Despite weighing a lot more than any supercar would feel comfortable disclosing, the 2.56 ton (5,126 lbs) Porsche Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid is one of the fastest-accelerating four door cars in the world.
In comparison, the sleek little Audi R8 only weighs just under 1.6 tonnes (3,527 lbs), and comes with a 540 PS (532 HP) V10 engine, to go with 540 Nm (398 lb-ft) of torque. On paper, it can get from zero to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 3.5 seconds, and max out at 320 km/h (198 mph).
The larger and clearly less fun to drive Porsche is by no means inferior when it comes to showing off in a straight line. Its hybrid powertrain consists of a 550 PS twin turbo V8 and a 136 PS electric motor, combining for 680 PS (671 HP) and 850 Nm (627 lb-ft) of torque.
It only needs 3.4 seconds to hit 100 km/h, and can max out at a very impressive 310 km/h (192 mph), which happens to be less than what the Audi is capable of achieving – although this particular drag race isn’t about max speed.
Once the two cars get off the line, the race becomes a fascinating tale of power-to-weight ratios. To be frank, we didn’t really know what to expect before playing this clip. Both acceleration as well as top speed figures are comparable, and when that’s the case, betting on the car that weighs less usually pays off.