Performance Sedans. Love them or hate em’, you can’t deny the performance and charm of a great big saloon with oodles of power. I myself am a huge fan of performance sedans. I like the idea of laying waste to lesser sports cars on the street in a four-door, and I love the idea of putting supercars to shame in a super saloon. A performance sedan is an enticing proposition, a package that offers loads of practicality, but also the potential to set incredible lap times.

Now, there are a wide range of performance saloons to choose from. Admittedly, many of them are German. After all, any petrolhead knows that Germany is home to the Autobahn, the best possible stomping ground to benchmark the very best super saloons. Stands to reason then that Germany would be the birthplace of a great number of these Autobahn bashers.

Porsche Taycan Turbo S

Now I know I know, it’s an EV. You might think it’s sacrilegious to induct an electric sedan into this list, but 751 horsepower is a big freaking number, especially when crammed into a four-door car. The performance figures of the Taycan Turbo S are definitely kosher. Over 1000Nm of torque, 0-100km/h in 2.8 seconds, a top speed of 260km/h, and a rated WLTP range of 416 kilometres. Tell me you aren’t tempted.

(Click HERE to read about the Porsche Taycan Turbo S)

As far as Porsches go, it certainly has the looks to match the performance. While I love gasoline guzzling cars like most petrolheads, it’s now 2021. Times have changed, so are we really going to keep griping on about an EV performance sedan?

Porsche Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid

Yeah, a hybrid, another “green” vehicle. Although comparing this car to a bog-standard hybrid would be akin to comparing a lawnmower to a combine harvester. Same principle, but vastly different performance. Where a conventional hybrid motor fills the gaps in day-to-day driving situations, the electric motor in the Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid supplements the 4.0-litre V8 engine for better fuel economy and performance. More for the latter, actually.

All said and done, the hybrid system raises the combined total output of the Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid to a rather eye-watering 690 horsepower. How fast is it? 0-100km/h in 3.2 seconds, and it goes on all the way to a top speed of 315km/h. “Greener” performance? Most definitely.

Mercedes-Benz AMG GT 63 S

This name may be a little confusing for some folks. Granted, Mercedes makes a two-door sports coupe called the AMG GT. However, this is the AMG GT 4-Door Coupé, not to be confused with the much smaller car. And even though this 4-door fastback is carrying almost half a ton more bulk, it has the same bi-turbo V8 powerplant as the coupe, along with the straight-six engines found in the GT 43 and GT 53 variants.

(Click HERE to read about the Mercedes-AMG GT 53 4-door Coupe)

In the full-fat GT 63 S spec, it has a very healthy 630 horsepower at your disposal. There is another more powerful variant of the AMG GT 4-door in the works, the Mercedes-AMG GT 73 E Performance, which is rumoured to produce up to 806 horsepower. We’re all raring to have a go in it.

Bentley Flying Spur

Eight years ago, the predecessors of the Bentley Flying Spur were given the “Continental” badge.  But ever since the Bentley Mulsanne ceased its production, the ‘Flying Spur’ moniker stuck, and the car took on the mantle as the luxury saloon in Bentley’s range. And what a car it is, with a great big turbocharged 6.0-litre W12 engine churning out 626 horsepower and 900Nm of torque.

(Click HERE to read about the Bentley Flying Spur W12 Drive)

Thanks to gearbox tech derived from Porsche’s very own PDK double-clutch system, 0-100km/h is dispatched in just 3.7 seconds, in a vehicle that weighs near-as-makes-no-difference 2.5-tons. Now tell me that’s not impressive.

BMW M5 Competition

The lineage of the BMW M5 has come a long way since the earlier examples that were in production. The earliest E28-gen sent all power from its naturally-aspirated straight-6 to the rear wheels, the previous F10 M5 was a twin-turbocharged V8 brute that was strictly RWD.

(Click HERE to read our First Drive of the 2021 BMW F90 M5 Competition LCI in Singapore)

The brand new F90-gen is an AWD super saloon with 4.4 litres of turbocharged V8 goodness. How good you ask? 625 horsepower and 750Nm of goodness. Quite a big jump from the 591 horses in regular M5, not that an M5 should ever be considered “regular”. The M5 Competition even comes fitted with stiffer engine mounts, a stiffer chassis, and re-calibrated shock absorbers from the M8 GC Competition. That’s quite a potent mix.