Porsche Panamera wagon revealed

It shows the ugly duckling of the Porsche parade, the four-door Panamera, is finally being done right. It's taken the arrival of a Panamera wagon to set the car straight, adding the beef and balance that the car needs to win the hearts of performance fans around the world.

Porsche has done the job with its Sport Turismo concept at the Paris show, which is the start of a taster tour to see if it should be put into full-scale production. Even if it gets a go-ahead it will be at least three years before it hits the road, but the signs are already promising.

Porsche has equipped the concept with one of its latest plug-in hybrid power packs - similar to the one I drove and liked this week in an Audi A1 prototype - and promises the system will move quickly through the range after providing the motivation for its upcoming 918 supercar.

"But it's still just a study. Until a decision is taken on whether to build it," the head of Porsche Cars Australia, Michael Winkler, tells Carsguide. "Really, it depends on the public reaction."

The preview of the Sport Turismo, in the same week as a Carsguide first drive in the latest Mercedes CLS Shooting Brake, proves that European luxury brands still see solid sales potential in stylish wagons despite the worldwide dominance of family-focussed SUVs.

The new Porsche actually trumps the Shooting Brake on visual impact and does not have the unfortunate visual link to the Hyundai i40 wagon already on the road in Australia. But Porsche is not giving a green light to the Sport Turismo. Yet, anyway.

"Any new car is a risk. There is a real dissecting of the market for certain needs. We have to see if this car could fulfil a need," says Winkler.