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One statistic sums up the Porsche Taycan Turbo S Sport Turismo: 0-62 mph in 2.3 seconds. Many people will say this figure is irrelevant, but it reflects the highly impressive engineering behind this EV (and yes there’s an appropriate price tag attached).
Many people who are passionate about driving Porsches with internal combustion engines are likely to be labelled ‘petrolheads’; we challenge anyone who might fit that category to try the Taycan Turbo S Sport Turismo and not be wowed by its vital statistics and the way that its performance is delivered.
The Porsche Taycan Sport Turismo, with a hatchback rather than a boot, aims to provide more practicality than the Taycan saloon, without having the slightly raised ride height of the Taycan Cross Turismo.
However the rear luggage space – at 446 litres compared to the 407 litres of the saloon – still doesn’t make it a large estate that can comfortably accommodate, for example, two dogs. There’s also an 84-litre front trunk (‘frunk’).
Although you get rear seats – not always guaranteed in sports cars – there are only really two of them, although our test car had the option of ‘4+1 seats’, and rear legroom is tight – despite the car’s 4,962mm length.
Under the skin there’s a Performance Battery Plus, now with a gross capacity of 105 kWh (with a net usable capacity of 97.0 kWh), increased from 93 kWh in the previous model, with electric motors at the front and rear (the latter with 80 kW more power than its predecessor), delivering all-wheel drive.
Porsche’s Turbo S label is all about ultimate performance. The Taycan Turbo S has 775 hp of power, or with Launch Control, 952 hp, along with 1,110 Nm of torque. The result of this is its 0-62 mph time of 2.3 seconds. “No one needs such a ridiculously fast acceleration time” will be the cry from many, which is a fair point. But this figure is just part of the entire package, which is a demonstration of how electric cars can deliver incredible performance and an exhilarating driving experience.
So, yes, the 0-62 mph of 2.3 seconds is amazing – and in that very short two-second or so window you can feel the powertrain, suspension, wheels and tyres doing everything they can to achieve that target time. Perhaps the most impressive aspect is how the Taycan puts its grip down onto the tarmac without all four wheels spinning as a result of 952 hp and 1,110 Nm. This will be due in large part to the electric all-wheel drive system with variable torque distribution and Porsche Traction Management (PTM).
As if the basic acceleration wasn’t enough, there’s also a new ‘push-to-pass’ function in the Taycan’s Sport Chrono package (in combination with the Performance Battery Plus), which gives a boost up to 952 hp. This is activated via a small black button in the middle of the drive modes dial on the steering wheel, and is the most understated button for warp speed that we’ve ever seen – come on Porsche, please paint it red. When you press it you get a 10-second countdown before the power returns to the lowly figure of 775 hp.
Once you’re underway, the next thing that defies the laws of physics is the way the Taycan – which feels low and wide – doesn’t roll through fast corners, yet the ride quality remains comfortable, even in Sport Plus mode. This is due to adaptive air suspension which is now standard on every new Taycan. However our test car also featured the new Porsche Active Ride suspension, incorporating air springs and actively controlled shock absorbers. This can be ordered as an option for all-wheel drive models – at a cost of £6,476.
With the amazing performance, you need amazing brakes, which the Taycan has – the Porsche Ceramic Composite Brakes (another option, for £640) performed faultlessly.
And of course one of the main defining qualities of a Porsche is the interaction between the driver and the road via the steering, and the Taycan’s steering feels tight: you turn the steering wheel and there’s an instant change in direction.
The Taycan Turbo S Sport Turismo weighs 2,325 kg, but all the car’s engineering does a really good job at hiding that mass; it feels a lot more agile than it should.
So the Taycan is a genuinely rewarding driver’s car on country roads – helped by the simulated engine sound – but it also feels very planted to the road on motorways, as well as being refined. The vast majority of EVs have a single-speed transmission, but the Taycan’s motorway efficiency is helped by its two-speed transmission on the rear axle – you can feel it changing gear, with no perceptible pause in acceleration.
The Taycan’s gear selector is a lever on the dashboard which is hidden behind the left-hand side of the steering wheel rim. The options are R, N, and D; there’s no option for increased brake regeneration. Instead there’s a very, very small button on the bottom left of the touchscreen in the vehicle menu which you need to push to select increased regen. This is one of the very few things with the Taycan that we’d like to see improved – steering wheel-mounted paddles would be a much better way to control the level of brake regen. However at least the regen setting of on or off stays the same the next time you start the car.
The drive mode selector is much more user-friendly – there’s a dial on the bottom right of the steering wheel which you twist to give you the options of Range, Normal, Sport and Sport Plus – with the ‘push-to-pass’ button in the middle.
There are also some additional digital controls on the top right of the driver’s instrument display, including allowing you to select the suspension setting, and to switch off the traction control. On the left side of the driver’s instrument display are the light controls, which again are in a user-friendly place.
In fact the entire infotainment system is user-friendly – there’s a central touchscreen with graphics featuring clear buttons for shortcuts, and a second lower screen also has clear shortcuts along with clear buttons for items such as cabin temperature and fan speed – the latter being something that is almost impossible to access easily on many new cars. There’s also a head-up display giving speed and satnav directions.
One symbol that’s hard to see behind the left-hand side of the steering wheel rim is the icon to show that the lane departure warning system has been switched off, which is done by pressing a secret small button at the bottom of the cruise control stalk behind the steering wheel.
As you would hope with a Porsche, the driving position is excellent, and the steering wheel and its spokes are thin enough to wrap your hands around – something else that is very unusual in the latest cars.
The Porsche Taycan Turbo S Sport Turismo has a WLTP combined electric range of 361 miles, which is an increase for this latest model, and is impressive for a car with this much performance. The real world range was averaging 320 miles. Electrical consumption (combined) is 3.15 miles/kWh.
Thanks to its 800-volt architecture, the Taycan has a maximum ultra-rapid charging rate of 320 kW (an increase of 50 kW compared to the last model), which can deliver a 10% to 80% charge in 18 minutes, and charging rates of more than 300 kW can be sustained for up to five minutes. A 0% to 100% charge at an 11kW AC charger (typically found at a workplace in the UK) should take 9 hours.
There are electric charging ports on the driver and front passenger sides, and the Taycan features one of the latest heat pumps with a new cooling system, which aims to provide warmth in the cabin in cold weather with minimal impact on the car’s range.
The Porsche Taycan Turbo S Sport Turismo is priced at £163,200. Our test car had a large number of items of optional equipment, including Porsche Active Ride (£6,476), Panoramic Roof with Variable Light Control (£3,925), Burmester 3D High-End Surround Sound System (£3,569), Night Vision Assist (£1,750), thermally and noise insulated glass including privacy glass (£1,273), Head-Up Display (£1,240), Surround View with Active Parking Support (£1,088), Porsche InnoDrive with Active Lane Keeping (£950), Porsche Design Sport Chrono Clock (£783), front seat ventilation (£787), Porsche Entry (£648), Porsche Ceramic Composite Brake (PCCB) with brake calipers in black high-gloss (£640), soft-close doors (£546), 21-inch RS Spyder Design Wheels (£426) and 4+1 seats (£370), taking the total price to an eye-watering £188,272.
Three body styles are available – the Taycan saloon, the Taycan Cross Turismo and the Taycan Sport Turismo. In each case, four powertrain options are available (base model, 4S, Turbo, and Turbo S), with rear and all-wheel drive. Prices start from £86,500 for the Taycan saloon.
The Porsche Taycan Turbo S Sport Turismo is a highly impressive machine. Its performance, handling, ride, range and charging speed all show what is possible with an EV. It offers slightly more practicality than the Taycan saloon, and even the infotainment is well thought out and clear. However all this doesn’t come cheap – and it’s possible to extend the price tag even further with options (£783 for a clock, anyone?). Despite the price, the Porsche Taycan Turbo S Sport Turismo is the ultimate example of how it’s possible for an EV to keep petrolheads happy, and it’s awarded a Green Car Guide rating of 10 out of 10.
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