Porsche Panamera vs Audi S4
What's the difference?

Porsche Panamera

—

2024 price

View pricing & specs

Audi S4

—

2021 price

View pricing & specs

Maserati Quattroporte

Mazda 2

McLaren Artura

Mercedes-AMG E63

Mercedes-Benz A-Class

Mercedes-Benz A35

Mercedes-Benz AMG GT

Mercedes-Benz C-Class

Mercedes-Benz C43

Mercedes-Benz C63

Mercedes-Benz CLA

Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class

Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class

Mercedes-Benz E-Class

Mercedes-Benz S-Class

Summary

2024 Porsche Panamera

2021 Audi S4

By Emily Agar

By Malcolm Flynn

Safety Rating

Engine Type

Twin Turbo V6, 2.9L

Turbo V6, 3.0L

Fuel Type

Premium Unleaded Petrol

Fuel Efficiency

9.2L/100km (combined)

8.6L/100km (combined)

Seating

Likes

One of the best-looking in segment
Power and performance
Robust safety features

Excellent performance you can live with
Choice of five bodystyles
S4 scores a lot of new sheetmetal

Dislikes

Cabin not the most practical
Ongoing ownership costs
Pricey options

Still no wireless CarPlay
Three-year warranty lags behind cheaper brands

2024 Porsche Panamera Summary

Australia hasn't had what you'd call a love affair with the Porsche Panamera. Especially compared to the on-going romance with its iconic sibling, the 911 and even its SUV stablemates.

The Panamera straddles the fence between high-performance sports car and family sedan and it's a position rivals like the BMW 740i, Maserati Quattroporte and Mercedes-Benz S450 have sometimes found difficult to balance.

This new-generation 'base' Panamera model is on test to see if this sedan's 2025 redesign will launch an arrow from Cupid's bow for Australian families?

View full pricing & specs

2021 Audi S4 Summary

Audi would probably prefer you not to realise this, but the five distinct versions of S4 and S5 on the market all pertain to a single performance and equipment formula spread across five different bodystyles.

Yes five, and this has been the case for more than a decade, with the S4 sedan and Avant wagon, A5 two-door Coupe, convertible Cabriolet and five door liftback Sportback all representing vastly different shapes for you to choose from, with the same underpinnings. This simply echoes the A4 and A5 ranges they’re based on of course, and BMW clearly thought it was a good idea too, given the 3 and 4 Series ranges were split into individual lines at the start of last generation.

Mercedes-Benz offers a similar array, minus the liftback, but is happy to wrap the whole lot under the C-Class label.

So, given that the A4 and A5 range scored a mid-life update a few months ago, it’s only logical that the changes flow on to the performance S4 and S5s, with the top-tier RS4 Avant following suit.

We’ve covered the latter in October, and now it’s the turn for the former, and CarsGuide was among the first to drive the updated S4 and S5 ranges at their Australian media launch last week.

View full pricing & specs

Deep dive comparison

2024 Porsche Panamera 2021 Audi S4

Verdict

The Panamera is the ‘have your Porsche and drive it too’ model.

It encompasses the fun of the 911 while still being a comfortable daily driver that can easily fit a family of four. The cabin is sumptuously styled and not hurting for features, either.

Could the ownership costs and storage be better? Probably, but if you’re looking at this model, those items will probably be lower priorities for you.

For my little family of three, the base model Panamera is a win.

Verdict

The S4 and S5 range continues to represent a great formula for performance you can live with every day. They're arguably the sweetest balance Audi produces, actually. All come fantastically equipped, with cabins that feel truly special, and we’re lucky they can be had in a choice of five bodystyles.

Porsche Panamera vs Audi S4 What's the difference?

Summary

Deep dive comparison

Verdict

Verdict

Porsche Panamera vs Audi S4
What's the difference?