEV has just 22mi electric-only range but, with a full tank of gasoline, can go up to 600mi.
The pure electric Tesla Model S 85kWh has a range of 300mi. The Tesla Supercharger network is expanding, but it can be a limitation to the uninitiated or uninterested. Will Porsche be able to pull prospective Tesla Motors clients away with dreams of longer range?
Image © Benoit cars / Foter / CC BY-SA
I could not agree with you more! The range ‘problem’ is mental. No one really THINKS about the fact that they’ll hardly EVER make trips over 200 miles. It’s just a gut reaction.
The only time when the Porsche is more convenient is during the 5% of miles spent on trips more than 200 miles. The other 95% of the time, the Model S is superior in every way and much more convenient because you always wake up to a full charge. You can forget about gas stations. Also, the base 60kW Model S has blasted to 60 mph in as little as 5.1 sec. which is tad faster than the Porsche. The Model S has a panoramic sunroof option, tons of cargo space, a frunk, a 17″ touchscreen, cool retractable door handles, etc. Why would you get the Panamera (which is ugly) when you can get a Model S (which is gorgeous)?