It was tough decision but I let my 991 Turbo S go for the Taycan Turbo S. The ICE car was the best sports car I have ever owned but since it was my daily driver it had to go to make room for new daily driver. My first Drive in the Taycan made me think I made a mistake, everything seemed so foreign with all of the soft buttons and screens. The lack of sound and the size of the vehicle was all so foreign to me. However, as I drove it more and learned/experienced its capabilities both from a driving technological perspective I am more and more impressed. Now that I am getting over what I percieved as technology complexity I am finding I want to drive it all the time. Granted that is because its something new. And the best part, I have zero guilt driving it. So really looking forward to how this car will change my perceptions and what kind of cars I buy in the future. This is my experiment, and so far so good. So some of the bad has been mostly around the buying experience. My build was ordered without my promised final review of locking in. As a result, I do not have Infrared option (which is not essential anyway) and the one that irks me the most is the fact that I got pirelli's instead of the all season tires I wanted and had in my earlier builds and did not check the box when I got the allocation because the dealer wanted me to rush and provide my latest build promising that I can change it before locking. Anyway, they are looking in to what they can do worst case it will cost me $1700. So if anyone wants some perfectly good tires down south with less than 200 miles on them...I am sure I can make it win-win.
So now my questions:

1. I am about to charge my car for the first time. What are the general guidelines for the level to which to charge to prolong battery.. I read its 85%. When I look at the app or the car charging level, is 100% an actual 100% or is it really 85%?
2. I also noted in the manual that I should only go to 100% charge for infrequent long trips. So is that a 115% charge?
3. Why is it the only thing I can set is minimum charge level and it defaults to 25%, what is recommended. Do other options pop up when I plug in?
4. So far I have talked about the upper end, but what level is it best to discharge the battery to. I am sure I don't want to go below something like 10% but what is the recommeded range of operation? 10-85%?

Really looking for best practices and search hasn't given me any good results.

Thank in advance.

 

Congrats!

EV's come with a bit of a learning curve. But once you get past it, they are one of the most enjoyable vehicles out there.

1. Recommendation by Porsche is to charge to 85% daily. This helps preserve the battery life. Charging to 100% frequently and letting it sit at 100% for long periods of time will slowly damage the batteries capacity. This is not specific to Porsche, this goes for all lithium-ion batteries today.

2. If you choose to charge the Taycan to 100% (through the app or through the PCM) it will fill the battery to the maximum amount allowed by Porsche. Technically it is not quite 100% of the real battery capacity, but this was designed to prevent truly charging to 100% and causing further damage. The best use for 100% charging is on really long drives or road trips. I just returned from a 1250 mile road rally (with 10 Ferraris) and I charged to 100% overnight several times at hotels.The easiest way to charge to 100% is to select the "direct charge" option on the App on in the PCM. This will override all other charge settings and charge to 100% as quickly as possible. If you plug into a DC high speed charger, it will automatically go into the "direct charge" mode because it assumes your are on a road trip and want to charge as quickly as possible.

3. The minimum charge amount is used for quickly filling your Taycan to a minimum amount when first plugged in. You can set schedules so that it only charges the car during certain time slots so that you can take advantage of cheaper electricity rates. However, if you get home and your car is only at 25%, you can set the minimum charge amount to something like 50%, so that it will immediately charge to 50%, and then wait for the charging time slot to finish charging. That way your always have some minimum amount ready to go.

4. Just like the top end, Porsche won't let you drain the battery to the true 0%. When the gauge reads 0% there is technically a buffer remaining (maybe 3% - 5%). This is to protect the battery as well. You can drive the car to 5% (as displayed on the gauge) before the car will begin to limit power to the motors. It will go into turtle mode (kind of a safety mode) to protect the battery but give you some remaining range to find a charger. On longer drives I try to plan to get to my next charger or destination with about 15% - 20% remaining. That allows for some unplanned issues (wind, temperature, detour, etc) that might use some of the battery.

If you plug your final destination in the Taycan's navigation system it will tell you the expected charge remaining at the destination. This prediction works really well. It will slowly adjust if driving conditions change, but it works really well as a tool for estimating.

Hope this helps. Enjoy the Taycan!

 

Honestly, you don't really have to do anything special to 'protect' the car's batteries. Unlike a Tesla where one can charge to true 100% and discharge to pretty much empty and relying on the consumer to do the proper job, Porsche thoroughly tested the car in all conditions and usage scenarios and the car itself will manage it for you, you can just treat it and drive it like a normal car. One could say it's idiot proof.

It's really up to your personal preference whether you want to top it off every night to start the day at 100% charge every time, or drive it like a normal car, i.e. charge it back up when you emptied the tank, whether that's in 1 day, a week, or 3 weeks.

My e-Tron is my school run car, 3% usage a trip, 2 trips a day and 30% usage every week, It's been on this 100% down to 10% and charge back up cycle for the last year or so. I am treating my Taycan the same way, Park it and walk away, unless I know I will be going far the next day and need a full charge. Even my Panamera turbo S is getting the same treatment to it's batteries, every time I take it out, I am almost always having a empty hybrid battery before I go back home as I always start the car in E-mode first. Same was for my 918, that car is 5 years old now and the battery is still going strong, no range lost still.

When the charging is done, I leave the car plugged in, there is no need to disconnect for fear of over charging. The cars themselves have battery management software to meter the charge when full to just maintain the battery. My 918's been parked for a year and plugged it for a year too and it's perfectly fine to do that.

 

It’s not damage so much as wear. Charging to 100% once in a while is no problem at all. Doing so all the time is a bit harder on the batteries. Similarly, high speed chargers are more wear inducing. Avoid using a high speed DC charger as your “daily” charger. Yes, people have done this instead of charging at home. Many Model S owners inadvertently sacrificed to bring us this information. Lol.

 

Thanks Manitou and Whoopsy, this is super useful.

Whoopsy, sounds like you use the full range of the indicated charge range from Zero to 100% and your reasoning is that there are margins at both end handled by software
Manitou am I correct that you tend to us 20-85% of the indicated range and only going to 100% for long trips....just clarifying.

Also, since I haven't charged yet, will there be a way to set the charging limits since it seems (for example 85% vs 100% Max)?

Finally, Whoopsy, you mention your 918 (which btw is a beautiful car) is there a chance you got that 4 years ago....the reason I ask is my 993 arrived in a truck here in seattle and was going upt to Vancouver from here with one remaining car....a 918.

Thank again folks....

 

My car is one of the early cars and actually got delivered to me November 2014, so it's coming up 6 years now. The one you saw on the transport was a 'flipped' car, someone in the USA flipped the car to one of Vancouver's 2nd hand dealers, I know that car.

And yes, I am using the full range offered by the EVs, with a top buffer and a bottom buffer, I am really not stressing the batteries much if at all, Porsche's software already did the job on "preserving" the batteries, why should I do it myself? They know their own product best after all. If I am not suppose to do that in the first place, then Porsche would have already set the limits from the onset. Simple logic. Put it another way, do you not have sex with your wife to preserve her for the next guy? Or that you limit yourself to like 50 pumps just so her vagina is going to be fresh for the next guy? Of course not! She has her own brain and can feel what's best for her, if she is not up for seconds she would have told you so.

Face it, the Taycan turbo S you just got is not a forever car, can you picture yourself driving it still after 4, 5, 7 years? EVs are like iPhones, the tech on the car is progressing at a great pace, you wouldn't want to get stuck with a car after even like 3 years if that long even. In simple terms, EVs are disposable cars. You are NOT going to try find a 2020 Taycan turbo S in the year 2040, like you did 4 years ago trying to find a good 993 that was made 15-20 years ago.

The e-Tron I got was on a lease, I never planned on keeping it, it runs on ancient 400V tech. It will be outdated very quickly. The Taycan I bought was a outright purchase, but I had a great deal with great discount, I was planning on keeping it for a year and change if that anyways. I only bought a 4S, as I had a extended test drive with a Taycan turbo before and I wanted to see and feel the difference as I planned on buying a Cross Turissmo next year and wanted to see if I would miss anything form the turbo. As of right now after a month into the 4S ownership, I don't think I miss anything, so very likely I am going to order a 4S Cross Turissmo next year. With EVs, there isn't too much incremental performance benefits, heck I don't even have the Sport Chronos option on my 4S and I don't miss it one bit. It's not the straight line acceleration of the Taycan that impresses me, it's the cornering, handling part, the car simply travel on rails. It is a lot closer to the handling of a 911 than my Panamera. Porsche is quite correct in calling the Taycan their sports car. It is, I would probably put it in a grand touring category, the Panamera is firmly in the sport sedan bracket for sure.

 

If someone have to use a high speed fast charger for their EV every day, then they bought the wrong car. It simply means a EV is not the best choice for their usage pattern. Their needs are better served with a hybrid or normal car.

 

Whoopsy, you had me rolling on the floor with your analogies....also your other points are spot on. I think if I were to do it again, I would follow your philosophy....all the extras in the Turbo S and options I ordered are probably not ones I would ever use (such as PID) and definitely all the improvement in the self driving world are accelerating anyway.

 

It used to be when I order I new Porsche, I automatically start with the turbo S version. They always have distinctive features that set it apart from the regular versions, the Taycan is the only one that has no differences and a 4S can be config to look just like a turbo S. I was going to order a Taycan turbo S, like usual. But after looking deeper into the specs and stuff, I decided to just buy a 4S first, see if I can live with it, feature wise and performance wise. I test drove a turbo a while ago and honestly there isn't too much difference between the 2 on performance. Since my target was to get the Cross Turismo version next year, this 4S I have got is just going to last me one year or so and I can always do the turbo next time around if I am not satisfied.

I am not going to do the juvenile thing and drag race Teslas on stop lights, so Launch Control is pointless for me, so no need for Sport Chronos. Features that's most important to me will be the interior bits, I spend the most time inside the car so it has toe be a really nice interior. Burmester is a must have, my current car has it and it's awesome, sounds even better than the Burmester system in my Panamera turbo S. The premium package already have most items thatI wanted to be standard also. RWS is on the fence item, I don't have it on my current car, don't really miss it, but it will be a nice thing to have for parking in tight places. Everything else would just be per personal preference.

You already have the top dog, Taycan turbo S, nothing is faster, loaded with features that you may or may not use but doesn't quite matter, go drive the car and enjoy it to the fullest!!

 

Congrats on the new car!
I have the Turbo S as well, and opted to go for the Turbo S when you consider the options “included” in the Turbo S comparing to the 4S. However, if you look at the performance and daily feel, probably not worth it.

i also have the Panamera Turbo S, and they are completely different cars. The Taycan is a true sports car and feels like a 911 (drove the 992 and Taycan back to back on track, and the feel, besides the engine, is very similar). The Panamera feels so much heavier, and even though it’s a great car, the only thing I find annoying, is that the suspension has some lateral movement (side to side), which increase the feel of a big car. The Taycan does not. Keeping the Panamera because of the extra room for family road trips.

You asked about “all seasons”. I live in Norway, and if you are into cars here, you quickly learn that there is nothing called “all season”. Tires are made with compounds that has an optimal temperature range, and threads made for the surface it will meet. Your Pirellis are made for summer temperatures and dry and wet roads, not snow. When temperature drops low, the Pirellis will become slippery, as the rubber is not made for optimal grip at very low temperatures, and in snow they will be hopeless. Similarly, the “all season” tires, may have ok grip in the snow, but on a warm summer day, it will be way too soft, your braking distance will be 20-30% longer, and you will wear them out quickly. Next winter, if you have driven them all summer, they will essentially be worthless.

i have the Mission E with Pirellis for my summer, and then I have a set of 20” rims with proper winter tires that I change to for winter (have to change very soon). Wanted to get the 21” for winter as well, but there were no suitable winter tires in that size.

Enjoy your car 😄

 

The minimus setting is actually the maximum so just the m minimum to 85%. My home charger installer suggested I should let the charge go below 25% but this is not verified by Porsche. Lots of YouTube videos on adjusting charging profile.

 

@lowpue
got some more information about keeping the Taycan plugged into the wall.

For the last 2 weeks or so, I had the car parked and plugged into the Porsche Mobile Charger Connect or whatever it is named. Their 'intelligent' charger so to speak. It connects to wifi and report it's usage to the MyPorsche website and the charger needed to be linked to a MyPorsche ID.

Anyways, after plugged it in, I checked the next day and it was charge to 100%. Didn't bother to check it again until today and surprise surprise the car and charger combo have decided to let the battery drain down to 85%. I did not set anything in the car charging preference.

If I had the car plugged into my FLO wall charger it will get charged to 100% too, and also kept it there for at least 4 days as I have done that before, ignoring the car for 4 days. So I believe the in car setting for charge level is for when plugging into a non-Porsche charger and leaving the car plugged in.

Will need to experiment a bit more to find out.

 

Thanks for additional data....can you clarify what you meant that you were at 100% and then the charger drained you down to 85%....that sounds kind of strange....

 

Well it is exactly what is said. The car was charged up to 100% the next day after I plugged it in. I haven't touched it for almost 2 weeks and it would seems the battery management software together with the Porsche charger adjusted the charge level downwards to be at ~85%. I guess they turn on and off some systems in the car to use up the charge to get it down to 85% from 100%. Don't believe it send power back to the wall to get it down.

Since I didn't set the charge level manually in the car or the app, and the car kept the 100% charge when plugged into a 3rd party charger, that means the car itself together with the Porsche charger take the initiative.

 

1. Answer: it's 85% of what the car currently considers the usable battery capacity - Porsche reserves some battery buffer at the top/bottom for LiON battery management and longevity - it's 85% of what they are letting use of available capacity.
2. Answer: same as #1 - it's 100% of what the BMS (Battery Management Software) is letting you use of available capacity
3. Answer: I don't know - I seem to have 5% control on my PCM - no other options will pop-up when you plug in
4. 5-90% should have little if _ANY_ effect on battery longevity - the main things that kill a LiON battery are:
   1. keeping the battery at a true 100% for Long periods of time
   2. charging/discharging at temperatures outside the batterie's ideal range
   3. fast charging at very very high rates of charge for a majority of the battery's charging sessions

if the items 1-3 listed above I have the following opinions

1. most users (yourself likely included) will not use the vehicle in such. manner
2. Porsche has an elaborate and well designed thermal management system that will manage this for you - there is very little control you can exert over this and the vehicle will keep the battery at the temperatures necessary for it's longevity
3. most users are unlikely to fast charge more than a few (10's) times a year - so again this is unlikely to weigh heavily on the battery's longevity

if you drive this car as a daily driver - which means less than 100 miles a day - 4-6 days a week - and 3 or 4 road trips a year - the battery life will largely outside your control and none of that usage will accelerate battery degradation - don't charge to 100% unless you need it, don't fast charge ever day and you'll be fine. The rest of the time you can drive it like you stole it and it's very very unlikely anything you can do will materially affect battery life.

I charge my EV's every day to 80-90% so that they are "full" the next day so I don't have to worry about my range - this is the ideal use case for an EV and to date with Teslas has shown very little in terms of battery life concern or capacity.