Porsche Panamera Hybrid trips rebate and delivers windfall.

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Porsche Panamera Hybrid trips rebate and delivers windfall.

Pssst ... wanna turn 290 bucks into a quick five grand? It's guaranteed, no questions asked. No Ponzi schemes or pyramid selling. Call it the Panamera plan.

All you need to do is shell out $298,300 of your hard-earned on a Porsche Panamera S Hybrid, and add another $290 to option the "green" Michelin low-rolling-resistance tyres. The federal government will hand a $5083 rebate to Porsche, which it will pass on in savings on the sticker price. It's that easy.

You see, the new Panamera S Hybrid comes fitted with 19-inch tyres and wheels that contribute to an average fuel use figure of 7.1 litres per 100km - a poofteenth shy of the federal government's luxury car tax exemption that imposes a 33 per cent saving on the portion of the sticker price that falls between $57,466 and $75,375.


However, spend another $290 to add four "green" tyres, and fuel consumption drops to 6.8L/100km. As a result of that tiny tweak, the Porsche's sticker price drops to $292,927.

Powered by a supercharged V6 engine allied to an electric motor, it can develop up to 279kW and 580Nm. Standard equipment includes front, side, curtain and knee airbags; dual-zone climate control; 14-way powered and heated front seats; partial leather trim; an adaptive damping control system and adjustable air suspension; front and rear parking sensors and a reversing camera; and a full multimedia interface on a seven-inch screen including satellite navigation and Bluetooth.

Porsche Australia spokesman Paul Ellis says he expects Australian buyers to jump at the more fuel-efficient tyres for the Panamera S Hybrid, which is expected to account for around 6.5 per cent of total Panamera sales globally.

Porsche's sales and marketing manager for the Panamera model line, Dr Stefan Utsch, says the Michelin low-rolling-resistance tyres required to be fitted to attract the government rebate give a more comfortable ride than a pure "summer" tyre of the type typically fitted to Australian cars, but gave away some of the grip .

"These are an all-weather tyre that combines the best attributes of both a summer and a winter tyre," Dr Utsch says. "The grip level is not as high as a summer tyre, but they will ride more comfortably. Does this make a bad trade-off for the money you save in countries like Australia? It's up to the customer but I don't think so."

My comment : Why not have them as standard?????