Porsche Taycan: Dramatically better!

The first test drives for the press were safely held in California – between Los Angeles and San Diego, where the weather is nice and up to 25 degrees warm during the day. Ideal for optimal range and great photos. Because Porsche has massively updated the Taycan and promises more power, more range, faster acceleration, and shorter as well as "more robust" charging times. And they've also added a bit to the previously somewhat spartan standard equipment.

Important: More range and (even) faster charging

Most importantly: Depending on the body variant and engine type, the WLTP range increases to up to 678 kilometers, which according to Porsche is a plus of 175 kilometers or 35 percent. Colleagues who were on the road with the Taycan report that they were offered ranges of nearly 600 kilometers – previously, in practice, it was actually rarely more than 450 km give or take…

And: It now charges with up to 320 instead of 270 kW. But it doesn't help if you plug in and this performance is only offered for a very short time: That's why Porsche claims to have "significantly extended" the fast-charging window of the new Performance Battery: This way, charging capacities of over 300 kW should be achievable for up to five minutes. Outside of Southern California, this is even more important: Even at low temperatures, high charging capacities can be achieved faster.

Ideally, the Taycan charges twice as fast at an HPC charger

Depending on the individual driving profile, the required charging time from ten to 80 percent SoC (State of Charge) can be reduced by up to half compared to the previous model. For the first-generation Taycan, the charging time from ten to 80 percent SoC at 15 degrees Celsius battery temperature, according to Porsche, is still 37 minutes. Under the same conditions, the updated Taycan models only require 18 minutes despite higher battery capacity. The Performance Battery Plus now has a gross energy content of 105 kWh instead of 93 kWh.

2.4 seconds to 100 km/h is quite a statement

What wouldn't have been so important, but was a "side effect": All updated Taycan models are supposed to accelerate significantly faster. Two examples at the lower and upper ends of the portfolio: the Taycan and Taycan Turbo S as sports sedans reach the 100-km/h mark from a standstill in only 4.8 and 2.4 seconds, respectively. This makes them 0.6 and 0.4 seconds faster than their predecessors. Although inexperienced passengers were already feeling queasy when taking advantage of this (well, not in the Taycan – we even once lost a 0-100 km/h duel against a 30-year-old pimped AMG), but as mentioned: In terms of electromobility, you can currently make big leaps and it would be foolish not to.

The Turbo S is approaching the 1,000 hp mark

With the new Push-to-Pass function of the Sport Chrono package, an additional power output of up to 70 kW can be activated at the push of a button, depending on the model, for ten seconds. The sportier acceleration values are the result of a generally higher system performance. For instance, the base Taycan delivers 60 kW more than before. In the Taycan Turbo S, the increase is even 140 kW when Launch Control is used. This raises the system output of the top model to 700 kW (952 hp).
 

Even the chassis has been subtly refined: all updated Taycan models are now equipped with an adaptive air suspension as standard. Optionally, the new Porsche Active Ride Suspension can be ordered for the all-wheel-drive versions. This system is said to offer an even greater range between driving comfort and driving dynamics. This is also a point that has already been well received by everyday drivers.

The chassis is designed to keep the Taycan's body consistently horizontal, even during dynamic braking, steering, and acceleration maneuvers. During smooth driving, the system should almost completely absorb road irregularities, although this needs to be seen in relative terms given the sometimes terrible Californian roads. In dynamic driving situations, the Porsche Active Ride Suspension is supposed to offer even better road connection through a balanced distribution of wheel loads: when the corresponding mode is activated, the suspension can overcompensate for pitch and roll inclinations to reduce the accelerations acting on the occupants. This somewhat contradicts the now possible (longitudinal) acceleration values.

There's much more to come: Porsche massively increased efficiency

And even if it doesn't look like it: Porsche has massively improved the entire powertrain: with a new rear axle motor that is up to 80 kW more powerful in all models, a modified pulse inverter with optimized software. Additionally, more powerful batteries, a revised thermal concept, a next-generation heat pump, and a changed recuperation and all-wheel-drive strategy have been included. Most importantly, the batteries offer more capacity with less weight.

According to Porsche, the maximum recuperation power during decelerations from high speeds has also increased by more than 30 percent, from 290 to up to 400 kW. All derivatives now come standard with aerodynamically optimized wheels and reduced rolling resistance tires. New wheels and tires have been specifically developed for the 21-inch dimension.

More equipment and yet less weight

Although the standard equipment has been upgraded, the models are supposed to weigh up to 15 kilograms less. This is a small feat given the almost unchanged body structure. Ambient lighting, Park Assistant including reversing camera, electrically foldable exterior mirrors with lighting for the mirror area, heated front seats, Porsche Intelligent Range Manager (PIRM), heat pump with new cooling concept, smartphone tray for wireless charging, electric charging flap on both the driver's and passenger's side, Drive Mode switch, and Power Steering Plus are now finally standard. Except for the electric charging flap, most of these are basics already found in most much cheaper mainstream electric cars. Thank you, Porsche, for finally understanding this... Even the base Taycan models now include adaptive air suspension and aluminum door sill guards as standard.