Porsche Taycan: More than a Facelift

Porsche has overhauled the Taycan – comprehensively, no, very comprehensively! The new model year from 2024 boasts more power, greater range, faster acceleration, and shorter, more robust charging times. Furthermore, the Turbo models have been more distinctly differentiated. All Taycan versions come with a more extensive standard equipment package and the latest generation of the Porsche Driver Experience.

According to Porsche, on the way to production readiness, development engineers and test drivers have covered over 3.6 million kilometers around the globe with disguised test vehicles to further improve Porsche's first all-electric sports car. The sports car manufacturer has produced nearly 150,000 Taycans to date. The most important individual markets for the Taycan are currently the USA, UK, Germany, and China.

Let's get straight to perhaps the biggest pain point of its predecessors, the range: On the open highway, the range could sometimes shrink to under 200 kilometers, and in the winter, even careful drivers could sometimes not reach 300 kilometers. Now Porsche states up to 678 kilometers, meaning with the large battery, realistically 400 plus-minus x should be achievable. Even the top model, the Turbo GT, is still located at up to 555 km. Porsche talks about up to 35% more range. The battery with LG cells (for the Macan they are from CATL) now offers gross 105 (net 97) instead of 93 kW, and the small battery has also been increased accordingly. It now offers 89 kWh, net 82.3 kWh, which should still be sufficient for 503 to 590 km according to WLTP, realistically 350 plus-minus x.

Much more charging power - and more stable over time

But the charging power has also dramatically increased: The Taycan now charges with up to 320 kW and can maintain up to 300 kW for over five minutes. Temperature regulation of the battery has also been fine-tuned. The charge from 10 to 80% SOC should now be achievable in 18 minutes. And the recuperation capacity has dramatically increased – from 290 to 400 kW. Despite this, the battery became lighter, its weight dropping from 634 to 615 kg, mainly due to revised power rails and an even more refined new protective plate. Those who stay in the car while charging now receive an even more precise charging prognosis display – even when the charging station throttles – and by how much it does so. And thanks to the new battery conditioning, full charging can now occur at 15 degrees instead of 35 degrees battery temperature, or conversely: The battery no longer needs to be pre-conditioned as intensively on cold days. And since we're on the topic of charging: Phones now charge faster too – with 15 instead of 5 watts.

The headlights: With 32,000 instead of 84 pixels!

Visually, a lot has also changed, including improved aerodynamics: The headlights now work with 32,000 instead of the previous 84 pixels and project their light up to 600 meters ahead! They can also narrow down to vehicle width in construction zones, guiding you more precisely through tight spots. According to Porsche, the main headlights generate "a bright, homogeneous, and precise light carpet that dynamically and instantaneously adapts to the respective driving situation." The recalculation happens every 16 milliseconds. Additionally, there are new bumpers and aero wheels; as mentioned, Porsche has revised almost every part. This resulted in a weight saving of 15 kg overall.

The chassis could become one of the most noticeable differences in practice

But let's not digress. One significant difference should also be made by the chassis: All Taycans now come with an adaptive two-chamber air suspension, and for the all-wheel-drive versions, Active Ride with two-valve dampers can be ordered. These should be able to overcompensate for pitching and rolling motions, meaning the Taycan always maintains an even stance without dipping during acceleration or braking, and in curves, it can even lean in like a motorcycle through "overcompensation"! This is controlled by a data-driven volume flow in the dampers, which is continuously adjusted in the millisecond range. Whether the optional Entrance Assistant, which raises the car for entry and exit as opposed to lowering it like in the Range Rover, is really needed is debatable, as well as the "heli function," which lifts the rear when starting and the front when braking – again through overcompensation.

All drives became more powerful, more efficient, and lighter

A new rear axle drive offers 80 kW more power, is 10.4 kilograms lighter than its predecessor, and is the only component that also features in the new PPE platform. It starts with 320 kW (435 hp) in the base Taycan, which offers 420 Nm of torque and a top speed of 230 km/h. Above that is the 4S with 440 kW (598 hp), offering 710 Nm, accelerating to 100 km/h in 3.7 seconds, and reaching 250 km/h. Since the 4S is as powerful as the EX-GTS, it has been discontinued, and the Turbo and Turbo S top off the range: With 650 or 700 kW, that's 884 or 962 hp. This means 940 and 1110 Nm of torque, and they accelerate to 100 km/h in 2.7 and 2.4 seconds respectively. Top speed: 260 km/h for both.