Porsche started their electrical offensive with the Taycan Turbo S. Soon after, a Taycan Turbo came around and after that, Porsche released...
the Taycan 4S. And now, there's a fourth version. The Taycan. That's right, without any additions: the entry level version.
As opposed to the three other versions, this Taycan only has rear-wheel drive. There's no electric motor at the front anymore.
Between the rear-wheels, you've got the same electric motor as found in the Taycan 4S. That means it's less powerful,
but less weight and a lower price as well. Prices for this base-Taycan start at €87.000, which is still a lot of money.
However, it's about €25.000 less than you'd have to pay for the 4S. So the question is, do you get less Porsche for less money, or will it still...
be as good?
The most important news is all hidden away underneath the skin. You can't see it, but it's there. Let's start things off with the chassis.
This car comes with regular springs as standard. That's right. It's the first Taycan with a regular suspension setup.
It does have adaptive shocks, because it's still a Porsche. Also, this particular car has the optional air suspension, which costs an additional...
€2.300. Not that much, considering the total price of this car. However, it was kind of a problematic thing. Because this car doesn't have...
an electric motor at the front anymore, the Taycan is 90 kg lighter. And you could ask yourself, what is 90 kg on a total...
of over 2.000 kg? Well, with a 50-50-weight distribution, that means there's a nine percent decrease in weight at the front.
And when that occurs in a car that's all about precision and the details, that asks for a recalibration. So Porsche has delivered.
The car nicely follows the direction of the steering wheel, which is partly the result of the recalibration as well.
They've updated the steering as well. And it corners very easily now. That's only because of the recalibration, but because the front wheels...
only have to steer. They don't have to process power. That doesn't make it a 911, but it does make it a tad more playful than the four-wheel...
drive-versions. And I drove one of those last week, so I'm able to compare them quite easily.
What they've been busy with at Porsche as well is the braking system. Usually, when you brake, the front brakes work the hardest,
so it's easier to regenerate energy at the front. However, the front doesn't have an electric motor. That's why only the rear...
wheels brake the car. Only when there's a need for harder braking or when dynamic circumstances ask for it, the front discs kick in.
If it needs to stop even quicker, the discs at the back kick in as well. And the transition between braking systems is seemless.
Despite there being only one electric motor, this Taycan has the same battery packs available as the more powerful versions.
That means that the base version has a battery pack of 79,2 kWh, with a bigger battery pack of 93,4 kWh being available as well.
With that, this car should be able to do 484 km on a single charge according to WLTP.
In the real world, it's a tad less. When I started the car this morning, it had a range of 377 km, which seems pretty realistic.
I've driven it for some time now and the range has decreased at the same rate as I drove kilometres, so that checks out.
Because of the smaller battery pack, there's a smaller amount of electricity available, which means it only produces 408 horsepower...
in overboost. If you get the Performance Plus-battery pack, it will produce 476 horsepower in overboost.
Not a weak car at all. In both cases, the Taycan will go from 0-100 km/h in 5,4 seconds. That doesn't make it the quickest Porsche, but it sure...
is quick enough. Especially in the inbetween sprints this car is rapid. So, to answer the question if less money buys you less Porsche:
on paper it looks that way, but if you use it as a daily driver, I wouldn't be so sure.