Porsche released its first fully electric car in 2019, the Taycan, as an answer to the pesky Tesla Model S. But Porsche electric vehicles (EVs) actually go back more than 100 years.
Porsche’s founder, Ferdinand Porsche, dabbled in the electric automotive field way back in 1900, but it took the German firm until 2010 to release its first fully hybrid model, the Porsche Cayenne hybrid.
Porsche has plans to release a fully electric SUV that will sit above the Cayenne alongside an electric Macan and Cayman. It’s in a transition period at the moment and hopes to be 80% pure electric by 2030.
Porsche electric cars
Porsche has seven models, three fully electric and four plug-in hybrids (PHEVs). The Taycan, Taycan Sport Turismo, Taycan Cross Turismo, Panamera 4 e-hybrid, Panamera 4 e-hybrid Sport Turismo, the Cayenne e-hybrid and Cayenne e-hybrid Coupe.
Importantly for Porsche fans, the melding of modern electronics with the recognisable Porsche silhouettes means desirability is still a major factor in the brand’s ethos.
Below you’ll find information on Porsche’s EV range as well as what the future may look like for electric cars at Porsche.
Porsche Taycan
The standard Taycan can accelerate from 0-62mph in 5.4 seconds with a top speed of 143mph, whereas the top of the range Turbo S can go 0-62mph in 2.8 seconds with a top speed of 162 mph. Porsche claims it can do up to 276 miles on a single charge, but if you were to upgrade to the Performance Battery Plus, you can benefit up to 314 miles. This of course does come with conditions such as driving style, temperature and weight. In our real world testing, with the Performance Battery Plus, we were still averaging over 200 miles of range. Taking into account this wasn’t in eco mode and with ideal conditions, that’s still impressive.
As standard you get a 16.8 curved screen, LED headlights and lane keeping assist. However the Taycan has a heavy starting price, starting at around £75,000 for a base model with no options. Even though it comes heavily equipped it may be hard to justify as competition increases. Its main rivals are the Tesla Model S and Jaguar I-pace.
Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo
If the idea of having a fully electric Porsche is ideal for you, but you need practicality and don’t want to wait for the fully electric Macan, then the Cross Turismo may be just the ticket. Offering a raised ride height to the sports saloon and larger boot, you can think of it as the sportier/electric Audi A6 Allroad thanks to its raised ride height and big boot. This does come at a premium to the normal model, being close to £10,000 more expensive.
With similar performance stats to the sports saloon version, you don’t have to compromise on space or speed. If you do feel like you will need more power, the Cross Turismo comes with four different variants with the high performance Turbo S, being just shy of the performance of the sports saloon model.
Porsche Taycan Sport Turismo
If you want the best of both worlds when it comes to the Cross Turismo and Sports Saloon, then the Sports Turismo possibly could fulfil that wish. It comes in a lower ride height compared to the Cross Turismo but still maintains that load capacity. If the Cross Turismo is the A6 Allroad, this is the normal A6 Avant. Price point wise, it sits just above the sports saloon.
Its performance stats are pretty much identical to the Sport Saloon too, and also comes with five different variants. If you’re confused by the word Turbo on the rear, you’re not the only one. Electric cars don’t use turbos, but Porsche continues to use the nomenclature to differentiate its hotter offerings.
The future of electric Porsches
Porsche’s next cars to go fully electric are the Macan and Cayman with the 718 Boxster being rumoured to make the switch as well. An electric hyper car could also be on the horizon as experiments are taking place. The last time it dabbled in the electric hypercar field was with the 918 Spyder back in 2013. There are now plans to make an all-electric 911 too, but not until early in the next decade.
Its intentions to go mostly electric by 2030 might not fall in line with the UK government’s petrol and diesel ban, but Porsche is a global manufacturer with clients wanting petrol 911s for a good while yet.
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