2014 Porsche Panamera 4S First Test

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Portland to San Francisco. "Easy-peasy," I mumble behind the wheel of a 2014 Porsche Panamera 4S. It's just me and my Rhodium Silver ($790 extra) steed sitting in the middle of the Allison Inn and Spa's front lot. My rear end is loving the 14-way power memory seat's warmers (part of the $6280 Premium Package Plus). At 7 a.m., only a handful of cars sprinkle the area. The German lady emceeing the navigation screen says I have 10-plus hours of road to cover, or around 630 miles. Operation Scoop Up Girlfriend At SFO has officially commenced. T-minus 14 hours until her 737 touches down.

My icy left hand ignites the Panamera 4S' innards with a twist of a black plastic knob sticking out from the dash. It's an unusual sight inside this $140,000 vehicle -- almost as strange as the sounds I'm hearing behind my head. They're groggy, cold, raspy, metallic noises. The all-new (for Panamera) 3.0-liter twin-turbo V-6 is an aural downgrade from the barking 4.8-liter V-8 it replaced. The tachometer's orange hand settles as the fluids warm. I can barely make out the two turbos whirling deep down between the mill's cylinder banks. Raspy notes gradually morph into meaner groans.

Porsche had its reasons for switching to a smaller engine. It's more efficient (fuel economy is up 17 percent), more compact, and more powerful (up 20 hp and 15 lb-ft) than last year's naturally aspirated V-8. It still sounds OK, but not great. This engine is unique to Porsche and not related to the V-6 elsewhere in the Volkswagen Auto Group. It employs things like a balance shaft to offset any imbalances that come during stressful driving. Its crank is shorter than that of the eight-cylinder, so it can handle the occasional wringing out to near-destructive limits. The revamped VarioCam Plus system adapts valve stroke based on engine speed and load to maximize power delivery and efficiency.Read another perspective on the 2014Porsche Panamera4SHERE in this Kiinote blog.

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A seven-speed PDK distributes the 420 horses and 384 lb-ft of torque (from only 1750 rpm!) to its four 20-inch Sport wheels ($4935). The rear-wheel-biased active all-wheel drive with electronically controlled multi-plate clutch intuitively manages power between axles depending on situation. Small mileage benefits are gained by an off-throttle coasting function that decouples gearbox from engine. Start/Stop also kills the engine earlier than ever before when coming to a standstill.

I figure time isn't on my side with all the coffee shops I'll be visiting and the San Francisco traffic I'll be battling. A straight shot down the not-so-entertaining Interstate 5 will have to do.

My rolling office couldn't be better. It's a spectacle of engineering and luxury craftsmanship. Beautiful black and Carrera Red leather ($4185) -- all-new for 2014 -- is everywhere. The cabin fits me as well as a 911's, which is to say that it's tight, but not constraining. The few non-leather surfaces wear jet-black plastic and brushed aluminum. The immaculate roof liner is a dark grey Alcantara. Despite the cocoon-like space and sunken seating position, my 360-degree view is mostly unimpaired, and, in true Porsche fashion, every important control lies within arm's reach. It's a near spitting image of the 991 series' cockpit, save for the cushy, roomy space meant for two rear passengers.

Dense, dark greenery and a clear blue sky occupy my eyes for miles on end. Traffic is rare in this part of southern Oregon. I roll past my fellow travelers, keen on maintaining a buffer zone. I like my space. Downshifts are almost imperceptible. I glance down to spot "103 mph" on the digital speedo. Damn you, Germany and your unlimited highway speeds and bulletproof engineering! Every two-digit speed feels like an absolute crawl.

This "crawling" means I'm in Comfort mode. Road imperfections are absorbed by the adjustable air springs ($1990). Extra-thick thermal and noise-insulated glass ($1240) isolates me as my tunes blast crisply through the 14 Bose speakers and 200-watt subwoofer ($2120).

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I meet Mount Shasta nearly 340 miles into the southward cruise. It's more than 15 miles down the road, but its sheer size - at just over 14,000 feet - is dumbfounding. Everything seems microscopic against its white face. I have to stop. This natural spectacle deserves proper admiration. There are pictures to be taken. Ten miles away is a designated vista turnout.

The $8520 Porsche Ceramic Composite Brakes (PCCB), the priciest of all the options, halt the Panamera. The six-piston front, four-piston rear (15.4/13.8-inches) brakes are massive overkill. They're mini monoblock factories that produce near-race-car levels of negative-g with absolute assurance. There is no fade. There are no squeaks. They're brilliant, even if ridiculously expensive. And boy, on the 4S, a sport sedan that'll likely never exit a pit garage onto a main straight, they're awesome.

After a half-hour of aspiring to beMotor Trendphoto chief Brian Vance, my clothes are sufficiently filthy and my elbows are sore. I'm heading back to my supportive office chair, and on the way a friendly older couple asks about my ride. They look at the crimson innards, investigate the enticing physique, and finally say, in unison, "Whoa." They flash me thumbs-up.

"That's a beauty!" the gray-haired man says. The 4S is indeed striking with its hunkered stance, bi-xenon headlamps, blacked-out trim ($390), and gargantuan yellow calipers that barely fit inside the aluminum wheels. Designers reworked the nose's intakes, widened the rear hatch's window, and moved the rear license plate holder down. The spoiler is wider than before. The changes are minimal, yet effective in giving the five-year-old Panamera zest.

"So, how much?" the admirer asks.

"About $143,000," I say with some hesitation. I look young. Thoughts of "spoiled rich kid in daddy's car" most definitely fill their heads. I get that a lot. His eyebrows go up, his mouth goes down, and I return to my red throne.

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I'm in a Sport Plus kind of mood. The button near the lower left corner of my gearshift engages lenient traction and stability control programs, fully opened exhaust baffles, responsive steering and throttle, and stiffened air springs. It also drops the ride by almost an inch. A familiar BRAAP! BRAAP! follows my pulls of the upshift paddle. The couple waves in my rearview mirrors.

Slamming my right foot invites a massive 17.4 max-psi punch. It's significant, but more relay race than 100-meter dash. Runs are quick and smooth, with emphasis on the latter. Our test crew emailed the official performance specs hours prior: 4.4 seconds to get to 60 mph, which beats the brand's conservative 4.6-second quote for the standard car. For the Sport Chrono-equipped car like mine (even more less intrusive traction programs and a launch control program), it's right on par with the listed 4.3-second run. A quarter mile arrived in 13 seconds at 104.6 mph; braking from 60 mph takes just 99 feet (our long term 2013 Nissan GT-R took 105 feet).

So, in about six seconds, I'm doing baddie-fleeing-bank-heist kinds of velocities. You know it's a crazy world when the streets are stocked with fully-loaded multi-ton German sedans capable of outpacing five-year-old, six-figure super cars. They handle better, too.

I'm tired of flipping through Sirius XM channels and driving in a straight line. I can see twisty veins just off the interstate. They're littering my navigation display. The temptation is too great. The girlfriend can wait a few minutes.

The 4S seems to intuitively tap into its subdued curvy-road-killer instincts as soon as my body puckers up for maximum attack, but in reality, its armament of computer systems and sensors are just really, really good. The car remains smooth, even in this most reactive Sport Sharp mode. The body barely rolls as I sic its super-wide Michelins (255mm front, 295mm rear) on every apex. Shifts are happening even quicker and more aggressively than ever. And they're being knocked off well past the 6600-rpm redline.

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The harder I provoke it, the more polished the chassis feels. This machine -- this 4300-pound four-door with an option list ($43,420) that's pricier than a 428i -- exudes Carrera charisma with each bend blissfully conquered, as if the back seats and the awkward-looking hatch didn't exist. Big sedans shouldn't bob and weave and welcome your 10/10ths effort like this.

The Brembos clamp as hard as they did five minutes and 15 corners ago. Not an iota of time is lost between upshift command and forward surge. Here I am, hands gripping a beautiful sport wheel connected to a fluid, communicative, variable-ratio steering, grinning like I just collected my Mega Millions in one lump sum.

The 3.0 liter does not have me wishing for more power or more pleasurable noises. I've so far not stopped for premium unleaded. (I should in a few minutes, though.) A "23.2 MPG" sits in my display. I've gone just as fast, maybe even faster, than if I were driving last year's V-8 model. The 4S pummels pavement without pummeling me. It's a sedan that offers so much more than what its midrange placement within the Panamera lineup insinuates. Want exhaust rumble? That's what the GTS and Turbo are for.

The 4S embodies all that will become of the sub-$150,000 luxury performance sedan segment, today. Take it to work Monday through Friday, fill it up Sunday. Charge canyons on a whim. Take long road trips with nothing but yourself and some luggage. Be late for your significant other. Now that's easy-peasy.

She'll understand, right?

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