2011 Geneva Motor Show: 2012 Porsche Panamera Hybrid

Feb 17, 2011 2:11 PM

Long known for building high-performance sports cars, Porsche is greening its portfolio by launching a second four-door hybrid later this year, the Panamera S Hybrid.

Following in the footsteps of the Cayenne Hybrid, the Panamera S Hybrid will debut at the Geneva Motor Show in Switzerland next month, and it is scheduled to arrive in the United States by year's end. The large, low-slung luxury sedan puts out a total of 380 hp from a supercharged, V6 engine augmented by a 47-hp electric motor powered by a nickel-metal hydride battery pack.

Porsche claims the car will accelerate from 0-60 mph in six seconds and deliver a combined 34 mpg. It will be the second model from the top of the Panamera range, selling for $95,000---a hair over the all-wheel-drive Panamera 4S price and well below the $135,000 Panamera Turbo. (Read: "Behind the wheel: Porsche Panamera Turbo.")

Porsche's hybrid system uses a single electric motor sandwiched between two clutches that separate the gasoline V6 and an eight-speed automatic transmission. It is a full hybrid, as the clutches can allow the car to be powered by just the electric motor, the gas engine, or both.

The regular Panamera is super quick, flat-cornering, and surprisingly roomy in the back seat, but only for two. You can soon add "reasonably fuel efficient" to that list of attributes. In that exclusive six-figure green club, the Panamera Hybrid will meet the BMW X6 Hybrid and the upcoming Fisker Karma plug-in hybrid.

—Eric Evarts

See our guide to fuel economy for advice on saving gasoline. Learn about future technologies in our guide to alternative fuels.