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Note #1: Consider this a followup thread to this one. Note #2: I approached this test from a Porsche perspective, not an EV perspective. You will find many testers out there better able to judge the Taycan as an EV—and that's a good thing. My stock in trade is perspective on Porsche, so I wanted to approach the Taycan that way. Now that I have driven the Taycan, I will likely seek out a way to try a Tesla 3P and/or a Model S. I've had several offers, and am thankful for that! Note #3: The following is meant less as a formal or crafted “story” (Rennlist isn’t paying me for these words, nor is anyone else), and more as a set of off-the-cuff notes and observations. I may use them as notes for a story in 000 Magazine, my day job. Or not.
As the embargo lifts on Taycan driving impressions, I’m glad to be able to share some impressions gleaned after two days in the Taycan Turbo and Taycan Turbo S. Four individual legs saw everything from making sure we got to our next charging station to burning electricity at 167 mph (269 km/h). The roads included country lanes, city streets, small towns, and freeways—nearly everything, in other words, but the twisty "sports car" roads I hoped for. There were, however, a few corners here and there. More on that later.
I’m going to split my impressions into sections of the car, and go from there.
How does it drive?
Extraordinarily well in both Turbo and Turbo S form, as it turns out. With both 20- and 21-inch wheels, the steering is sweet, the torque is predictably outrageous, the brakes are fabulous, and the handling/grip/balance of the thing are sublime. It rides beautifully, too. There will be those who disagree, but I think Porsche nailed it for enthusiast drivers with its choice to limit regenerative braking until you get on the brakes. The car simply coasts when you let off the accelerator, as a naturally aspirated car would (unless you downshift or have a lot of compression working "for" you). The Taycan's “tach,” repurposed as a gauge measuring how much electricity you are taking or making, is intuitive and very well done (see autobahn video below)—backing up what you sense, which feels “organic” and right as you get on and off the throttle. Porsche claims 90% of the braking in a Taycan will be handled by the regen system, hence a six-year brake pad replacement prediction based on time rather than mileage, and I have to say the engineers nailed the transition from regen to the large disc brakes at each corner. Truly impressive. I tried both the PSCB and PCCB, and this is one case where I would definitely skip PCCB given the low dust of PSCB. Unless, that is, I was planning on having to haul the Taycan’s 5200 pounds repeatedly. It would also seem that Porsche is anticipating a low take rate on PCCB, given PCCB's more attractive pricing on the Taycan.
Two days on the road suggested to me that the Turbo S is excessive (when is a Turbo S not?), but perhaps the fact it put a five-day kink in my neck is part of why? While the engineers smoothed torque onset in the Normal mode, Sport Plus is a raw affair—and my co-driver must have gotten on it when I was looking out of a side window early on…one of those things you can do when leaving a hotel without need to wait for engine oil to warm up. It wasn’t long before we both started putting our heads against the headrests before the driver got to digging into the throttle, with driver warning passenger if need be. For real. I’ve been driving seriously fast cars for many years, and have driven with this guy for years now in everything from 918s to GT3s on snowy passes, but I don’t ever remember having to put my head against the seatback in “regular” driving before he matted the throttle. But there’s something more: I can’t remember any Porsche in which my toes came off the firewall when the driver got on it. Yet they did, and often, in the Taycan Turbo S. From the driver’s seat, there’s a different curiosity: While the Taycan Turbo S is ruthlessly efficient on launch control or on hard acceleration from a low speed, there’s "torque steer" from time to time as its AWD system works to keep the car going the direction you want it to. It’s never scary, nor do you sense your involuntary inputs to the steering wheel are all that necessary to keep you going straight, but it is a sign of just how much torque is being funneled to four wheels. And it's available everywhere. From a stop. At 100 km/h. At 200 km/h on up to about 250-255 km/h. From 20-30 km/h while passing tractors, which simply vaporize in the side windows. Impressive stuff.
The Turbo S is a beast—to the point I finally said aloud, “If I have this and a 930 at home, I’d toss the 930’s keys to a teenager before the Taycan's." This Porsche is going to be unpleasantly fast in a straight line for many passengers, which makes me curious to see what times C/D and Motor Trend will eventually extract from the Taycan Turbo S. My guess is they'll easily beat Porsche’s published times, just as my 167-mph romp in a “mere” Taycan Turbo beat the factory’s 161 mph rating. The Turbo, by the way, is also a beast when it comes to acceleration—and more than fast enough to get my nod. In fact, these two make me very curious to drive the upcoming Taycan 4S. I like fast cars, but I am not sure I need this much speed.
About the range issue
I'm not going to pretend that the two-day test with Porsche was a perfect range test. It was, however, very real world—and quite illuminating. First things first, the Taycan is going to live in the 10-80% range, rather than the 0-100% range—for several obvious reasons. The first day saw us do two stints where range wasn't much of an issue. We were pretty enthusiastic on the first leg, arriving at the Ionity Level 3 chargers with 24% charge remaining to most of our colleagues' ~13%. Too high, in both cases, for ideal charging conditions. Even so, L3 charging was pretty impressive. L3 chargers have liquid-cooled lines, and I watched the battery jump from 13% to 20% in 2-3 minutes and up over 30% after 5-6 minutes. By the time we had downed a quick lunch (20-30 minutes), it was back up to 85% and good to go for the rest of the day. It's worth noting, as well, that the chargers weren't running at peak performance due to the number of chargers in use.
The second day, thanks to a warning from an engineer, went the opposite way: We stuck mainly to Range and Normal modes, and watched colleagues fly by us repeatedly as they stopped off for photos then dug back into the throttle. The first stint of the day would last 5.5 hours, mostly at 50-60 mph and slower through a lot of towns, with the last 30 minutes on the autobahn, where we caught up to those Taycans that flew by us earlier. They were eeking out their last kilometers at 80 km/h in the right lane while we pulled up to 250 km/h and arrived with 13% charge to their 1% (!) charge after 344 km (213 miles). And we had goofed off a bit, with my co-driver greedily switching back to Sport Plus when I wasn't looking...until I noticed our range predictor said we'd arrive with 0%. Good thing we saw that early on. With too much charge for fast charging, we asked if we could go back out on the autobahn "to take a few more pics" (read: to deplete our battery for optimum charging), which we did, returning with 3% after two long, fast pulls on the autobahn—though my co-driver was stymied by a speed limiter once the battery got lower. Once again, by the time we'd had a bite and something to drink, the car was ready to go. My take: If Electrify America can get enough L3 stations up and running—and you don't end up waiting in line for a charger (a far worse proposition with 20-30 minute "fillups" for each car ahead of you vs 5-minute fillups for each gas car ahead of you), a Taycan could be a viable daily car for a lot of people, even those who (like me) occasionally take long trips.
How does it sound?
In Range or Normal modes, it is predictably and eerily quiet, but the available “sport sound” in Sport Plus mode is actually pretty cool—so much so that my co-driver and I wanted to have it on all the time (a setting 1-2 menus away in the main screen), though we quickly decided Porsche got it right by going quiet unless you select a more sporting mode. In Normal or Range, the Taycan is quiet. Extremely quiet. Porsche has studiously worked out all or most of the chassis noises you hear in a 918 in e-Power mode, no surprise given the amount of development miles and the knowledge that there would be no screaming V8 to mask them much of the time. The result is a car that's awfully quiet—but I came to view this as something to value rather than hate as I spent two days in the car. I arrived at destinations fresher. Enjoyed conversations and music more. Would I want this as my only car? No. But as something very different to an older Porsche, or a new 911? Yes, I think I would.
There was something more: For the launch control video above, we found a quiet, rural road. And did several runs. Two or four runs in, a bicycle was coming. Uh-oh, I thought, as I waited for the cyclist to pass to be polite—fully expecting a single-digit salute, side-eye, or worse. But she just rode on by, unperturbed. Then, just before I was going to again, another cyclist. Ugh. Better wait for him to go by, too, which he also did without any animosity—also to my surprise. I let him get safely ahead, then ripped off another launch for Mike—half expecting him to turn around on his bike and flip the bird. Or worse. But he didn't. He never even turned around. And then I wondered what the "take" of the locals might be if we had been doing this in a GT3, 918, or GT2? Probably the same as mine...
There's something seductive about quiet speed. I'll still take a howling flat six or V10 for special occasions, thank you, but there's something pretty neat about this, too. And far more useful, more of the time.
Presence on the road
After attending international press launches for most new Porsches since 1998~, I cannot think of a single new model that garnered as much attention—let alone positive attention—as the Taycan. Part of that may be the choice of Denmark for our segment, but what I noticed was a strong effect on people of all ages, but particularly youth from elementary school through high school. Despite its four doors, the Taycan dropped jaws, caused triple takes, smiles, etc. wherever we went. Only the CGT and 918 had this sort of effect, but the vibe was different…and I attribute that to the fact this is an EV. People seemed to know. Kids seemed to know. Maybe the Tesla v Porsche headlines in mainstream media and Apple News actually helped here, but the Taycan was a big hit wherever it showed up…particularly as we skirted climate protests in Danish and German towns on our way to a big protest in Hamburg. The good news, I figured, if a crowd tried to flip us over, is that they’d have to lift a very low 5200 pounds. That never happened, and rightly or wrongly, no ire was drawn as we glided by people on their way to or from picket lines and protests. My take: The timing of this Porsche’s arrival could not have been better.
As for my take on the visuals? This is a very good looking car in real life. I’d hold out for the aluminum roof, because I think it’s better aesthetically with its “double bubble” styling and because I am not a big fan of glass roofs—but I will say the lack of a sun shade never bothered us in Denmark or Germany. It must be noted, however, that while sunny, temps were in the 40s and 50s F.
Of the cars present, the White Taycan Turbo S with optional white-bladed Taycan Exclusive Design wheels was a standout, looking both futuristic and very 1980s in a great way, as was a Dolomite Silver car with a red interior—very classic Porsche sports car, highlighting the Taycan’s shape beautifully—but the Taycan also looked great in Carrara White Metallic, Gentian Blue, Mamba Green, and Volcano Grey. Unlike most press trips, where there’s a clear winner among the colors presented, the Taycan seemed to wear every color well. Less successful, at least for me, are the wheels. They look better in person than in photos or the configurator, but none of the choices overwhelmed me as “the wheel” to get. Perhaps more choices are coming, but I might save the $600, $3750 (+$1290 if you want them painted), or $7650 and hold it to pay for a set of wheels. YMMV, but this is my take.
The Taycan's "pop-out" door handles work pretty well, and while they still aren’t as intuitive as the handles on, say, a 991.2, my hand only slipped off once and a cd of .22 is a worthy excuse in my book. All of the cars present had the power charging doors, an option on the Taycan Turbo that I’d skip because it adds a little drag (not much, at ~0.005) and because it adds another visual “hash” on the same plane as the front sidemarker and door handles. Various cars had body color or carbon-fiber blades at the lower bumper, and at least one had the Sport Design front fascia, which its larger “air curtains” below the headlights. Count me as a fan of painted blades and the larger air curtains. Again, YMMV. These are all details, perhaps useful, perhaps not. But the overall takeaway for me was the Taycan is a seriously good looking device out on the road—and particularly when you are following it. It looks special, and while some of the concept car’s extremes have been lost, I am already seeing how the concept car—much like the Boxster Studie—was a great concept car but something that might not age well in all details and proportions. As Porsche’s first EV, and third four-door sedan, the Taycan is plainly beautiful.
Inside the storm
The interior is, in a word, fabulous. The driving position is extremely 911, per Porsche’s target, with great visibility outward over two fender humps that further reinforce that feeling. Visibility is good in every other direction but back, as the rear window is quite small as a result of a premium placed on trunk space. As for trunk space? Three full-size carry-on rollaways (the kind that won’t fit on short-hop planes) fit into the trunk well under that rear window, and leave space for a fourth plus 2-4 softer bags. And then there’s still the front trunk, which is modest but probably useful for more than a charger and its case. Not bad. Not bad at all. The rear seats do fold down, but the fact this is a sedan rather than a hatchback will come into play—which begins to make the low lift-over height at the rear make more sense. We didn’t have time or need for a run to CB2 or IKEA, but this thing might just take a fairly large box, after all.
The Sport Seats are perfect for a sport sedan, offering good support on long trips with enough bolster on the way into turns. I didn’t think about the seats over two days unless I remembered to. A good sign. Front passenger space is excellent, though passengers may want to watch their legs on the way in if the seat is far forward—as the lower dash “spear” can catch a knee. Rear seat space was a surprise to me given the very low roofline, with 2-4 inches to spare between my knees and the driver’s seatback when the latter was adjusted to fit me (6’2). Headroom was plentiful up front, and acceptable in the rear despite my long torso. Could I go from SF to LA in the back seat of this car? Yes. Easily.
The main dash renders information beautifully, without any issues with glare despite its lack of a “hood.” The dash screens are useful, intelligent, well integrated, and highly readable—and a short spell of driving in darkness saw the screens switch to a pair of maps in night mode—which felt like something out of the future, and in a very good way. Build quality is exceptional, and the materials all looked good. Some light scratches suggested the gloss black pieces to either side of the dash screens might be better rendered in Gorilla Glass, but this is a common issue with “piano black” interior surfaces. Past that, it’s hard to raise a complaint inside.
About the lack of buttons?
After seeing the finished interior—which is beautiful—in Atlanta, my question was whether Porsche could pull off what no other carmaker has: the elimination of buttons, dials, and switchgear on the dash and center console. The answer, found within a few miles and confirmed over two days (at least for me), is no. While the three touch screens (main dash screen, center console screen, optional passenger screen) are good, and perhaps better than others, there really is no replacement for actual switchgear for climate control. The best HVAC control setup I’ve seen remains three rotary dials with buttons on their faces as seen in many other carmakers' cars—particularly when paired with at least two radio ***** as in Porsche's existing cars (one for volume, one for scrolling/selecting). While the Taycan's (very nice) multi-function steering wheel offsets most of the sound system interface for the driver, the optional screen for the passenger makes a pretty so-so DJ platform, with less than intuitive scrolling (touch and scroll lights up something you don’t mean to select, even if your touch doesn’t actually select that item...not intuitive). Far worse, having to hit “buttons” on the center console screen to turn the volume up or down isn’t great. We found that they often selected too much or too little volume, as well. Can drivers and passengers adapt? Sure. Should they have to? Honda recently learned this the hard way, as others like BMW have…and my take is that Porsche will, too. I get the high design value of the Taycan’s fabulously clean and symmetric interior, but function shouldn't follow form. To that end, the Taycan’s 918-style shifter is brilliant in use, but my co-driver and I found ourselves wishing it was just a bit lower, and thus more visible.
The climate controls on the upper third of center console screen, like the heated seat controls, work well. I’d still trade them for rotary controls—especially if that meant there was no need to go through two menus to change the airflow from the dash vents.
Is this a replacement for a 991 or 992?
I wondered about that at various points of our drive, given that my 991.2 carries an MSRP in range of what the Taycan 4S might run. The Taycan is fun to drive, offers more practicality to someone who needs back seats (as I do), is seriously quick, and skips the need to visit gas stations. Hm… The answer came on the second day: Nope, as I'm still not ready to give up the fun of three pedals with a flat six behind me. For me, it’s still no stick, no sale. But, were I someone who has made the leap to PDK on the street, or someone looking at other cars that are automatic only, this would be a trickier question. Far trickier. Fortunately, and unlike the 928, the Taycan isn't meant as an "or" to the 911—it's an "and." So while a Taycan won't be replacing my 911, the Stout family truckster would probably be on the chopping block if cost were no object.
The sum-up, for now
A funny thing happened as I left Hamburg at 5:45am: The van that took us to the airport sounded unnecessarily loud. Annoyingly loud, in fact. And, since getting home, I’ve had a change of heart about “normal” cars—whether I’m in them or see them driving by. All those workaday V6s and inline fours and mostly muffled V8s are kind of…not great. They’re loud, both inside and outside the car, and not particularly pleasant. When a new A7 turned the corner this morning, my first thought was “Why?”
While I won’t be giving up my Weber carbs—or my 991.2—anytime soon, I find the Taycan deeply appealing as a daily device. Even if my neck still has that kink….
Excellent as always Pete. Thank you for taking the time to put that together. Certainly whets my appetite for the Sport Turismo version (3 kids - need the space!). Also not ready to give up my 3 pedal fun, but have been craving a "High Quality" EV for years. Sounds like we may finally have one.
When you can - after watching some of the videos, a lot of discussion is focused on the straight-line performance - but I'm really interested in how it manages the mass in the twisties. Porsche have done amazing things with the air-suspension on the Cayenne / Macan - how does this compare? When apex to apex in an chicane, how is the immediacy? Does it feel like you are "on the power curve" or "behind" it? Maybe hard to describe...I guess what I'm asking is if they got the dynamics right in addition to the ridiculous 0-60.
All right, time to start sharing some photos from the road. I don't claim these to be press photo level, or pro level for that matter—they're simply real-world images I thought to take along the way for one reason or another. Hopefully, they'll be useful.
Triple White 2020, or almost (just needs the standard white calipers) I was surprised by how much I liked the way this car looked, in white with white-bladed wheels. Something very 1980s but also futuristic about this setup. That little "brow" on the dash can catch your patella on the way in if the seat is forward. As we left the hotel, the time, randomly, was… This display works REALLY well (for the driver). Following the silver car, which looked very special out on the road. The PR frenemy? Real-time range and destination charge predictor was key—and both very accurate and very well done. Level 3 charger with liquid-cooled lines. 1% charge after 19 seconds. 3% charge after 43 seconds… Inside the car, you can watch in real time. This was after just a few minutes. Needless to say, by the time I had a weird Euro burger with cucumbers on it, the battery was 85+%.
Nice Pete. I once recall you saying “I could never” in regards to DDing and electric. It sounds like that stance hasn’t quite changed yet, but it may have softened somewhat. They do have a certain charm of their own, and if anyone can get it right I’d bet on Porsche.
Thanks for the write-up. You my friend, have a great job. Well deserved based on your excellent work with 000 (best car mag hands down).
I concur with your feelings about the lack of switch gear. In addition to being less intuitive, touchscreens will not age well. They never do. 30 years from now when these first gen Taycans start really becoming collectible, one has to wonder just how out-of date they will look. Both of these dashes are from the mid 80's.
Very entertaining read, Mr. Stout. Your EV-newbie perspective was fascinating. You said something I've said in another way, with some hyperbole: If you are a fan of vintage cars, the good news is that suddenly all your cars are vintage, even the newer ones if they have a crankshaft. What a word! Crankshaft.
The newest Porsche is a great car, of course. Thanks for confirming it.
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This weekend I drive my very vintage, crankshaft-equipped, 32-valve (!) 928 to a gathering in Virginia. It's a different feeling now, post-EV.
And some more, mostly from Day 2, focusing on details in/around the car. Chassis lift...a good thing as the Taycan rides LOW when it's on Sport Plus. Rear trunk will *easily* take three full-size carry-on suitcases on their side, plus one more in front of them and a couple of backpacks poking into the corner...possibly with space for a garment bag on top of the whole enchilada. Rear seats do fold down. A peek into one corner... ...which has a place to tuck things low. As does the other side. And then there's this hidden compartment under the trunk floor. A bit more perspective. Double-pane, noise canceling glass. I'd get it. Optional carbon-fiber door trim. And full-leather dash in red. Wish the outer gloss-black trim around the vents was done in Gorilla Glass—as it was showing some scratches already (the bane of all piano black trim...but you need piano black trim to go with the screens/dash design). Dash design is plainly beautiful. Shades of CGT... The + and - down low are for the radio volume. A **** wouldn't be as pretty, but it would be far, far better. Center console. Wireless charging for a cell phone if you use that pocket. Rear seat with optional 2+1 seating, to create a five-seater. As you can see, center passenger is gonna have to share those foot garages… Front trunk, with portable charger in place. A bit of room behind. And with a water bottle for a bit of size perspective. Mamba. Not sure I could do it, but it looked great.
Volcano Grey turned out to be a real looker... Race-Tex looks great (!) on the doors. Hmm... An interior that really likes being two-toned. Argh. Race-Tex here, there, and everywhere. Looks great. Dash is brilliant, and really works well in the world. Range mode prediction.... Normal mode prediction... Sport mode prediction... Sport Plus mode prediction... 9:01 again... When you start yelling at your co-driver for horsing around in Sport Plus on the leg they said would be a bit tight on range. Back in Normal mode. Phew, glad we did this early on. Now in Range mode, but the A/C is weak and the windows are foggy, so we went back to Normal and took it (mostly) easy. Got there with 13% battery charge several hours and a few glorious passes later. Two Taycans... Cameras quite good, unless they get wet. And they did get wet... Monitoring the monitors... Europe really does have cooler tractors. We soon passed this one like it was a Taycan in reverse. Some various displays... Real-world charging info...check the elapsed time vs the charge level—and the reason it's charging at 231kW vs the 275kW possible is there were too many Taycans hooked up at the same time. 60% charge after 16:44 20-inch fronts 20-inch rears NFO-spec... 79% after 24:31, and look at the kW tapering back. Alex just had to be the one to see his battery filled, bless'm. This Mamba Green is growin on me... But…White works too, seen here without the White blades. Battery percentage & range... About those foot garages: They're brilliant. The seat in front of me is adjusted for my driving position, at 6'2, and I've got inches to spare back here. 6'7 might be a different matter... Maps in night mode...in the dark, it's like you're riding in the future. I dig… Rear climate control setup.
09-24-2019, 07:01 PM
2020 Taycan: First Drive
