Porsche expecting RWD Taycan to be popular

A YEAR into the life of its first electric vehicle, the Taycan, Porsche Cars Australia is “not taking our foot off the throttle” as more variants are rolled out to cater for different budgets, lifestyles and demographics.

Having already overtaken the iconic 911 as third most-popular Porsche model in Australia, and this year surpassing BMW’s 5 series as the nation’s favourite large passenger car above $70,000 with a sizeable 32.6 per cent segment share, the Taycan has quickly established itself in the market.

Initial deliveries of the $156,300 (before on-road costs) entry-level rear-drive Taycan sedan have just started – joining the 4S, Turbo and Turbo S that launched in February 2021 – and is expected to at least match the top-selling 4S for popularity here.

The Cross Turismo ruggedised wagon, available from last September in 4S and Turbo guises, has been accounting for a quarter of Taycan sales since it went on sale and will soon be joined by an entry-level ‘4’ variant.

From mid-year, a mid-spec GTS variant of the Taycan sedan will also launch in Australia, bringing the number of available Taycan variants to eight. Porsche Cars Australia has no plans to introduce the low-slung Sport Turismo wagon version of the Taycan GTS.

Sales of the 4S sedan have proved strong and the variant currently has a waiting list out to early next year, while orders placed today for the rear-drive entry variant will likely be delivered sooner – in September or October.

In an interview with GoAuto at the Taycan rear-drive sedan launch in Noosa last week, Porsche Cars Australia head of public relations Chris Jordan said rear-drive and 4S sedans would likely each account for a quarter of overall Taycan volume in the fullness of time.

“Sales are really an indication of supply available to us; being a newer model our order bank being open only a short time means there’s a bit more availability (of the rear-drive sedan),” he explained.

Mr Jordan told GoAuto the Taycan volume split was in line with expectations and that PCA was “very pleased” with strong demand for its first all-electric model.

“Year two is an enormous focus for us and we don’t want to rest on our laurels; right from when we were doing our planning years ahead of the Taycan launch, year two was very important for us so we’re not taking our foot off the throttle there,” he said.

“Year two should be very good given demand is strong, the order bank is very healthy, and we’ve got these exciting models coming as well to broaden the range.”

Mr Jordan said the Taycan had attracted a spectrum of buyers, ranging from existing Porsche customers buying their first electric vehicle, EV owners and fans buying their first Porsche and people for whom the Taycan was both their first Porsche and first EV.

Priced from $156,300 + ORC, the sole rear-drive Taycan variant is a substantial $38,400 more affordable than the 4S but a far cry from the sparsely specified entry-level Porsches of old.

Keyless entry and start, LED exterior and interior lighting, leather-appointed upholstery in a selection of single- and two-tone cabin colourways, 14-way electric front seat adjustment and a leather-trimmed multi-function steering wheel are standard.

High-definition digital displays comprise two-deck 10.9-inch central touchscreens, a 16.8-inch curved instrument panel and a colour head-up display projected onto the windscreen. A third passenger-facing display is optional.

Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone connectivity – but no wireless phone charging – as well as an embedded mobile connection, dual-zone climate control with both temperature and fan adjustment for each front occupant, native sat-nav, DAB+ digital radio reception, four USB-C ports and surround-view cameras plus front and rear parking sensors.

Adaptive cruise control lane-keep and lane change assist are standard, as is autonomous emergency braking with intersection collision intervention.

The absence of a front motor yields a 90kg weight saving, while the air suspension of the 4S and above is substituted by steel springs and adaptive dampers with three driver-selectable firmness settings. 

Boot capacity of 407 litres is 41L more than the rest of the Taycan sedans line-up. However, under-bonnet storage space remains at 84 litres.

The standard 79.2kWh battery pack provides a claimed range of 369km, although Mr Jordan said most customers opt for the $12,020 Performance Battery Plus (PBP) upgrade ups energy capacity to 93.4kWh, ups claimed range to 434km and overcomes the additional weight by upping power and torque from 240kW and 345Nm to 280kW/357Nm.

Activating launch control temporarily ups power to 300kW, or 350kW with the larger battery. Acceleration from 0-100km/h takes 5.4 seconds with either battery size but 0-200km/h is 1.1s quicker with the larger pack at 16.5s, while the 0-400m sprint is two tenths swifter at 13.5s.

Both batteries have 800-volt DC rapid charging capability, although the standard pack’s maximum charge rate is 225kW compared with 270kW for the PBP.

In the right conditions and with the right DC charger, Porsche says either battery pack will take 22.5 minutes to charge from five per cent to 80 per cent. The same cycle using a 50kW 400-volt DC charger will take 93 minutes, or the supplied 11kW AC onboard charger takes nine hours from empty to 100 per cent.

An optional ($3500) 22kW onboard charger (standard on Turbo and Turbo S variants) speeds up AC charging provided the underlying circuitry can handle these extra loads.

Other options include a $3370 panoramic glass roof, Race Tex roof lining ($3970), extended leather ($7540), Bose 14-speaker audio system ($2840), metallic paint ($2300) adaptive matrix LED headlights ($3620), ambient interior lighting ($890) and LED logo courtesy lights ($600).

Adding heated front seats costs $910, adaptive sports front seats with 18-way electric adjustment are $800, electrically operated charger covers come in at $1310, automated parking is $1890 and adding a central rear headrest and seatbelt to upgrade the Taycan from a four-seater to a “4+1” costs $1000.

Porsche’s Electric Sport Sound – a synthesised audio effect designed as a substitute for internal combustion engine noise – is $1050.

In 2021, Porsche sold 531 Taycans in Australia, outselling the 911 sportscar (428 units). The Cayenne large SUV sold 837 units and the Macan medium SUV achieved 2328 deliveries. The 718 Boxster and Cayman respectively notched up 109 and 147 deliveries while 48 examples of the Panamera limousine were sold.

To the end of February this year, 85 Taycans have been sold, along with 215 Cayennes, 451 Macans, 56 911s, 16 Boxsters, 12 Caymans and 11 Panameras. 

Overall Porsche sales were up 4.4 per cent last year in a market that was up 14.5 per cent and volume has grown 6.7 per cent in the first two months of 2022 against an overall market that has dipped 1.5 per cent.

2022 Porsche Taycan pricing*

*Excludes on-road costs

2022 Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo pricing*

*Excludes on-road costs