New Porsche Panamera Diesel
Customers likely to be attracted by its huge fuel range rather than its straight-line performance
Porsche has just announced the introduction of a Diesel to the Panamera range. It will be powered by a 3.0-litre common-rail turbocharged V6 putting out 246bhp at 3800rpm and 406lb ft between 1750 and 2750rpm.
The performance figures are nothing to write home about, with 0-62mph taking 6.8sec and everything spent by 150mph. However, rather more impressively, with its 80-litre tank brimmed, it will offer a range of 745 miles thanks to a combined fuel economy figure of 43.5mpg. The CO2 figure is also impressively low at just 172g/km, and these figures can be improved to 44.8mpg and 167g/km when the Panamera is fitted with optional lower rolling resistance tyres.
The price will be £62,134 when it goes on sale in August. It will only be offered in rear wheel drive and with an eight-speed Tiptronic S gearbox, but adaptive air suspension will be an option to the standard steel spring set-up. Also included in the basic price are a Thatcham Category 5 Porsche Vehicle Tracking System and (more excitingly) a course at the Porsche experience centre at Silverstone.