2021 Porsche Taycan Official EPA Ratings Announced
EPA has released its official estimates for the entry-level 2021 Taycan model and Porsche is not happy.
Tesla is the world’s most valuable automaker, and the electric vehicle pioneer’s technology is leaps and bounds ahead of its competitors. This has not deterred legacy automakers from introducing Tesla rivals. When Porsche introduced its Taycan EV, the German sports car manufacturer used Tesla’s product launch approach.
The company initially introduced the performance version of its electric-only performance sedan while refraining from introducing the least expensive entry-level variant, which was introduced in January 2021. The prices of the most affordable version of the 2021 Porsche Taycan start from $79,900.
The entry-level Taycan variant is also eligible for the US federal tax credit, which will discount the price by $7500. Now EPA has released its official estimates for the entry-level 2021 Taycan model. The Stuttgart-based car manufacturer also offers a Performance Battery Plus option, which swaps Taycan’s standard 79.2 kWh lithium-ion battery pack in favor of a 93.4 kWh unit. This optional extra will set customers back an additional $5780.
So far, we only had range estimates for the base variants of Chinese-spec Taycan models. According to NEDC standards, Porsche Taycan’s base model can offer 256 miles of range in their Chinese-spec, which gets bumped up to 330 miles in models equipped with the larger 93.4 kWh back. Porsche was unhappy with EPA’s estimates for previous Taycan models and claimed that the battery-only sedan can deliver more range. Porsche’s claim was based on the results of in-house tests.
According to EPA estimates, the standard battery pack in the base Taycan model has only 200 miles of range on a full charge. Models equipped with the Performance Battery Plus package get additional 25 miles of all-electric driving range, which brings the total to 225 miles. This means that base models of American-spec Taycans offer 105 miles of range less than their Chinese counterparts, which were evaluated according to NEDC standards.
The huge difference in the range estimates has upset Porsche, and the company asked AMCI to conduct independent tests of Taycan’s latest model. The institution found that the standard battery pack version was capable of delivering 252 miles of range, and the models equipped with the Performance Battery Plus option were good for 252 miles.
Photos: Porsche