Porsche's expertise in tuning the braking system shows.
Blending regen braking with physical braking is not easy, literally this is all from the 918 and spent the last 5 years perfecting.
Taycan can do well over 250kw capture, Tesla, any one of them, can do maybe 50kw max on throttle lifts. The moment one touches the brakes on a Tesla it's the physical brakes.
I don't like Teslas one-pedal-driving, because you have to keep your right foot in the same position for an extended period of time, which makes me feel uncomfortable pretty quickly. The second problem is, that lifting the right foot even slightly will activate regen and (usually) turn on the brake lights, which may irritate the cars behind. What Porsche did in the Taycan seems way more "natural" to me.
I think this handsome thing is the world’s best electric car. I suppose it should be, because the new Porsche Taycan, in toppermost Turbo S form, costs £138,826 before options – and you’ll need to specify some of those, as we’ll come to.
First, though: this electric car/Turbo combo. There’s something not quite right there, wouldn’t you say? Although Supercharger and Autopilot don’t seem to mean what I thought, either. Look, we all know Turbo is a sub-brand, not a literal thing, says Porsche. It means souped up, which is why there are Turbo versions of vacuum cleaners or already turbocharged 911s.
Figuratively, Turbo means chuffing powerful. The Taycan Turbo S figuratively and literally is that. It has 751bhp, albeit on overboost, for a few seconds, during launches, when it can hit 60mph from rest in 2.6sec. Even the regular Taycan Turbo (merely £115,828) has 670bhp in the same mode. Both, strangely, make 617bhp when you’re not launching.
Cheaper, less powerful, non-Turbo Taycans will follow, but when early adopters with heavy wallets are waiting, why offer those now?
This expensive market entry, then, is Porsche’s first pure EV, but the company has form with electricity via its hybrids, plugged in or otherwise, in road cars and motorsport. The Le Mans-winning 919 has been running an 800V electrical system since 2011 and the Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid is the kind of car we use on a drag race video when we want to give a Tesla Model S’s Ludicrous Mode a hard time.
The Taycan will be able to fill that brief without the Panamera’s internally combusted element. It’s a five-door hatchback, marginally smaller than a Panamera, built on a new platform, with a raft of lithium ion batteries beneath the floor. They total 93.4kWh, good enough for a WLTP range of up to 280 miles in the Turbo (which has an exceptional drag coefficient of 0.22) or 256 miles in the Turbo S (Cd 0.25).
There are two motors – one front, one aft – powering all four wheels. The rear motor has a two-speed transmission, although it drives around mostly in second gear, with the low ratio reserved for the sportier of its drive modes at lower speeds. The Turbo S gets active rear steer, carbon-ceramic brakes, a different inverter to allow the overboost and bigger wheels as standard, but generally the differences over the Turbo are limited.
All Taycans will come with a close-to 800V electrical system, twice the norm for EVs. Porsche says that by doubling the voltage, it can halve the current running through its cables (Ohm’s law, I think), allowing them to be thinner and their turning radii therefore smaller, so Porsche can thread them where it wants and save 40kg over a 400V system.
They can all charge from an 800V charger, if you can find one, at up to 270kW – taking it from 5% to 80% juice in a little over 20 minutes. There was talk, originally, of 350kW charge capacity, but Porsche says 350kW referred to partner Ionity’s charger outputs, not the car’s ability to take it: that was always meant to be 250kW-plus. Looking through Porsche’s newsroom back issues, this rings true, but there’s enough 350kW talk for it to have been inferred.
On more common 400V chargers, the Taycan will charge at just 50kW as standard, with 150kW capacity only as a £294 option. Porsche isn’t the only car maker to start offering better charge capacities as options and it’s not a great look. Optional ‘up to’ rates could become the auto industry’s equivalent of overstated broadband speeds. It’ll confuse and justifiably annoy people who haven’t yet forgotten the diesel scandal. Just fit what conscience says you really should, and be consistent about it.
Anyway, we charged mid-journey in the Taycan and, while the range is less than Tesla’s Model S, in mixed and sometimes quick driving, the car does deliver what it says.
What's it like?
The Taycan, then, feels like a true Porsche, they say. And even at first introduction, it does. The driving position is familiar and right; low slung and straight, with a small round furry wheel. There are four- or five-seat options, with great leg room and mediocre head room in the rear, and moderately sized boots front and rear. Build and materials feel terrific, and the infotainment system, instruments and drive options clear and driver focused.
Pedals are medium weighted, the steering likewise, and as in everything from a base Cayenne to a 911 GT2 RS, you get back the expected amount when you put in. Turn the wheel and it responds crisply, accurately. Push the throttle or the brakes and it goes and stops as much as it ought to. This is the kind of thing that marks out the best driver’s cars – and something you find in all Porsches but too few EVs.
Taycans, for now, roll on air springs (base models, later, might be on coils and even run just rear-wheel drive) and there’s a broad array of Porsche chassis and stability systems: they’ve chucked just as much at this as any other Porsche.
It shows. The Taycan rides, even on a Turbo S’s 21in wheels. There’s occasional ‘sproing’ around town but, to me, it feels the best-damped EV to date. At 2305kg, it’s heavy and, at times, there’s no disguising it, but because it’s not an SUV, the centre of gravity is very low, and if the Panamera has taught us anything, it’s that Porsche can do exceptional things with heavy cars on big wheels.
Same here. Body control is terrifically tight, steering response is good, grip limits are all but unreachable on the road and it’s finely poised and balanced. It’s better to drive than a Panamera or Cayenne, or Model S or Jaguar I-Pace or Audi E-tron. I think the only times I’ve enjoyed an EV more are driving a Renault Twizy, the original Tesla Roadster, or a Nissan Leaf with plastic back tyres and that was all kinda different. This is serious, proper – quiet when cruising, engaging when not – everyday transport.
Should I buy one?
The Taycan might just be more enjoyable to drive than any other current four-door Porsche. I didn’t expect to write that. I mean: there’s no engine. No, but throttle response is beautifully judged and smooth, the point where physical brake pads take over from 270kW electric regeneration is imperceptible, and it’s consistent to and from standstill. Dual-clutch gearboxes and hybrid and stop/start systems are too clunky to do that.
And while the Taycan sounds more like the Muppets’ Swedish chef than a V8, for a proper V8 woofle you have to look to a Mercedes-AMG anyway, which is one reason why the AMG 4-Door Coupé is preferable to a Panamera and why the AMG feels, to me, like the closest competitor to a Taycan: they’re both hugely desirable and engaging four-door coupés, are driver focused, handle deftly and just happen to have different ways of going about things.
The best electric car in the world, then? Sure. But let’s not think that’s all there is to it.
Porsche Taycan Turbo S specification
Where Oslo, Norway Price £138,826 On sale January 2020 Engine Two electric motors Power617bhp (751bhp on overboost) Torque 793lb ft (overboost) Gearbox Single-stage transmission (front), dual-speed (rear) Kerb weight 2305kg Top speed 161mph (governed) 0-62mph 2.6sec Range 265 miles CO2 0g/km
I´m working in Germany with many young people at the age of 17-25. And really NOBODY talks about this car when he talks about Porsche. They want cars with sound and not this boring „Irgendwas“. If I mention this theme they say to me “No way!“ And no one of my friends and work colleagues talks about this car. For me it is some sort of a new Panamera, not ugly but ways apart from being a real Porsche. The weight of this big car is a shame for the brand and for me it´s a car of the marketing department because they want to create a new image. The design is already outdated too because we have seen it already for four years on the street. There is nothing new! And: No sound, no soul, sorry! If this is the future of the brand...
Porsche's expertise in tuning the braking system shows.
Blending regen braking with physical braking is not easy, literally this is all from the 918 and spent the last 5 years perfecting.
Taycan can do well over 250kw capture, Tesla, any one of them, can do maybe 50kw max on throttle lifts. The moment one touches the brakes on a Tesla it's the physical brakes.
I don't like Teslas one-pedal-driving, because you have to keep your right foot in the same position for an extended period of time, which makes me feel uncomfortable pretty quickly. The second problem is, that lifting the right foot even slightly will activate regen and (usually) turn on the brake lights, which may irritate the cars behind. What Porsche did in the Taycan seems way more "natural" to me.
Thanks for sharing the videos. Beautiful car !
It's just different thinking philosophy. Tesla think regeneration all the time, so when one is not demanding power from the motor they turned into generators right away, aka lifting off throttle.
Porsche, actually VAG, since my e-Tron does the same thing, think energy conservation instead. A car that's moving already have kinetic energy that keeps it moving, there are losses in converting that into electric energy so the VAG cars skip the lift off regeneration. They only regenerate when one uses he brake pedal. The side effect of that is that the cars will drive like a normal car, they will coast instead of slowing down during throttle lift offs. They do however offers a limited lift off regeneration settings in the menu. On my e-Tron it's useful on down hills, I can set it to regen just enough to keep a constant speed going downhill.
I´m working in Germany with many young people at the age of 17-25. And really NOBODY talks about this car when he talks about Porsche. They want cars with sound and not this boring „Irgendwas“. If I mention this theme they say to me “No way!“ And no one of my friends and work colleagues talks about this car. For me it is some sort of a new Panamera, not ugly but ways apart from being a real Porsche. The weight of this big car is a shame for the brand and for me it´s a car of the marketing department because they want to create a new image. The design is already outdated too because we have seen it already for four years on the street. There is nothing new! And: No sound, no soul, sorry! If this is the future of the brand...
farina,
Not true about the sound! In the new Porsche tradition, you can pay $500 for some electronically generated sport noise.
I´m working in Germany with many young people at the age of 17-25. And really NOBODY talks about this car when he talks about Porsche. They want cars with sound and not this boring „Irgendwas“. If I mention this theme they say to me “No way!“ And no one of my friends and work colleagues talks about this car. For me it is some sort of a new Panamera, not ugly but ways apart from being a real Porsche. The weight of this big car is a shame for the brand and for me it´s a car of the marketing department because they want to create a new image. The design is already outdated too because we have seen it already for four years on the street. There is nothing new! And: No sound, no soul, sorry! If this is the future of the brand...
I agree. My son is 16 and hates EVs. I mean...he hates them, mostly because he thinks they are to blame for the extinction of good sounding future cars.
There is however something very sad I noticed in his age group in Germany (and probably other countries as well): Many boys (and girls) do not care that much about cars anymore. Smartphones and social media seem to be more important to younger people nowadays, which is really sad. There are 34 kids in my son's class in school, over 20 boys and he has only two of them he can talk to about cars. The others couldn't care less. Some are even already anti-cars, especially after dear Greta Thunberg started that Fridays for Future movement (believe it or not but on Fridays, the school permits kids who want to go to demonstrate to go there without sanctions and a teacher accompanies them, incredible...a few months ago, kids missing school were punished).
Long story short: Interest in cars has dropped substantially and there is no real interest in EVs, simply because those interested in smartphones aren't exactly interested in cars at all. This could change with self-driving cars and built-in internet/social media and whatever, this could attract a whole new generation to buy these cars but to be honest, I doubt it. The current generation of young people isn't really too much into cars, maybe also because owning and driving a car has become too expensive and stressful (traffic, police is on the lookout for troublemakers, difficult to find parking spots, etc.).
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RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Lamborghini Huracan Performante (2019), Mercedes E63 S AMG Edition 1 (2018), Mercedes C63 S AMG Cab (2019), Range Rover Evoque Si4 Black Edition (2019)
I´m working in Germany with many young people at the age of 17-25. And really NOBODY talks about this car when he talks about Porsche. They want cars with sound and not this boring „Irgendwas“. If I mention this theme they say to me “No way!“ And no one of my friends and work colleagues talks about this car. For me it is some sort of a new Panamera, not ugly but ways apart from being a real Porsche. The weight of this big car is a shame for the brand and for me it´s a car of the marketing department because they want to create a new image. The design is already outdated too because we have seen it already for four years on the street. There is nothing new! And: No sound, no soul, sorry! If this is the future of the brand...
I agree. My son is 16 and hates EVs. I mean...he hates them, mostly because he thinks they are to blame for the extinction of good sounding future cars.
There is however something very sad I noticed in his age group in Germany (and probably other countries as well): Many boys (and girls) do not care that much about cars anymore. Smartphones and social media seem to be more important to younger people nowadays, which is really sad. There are 34 kids in my son's class in school, over 20 boys and he has only two of them he can talk to about cars. The others couldn't care less. Some are even already anti-cars, especially after dear Greta Thunberg started that Fridays for Future movement (believe it or not but on Fridays, the school permits kids who want to go to demonstrate to go there without sanctions and a teacher accompanies them, incredible...a few months ago, kids missing school were punished).
Long story short: Interest in cars has dropped substantially and there is no real interest in EVs, simply because those interested in smartphones aren't exactly interested in cars at all. This could change with self-driving cars and built-in internet/social media and whatever, this could attract a whole new generation to buy these cars but to be honest, I doubt it. The current generation of young people isn't really too much into cars, maybe also because owning and driving a car has become too expensive and stressful (traffic, police is on the lookout for troublemakers, difficult to find parking spots, etc.).
You could see this as a natural evolution - when our kids are older they may well be flying Porsche spacecraft to Mars / other planets, which could be far more fun than driving on Earth with speed limits. Looking forward to the first ‘turbo S’ spacecraft from Porsche...
I'd argue that young males pretty much mirror their Dads opinion about stuff (in case the Dad is not a complete moron). As such, my son loves the Tesla and the Porsches.
Porsche Taycan Turbo road trip... (extended video by Fully Charged)
Jonny’s first road drive of the finished Porsche Taycan...
Jonny has already experienced the Porsche Taycan launch control ability (0-62 in 2.8 for the Turbo S using over-boost function) in a previous world exclusive Fully Charged episode, but this film is the first road drive of the finished car. A chance to experience the 270kW rapid charging capability, we drove the 2020 Taycan Turbo (not really a turbo, but more a performance level name – 0-62mph in 3.2) from Gothenburg Sweden to Copenhagen Denmark as part of the international launch of the model. Porsche held an 18-day road trip launch event where 18 cars were driven in stints 6,440km across 9 different countries.
>I agree. My son is 16 and hates EVs. I mean...he hates them, mostly because he thinks they are to blame for the extinction of good sounding future cars.<
That´s exactly what I recognize with the boys in my classes... and there are only two or three boys in a class of maybe 25 people which are interested in cars. For the rest of these young people this theme has no priority...
But nearly all fathers in this world which are interested in cars are petrolheads too, my friend! In Germany over 99 % of all cars have an internal combustion engine. Any questions?
I spoke today with my sales guy . He had been to the presentation/ training of the Tayan in Majorca and came back deeply impressed .
He went there not so convinced , came back sold on the car . The car is heavy when driven hard , but otherwise it is a monster . When they did the debriefing at the end, no one complained about the lack of sound . It was a non issue as there was so many other things about the car to appreciate and take the attention .
People who ordered it will be happy . ( if not too many gremlins ... )
Interesting information on the Taycan and reason why Musk became so vocal with his numerous Tweets days after its launch. The published acceleration times for the Model S P100D, or whatever he is calling it this week, often include a one-foot runout, as well as Ludicrous+ mode, which requires a timely conditioning of the battery pack. The Taycan doesn't require any of the special battery preconditioning nor the cooling period between acceleration runs; it simply goes. Therefore, in the everyday, real world, the Taycan is quicker than the Model S, and the real bone of contention with Musk.
This vehicle test shows it clearly: the car has a short range: 268 km (80% battery level) to 330 km (93%). This is much less than the Tesla Model S, although it still has an old battery. My Opinion: If you would make a race between a Taycan and an Audi RS6 from Hamburg to Munich on the German Autobahn (without traffic jams), then the gasoline engine would win clearly due to the shorter tank units and the higher range ... and also the Tesla would probably be a little faster at the finish. But the Taycan fanboys will buy the car because they are not realistic about it. They think they have the better car because it's expensive and because it's a Porsche. Well done, Porsche, they will buy it... haha!
Interesting information on the Taycan and reason why Musk became so vocal with his numerous Tweets days after its launch. The published acceleration times for the Model S P100D, or whatever he is calling it this week, often include a one-foot runout, as well as Ludicrous+ mode, which requires a timely conditioning of the battery pack. The Taycan doesn't require any of the special battery preconditioning nor the cooling period between acceleration runs; it simply goes. Therefore, in the everyday, real world, the Taycan is quicker than the Model S, and the real bone of contention with Musk.
The Porsche, once again, is without peers.
Based on the above video the Taycan is substantially quicker - always. Even on the first run After that, of course, the Tesla is history anyway.
This vehicle test shows it clearly: the car has a short range: 268 km (80% battery level) to 330 km (93%). This is much less than the Tesla Model S, although it still has an old battery. My Opinion: If you would make a race between a Taycan and an Audi RS6 from Hamburg to Munich on the German Autobahn (without traffic jams), then the gasoline engine would win clearly due to the shorter tank units and the higher range ... and also the Tesla would probably be a little faster at the finish. But the Taycan fanboys will buy the car because they are not realistic about it. They think they have the better car because it's expensive and because it's a Porsche. Well done, Porsche, they will buy it... haha!
Why the hatred for Porsche on a website focused on Porsche motorcars and other sports cars?
For a reference point, see the videos of Bjorn Nyland where he takes a raven Model X on a 1000 kilometer trip and the next day follows the same course with an Audi e-tron. That Audi completed the course within 3 minutes of the Tesla because of its much quicker charging times. That's something lost in your analysis. The Taycan, of course, charges at even a greater rate with less noticeable taper than even the Audi.
Oh, my friend ... I do not hate Porsche! I have been in Zuffenhausen and Weissach several times where they develop the brand's true cars. But these cars do not weigh 2,3 tons and do not have to be loaded every 250 to 350 km. But the interior of the Taycan is very good! Great materials, perfect workmanship. We in Germany can do that well. But the rest of the vehicle is overrated and the price is an absolute joke. But if you don't believe me, ask the old "Ferdinand"!
For the road test, I would take an Audi Q8 in black. Thats´s a real tank and with its old gasoline machine it will destroy this sort of “I, Robot“ completely, sorry!
Here is something interesting. I am here in Montreal this past weekend for the Porsche Golf Cup national finals and the season finale of the Canadian GT3 Cup Challenge. I ran into the GM of my last Porsche dealer. And we talk a bit about the Taycan.
They had over 300 paid deposits for the Taycan. About 60 of those have converted to either a Turbo or Turbo S order. Majority of them, the GM suspects, are waiting for the 4S. There are also quite a few that canceled after hearing the initial pricing, but for every one order that was canceled they got 2-3 new orders. He expects he won’t clear all his orders for at least 3 years.
They have the biggest order backlog of Taycan in Canada, guess it is a West Coast effect.
Literally, the high price of the Taycan has zero effect on the sales, the ones that had canceled can’t afford a Taycan in the first place.
Oh, my friend ... I do not hate Porsche! I have been in Zuffenhausen and Weissach several times where they develop the brand's true cars. But these cars do not weigh 2,3 tons and do not have to be loaded every 250 to 350 km. But the interior of the Taycan is very good! Great materials, perfect workmanship. We in Germany can do that well. But the rest of the vehicle is overrated and the price is an absolute joke. But if you don't believe me, ask the old "Ferdinand"!
For the road test, I would take an Audi Q8 in black. Thats´s a real tank and with its old gasoline machine it will destroy this sort of “I, Robot“ completely, sorry!
Like it or not, EVs are the future in certain geographic regions including the EU and China. There is no possible way for automakers to meet the incoming CO2 regulations with internal combustion engines.
Porsche, Audi, and Mercedes-Benz have made similar trade-offs of range versus battery pack longevity with longevity being the primary goal of the compromise. Tesla holds no substantive competitive advantage other than the fleeting first-mover advantage.
I do not think the speedo reading is accurate (German cars usually have a 10-15 kph "error" at around 200 kph, even more at higher speeds.
Hi ... reading carefully between your lines ... let me think you're a little bit shocked that Taycan is crashing your Huracan Performante times (2.8s and 8.8s)
I do not think the speedo reading is accurate (German cars usually have a 10-15 kph "error" at around 200 kph, even more at higher speeds.
Hi ... reading carefully between your lines ... let me think you're a little bit shocked that Taycan is crashing your Huracan Performante times (2.8s and 8.8s)
I couldn't care less...I bought the Performante for a reason.
This is like comparing a Rolex watch to an Apple Watch. The Apple Watch offers so much more than the Rolex and it is even much cheaper but people still (often) prefer the Rolex.
Sometimes perfection and high tech are very counter productive. I would definitely get a Taycan Turbo S as a daily driver (maybe not in Germany, it attracts too much attention) if I could afford it but if I had to choose one and only one car, it would always be the Performante. Even now. You can't get more emotions in a more reliable, fun and "cheap" package.
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RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Lamborghini Huracan Performante (2019), Mercedes E63 S AMG Edition 1 (2018), Mercedes C63 S AMG Cab (2019), Range Rover Evoque Si4 Black Edition (2019)
I would definitely get a Taycan Turbo S as a daily driver (maybe not in Germany, it attracts too much attention) ...
Really? .. you're worried about the attention of a Taycan ... and driving a Huracan? ... come on ... what did Porsche to you that you became such a "hater" .... (hater is too strong ... but my English is limited)?
I would definitely get a Taycan Turbo S as a daily driver (maybe not in Germany, it attracts too much attention) ...
Really? .. you're worried about the attention of a Taycan ... and driving a Huracan? ... come on ... what did Porsche to you that you became such a "hater" .... (hater is too strong ... but my English is limited)?
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I still love Porsche but I wanted the 960 and they never built it, so...
Also, believe it or not: The Huracan Performante is met with so much positive reaction in Germany that I am still stunned (and I already drove the car for over 8700 km). I know what people here often think about the Panamera and I doubt that the Taycan will get much more positive attention. EV or not but it is still a luxury sedan and people love the 911, not so much the Panamera or the Cayenne. I am talking about regular people here, not Porsche fans.
A Taycan in front of my office would certainly cause more issues for me than the E63 S (which btw. didn't cause any issues for me since the badges were removed and only very few people know it is an AMG). A Taycan, even a Taycan S (coming at some point...), would be an eye catcher and since most recent publications have mentioned the Taycan as a luxury EV and posted the prices (up to 200k and more), people think it is a very expensive car (and it is).
I am seriously considering getting an EV to replace my E63 as a daily driver but I think it is going to be a Tesla model 3 Performance. Way cheaper and not attracting too much attention. The Taycan is a beautiful car, no doubt but I like to keep a lower profile with my business.
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RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Lamborghini Huracan Performante (2019), Mercedes E63 S AMG Edition 1 (2018), Mercedes C63 S AMG Cab (2019), Range Rover Evoque Si4 Black Edition (2019)
After that, of course, the Tesla is history anyway.
