Is the future of motoring bleak and boring? With advancements in self-driving cars, the automotive industry under pressure to reduce carbon emissions, and electric vehicles being the source of propulsion that has been mandated by the world’s various governments, there might be little left in the romance of driving. Throw in range anxiety and things get really shaky for acceptance of the pro-EV argument.
But thankfully, companies like Porsche exist. With a legacy in fine motoring and motorsports as they are, surely, an electrified future isn’t as worrisome as it seems.
We tried the range-topping Taycan Turbo S last year and was literally blown away by its sheer power, acceleration and grip afforded by torque-vectoring and all-wheel drive. Unfortunately, the Taycan Turbo S costs very serious money. For most people buying into the luxury market of EV’s, they would balk at the price range. So we’re getting an exclusive take-home review of the base Taycan.
The Porsche Taycan, unlike the Turbo S variant, is just rear-wheel with a rear-mounted motor and a two-speed automatic transmission with a limited slip differential. The model has a 79-kilowatt-hour (kWh) battery pack under the floor that is composed of lithium-ion cells.The 723-volt battery pack (835 volt full, 610 volt empty) has 33 modules with 12 LG Chem pouch cells each, for 396 cells in total.
Porsche Philippines notes that some of the key features on the Taycan include massive 20-inch wheels, full LED headlights, six-piston brakes in front and four-piston brakes at the back, Porsche 4D Chassis Control, adaptive air suspension with three-chamber technology, and the Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM). The cabin has a 4+1 seating layout, a 16.8-inch free-standing curved instrument cluster, a central 10.9-inch infotainment display, and another display for the front passenger which is optional in other markets but made standard for Philippine models.
The Taycan has 402 hp and has 344 Nm of torque. It can accelerate from zero to 100 km/h in 5.4 seconds and has a top speed of 230 km/h. There’s nothing base-model sounding in the specs.
And the all-important range question? Porsche claims over 400 kilometers on a single charge, but will vary greatly depending on driving styles and road/weather conditions. Some foreign media have tested the Taycan to deliver as much as 450 kilometers on a single charge with no problem. Considering that most Metro Manila drivers drive only around 50 kilometres a day according to data presented by another manufacturer, a single charge in theory should last you an entire week with the Taycan.
Porsche has developed an 800-volt charging system specifically for the Taycan. According to manufacturer estimates, the battery pack can be charged from 5 percent to 80 percent in 22.5 minutes in ideal situations, using a DC fast charger with 270 kW of power. Charge times depend on weather conditions and infrastructure.
To reduce charge times at both hot and cold temperatures, the battery can be thermally preconditioned using a charging planner. Owners set a departure time in the planner, and the car automatically warms or cools the battery for optimal charging times. A charging dock and mobile charger, supplied with the car for home charging, utilize a 9.6-kW connector that charges the car in 11 hours. An energy manager, which can also be installed in a home’s circuit panel, can manage the house’s power flow; provide cost-optimizing charging using solar power; and provide blackout protection by reducing the charge to the car if household appliances such as fridges or dryers turn on and exceed the panel’s power threshold.
PGA Cars, Porsche Philippine’s distributor, has already been mapping out an ambitious charging infrastructure network throughout Luzon initially, focusing on popular tourist destinations that will entice Taycan owners to drive their cars far and away from the city centers and explore the countryside without fear of getting stuck somewhere with no access to a charging station. Popular driveable spots like Tagaytay City, Batangas, Baguio City and more are in the planning stages. Porsche Philippines has already invested an initial P150 million for special tools, equipment and training, and will only grow bigger as more EV’s become available from Porsche.
Crucially, the Taycan feels like a proper Porsche: it steers, brakes and of course accelerates like no boring, staid and characterless EV car should. It is, the complete EV package that has the looks, the performance, and crucially, the reliability and solid engineering missing in other EV’s (I’m looking at you Tesla). Cover your eyes and ears, get into a Taycan, or a 911, (they are both low-slung) and you wouldn’t be able to tell the difference. In this sense, Porsche has succeeded in building the ultimate car of the future.
Now, if only I had an extra P9 million large ones lying around.
