Where each one leads
Mercedes-Benz S-Class
- New Mercedes-Benz S-Class cars registered in Europe in 2022 average 165 g/km of CO₂ on the WLTP test, against 212 for the Porsche Panamera in 2022.
Porsche Panamera
- Against cars of the same year, the Porsche Panamera comes out better in New York safety inspections (fails 71% less often than average) than the Mercedes-Benz S-Class (fails 64% less often than average).
- Fewer Porsche Panamera cars in the Netherlands carry an illogical odometer record (4.3% against 8.2%).
- Measured by the cars' own fuel meters, the petrol Porsche Panamera uses 11.2 l/100 km on the road, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class 15.6.
Too close to call: MOT pass rate against cars of the same age.
Only measures that do not depend on how many cars were sold: pass and failure rates against cars of the same age, ratings, fuel use and CO₂. How we compare
At a glance
| Mercedes-Benz S-Class | Porsche Panamera | |
|---|---|---|
| Model years in the US safety record | 1994–2012 | 2010–2026 |
| New cars registered in Europe | 136,729 (2010–2022) | 17,347 (2010–2022) |
| Licensed in the United Kingdom | 22,797 | 8,792 |
| On the road in the Netherlands | 8,416 | 4,454 |
| In traffic in Finland | 2,778 | — |
EEA new-car registrations (CC BY 4.0) · DVLA licensed vehicles (OGL v3.0) · RDW (CC0) · Traficom (CC BY 4.0) · generations: Wikidata (CC0).
Reliability and problems
| Mercedes-Benz S-Class | Porsche Panamera | |
|---|---|---|
| UK MOT first-time pass rate | 83% | 87% |
| … against cars of the same age | +16% | +15% |
| New York safety inspections failed | 0.6% | 0.4% |
| … against cars of the same year | −64% | −71% |
| Illogical odometer records (NL) | 8.2% | 4.3% |
| US owner complaints | 271 | 114 |
| Most complaints about | Electrical system | Engine |
| Model year with most complaints | 2000 (81) | 2011 (34) |
| US recall campaigns | 11 | 18 |
| Manufacturer service bulletins | 116 | 4,838 |
| NHTSA defect investigations | 7 | 2 |
Complaint, recall and bulletin counts grow with the number of cars sold and are not adjusted for it. UK MOT: DVSA anonymised MOT results (OGL v3.0); New York: DMV inspections; complaints, recalls, bulletins and investigations: NHTSA (public domain); odometer: RDW (CC0).
Fuel, emissions and price
| Mercedes-Benz S-Class | Porsche Panamera | |
|---|---|---|
| Official combined fuel use, Canada | — | 11.4 l/100 km (2026) |
| Real-world use in Europe, diesel | 8.8 l/100 km | — |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol hybrid | 11.9 l/100 km | — |
| Real-world use in Europe, diesel hybrid | 8.2 l/100 km | — |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol | 15.6 l/100 km | 11.2 l/100 km |
| Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe | 165 g/km | 212 g/km |
| Average power of new cars in Europe | 290 kW (389 hp) | 255 kW (342 hp) |
| Average mass in running order | 2,204 kg | 2,074 kg |
| Dutch list price when new (median) | €142,880 | €165,409 |
| Average odometer in Finland | 226,000 km | — |
Canada: NRCan Fuel Consumption Ratings, most frugal version of the latest year (OGL Canada). Europe: EEA monitoring of new-car CO₂ and on-board fuel meters (OBFCM), CC BY 4.0. Price: RDW catalogue price (CC0). Finland: Traficom (CC BY 4.0).