Taycan: Faster than a 911, cheaper too

Pricing and spec of the first pure-electric Porsche you can buy has been released.

WHAT catch to a Porsche everyone will swoon over that outperforms the classic 911 and costs $20,000 less?

None at all assuming you’re also committed to the way of the future and are happy to drive a car relying purely on electricity.

Porsche has today released New Zealand market pricing and specifications for the Taycan, the brand’s first pure-electric car, ahead of fuller availability, expected to occur from the fourth quarter, though a small fleet of demonstrators are now touring Porsche centres (their word for ‘dealership).

The Taycan 4S, pricing from $203,900, the Taycan Turbo starting at $289,900 and the Taycan Turbo S kicking off from $366,900 means the entry edition represents handily below the cheapest 911, a $223,200 wallet hit, and will outgun it by 0.2 seconds in the 0-100kmh sprint, which the 4S achieves in a claimed 4 seconds flat. 

The Taycan 4S is powered by a 79.2kWh Performance Battery producing an output of 320kW/640Nm, and offering up-to 390kW on overboost. It provides a claimed 365 kilometres of range and is capable of a top speed of 250kmh. 

The 93.4kWh Performance Plus battery can also be optioned on the 4S (pricing yet to be announced), offering an additional 40kW and 10Nm in normal driving conditions, but stretching to a maximum of 420kW on overboost. Claimed driving range is 414km.

The middle-of-the-range Porsche Taycan Turbo achieves a 0-100 time of just 3.2 seconds from 460kW, and up-to 500kW on overboost, A range of 420km when the battery is fully charged is claimed, also a top speed of 260kmh.

The flagship Taycan Turbo S can generate up to 560 kW of overboost power in combination with Launch Control. Zero to 100 falls to 2.8s and has a range of 405 km when the battery is fully charged.

The Taycan is the first electric vehicle to utilise an 800 volt system, with every other electric vehicle having a 400 volt system. Not only does this allow the driver greater access to the performance available from the battery, but Porsche claims this will also help to improve recharging times.

All NZ-delivered Taycans come with a Mode 3 charging cable for use at AC public charging stations, while a 150kW on-board DC charger is standard for 400 volt charging stations.

New Zealand models gain a range of standard equipment in addition to worldwide standard specifications. 

Surround view, comfort access, lane change assist, lane keeping assist, adaptive cruise control, front seat ventilation, steering wheel heating, rear side airbags, electrically folding exterior mirrors, digital radio and privacy glazing are standard.

Additional equipment for the Taycan 4S includes 20-inch ‘Sport Aero’ wheels, metallic paint, front seat heating, 14-way electric comfort seats, Auto-dimming mirrors as well as the BOSE Surround Sound system.

Taycan Turbo and Taycan Turbo S gain driving dynamic and comfort features like Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control (PDCC) Sport, four-zone Advanced Climate Control and ambient lighting.

Special K entering the EV-sphere?

Kia building a Porsche Taycan competitor? Imagine.

SHOCK news for anyone imagining Kia’s electric vehicle aspiration settles where it presently plugs, with the compact Niro.

 Latest from the Hyundai sub-brand is that while it still stick true to running the battery assault primarily with crossovers, the future fare will be much more adventurous – in shape and technology.

 Particularly exciting is talk about a product coming out next year; a high-riding luxury crossover with a sedan-esque shell that it is specifically targeting high-performance electric cars.

 While yet unseen in production form – indeed, it doesn’t even have a name at present (the in-house designation is simply ‘Kia CV’) – the shape of the newcomer model mightn’t seem wholly unknown, as the brand has let slip that it will draw strongly off the concept seen here.

This is the Imagine, a styling study that made quite an impression on its global unveiling at the 2019 Geneva motor show.

The car that will emerge is described as Kia’s first dedicated electric vehicle – to draw distinction from Niro and Hyundai’s Kona EV being very close in terms of engineering make-up, no matter that Kia uses a different battery to enable range superiority.

Even so, it’s not a 100 percent Kia in that it is going to base off Hyundai’s E-GMP platform which will underpin the parent’s own electric SUV, labelled the ‘45’. 

Indeed. being scalable, the new platform will be the launchpad for a whole host of electric Hyundai and Kia models. The latter said last week it is planning to have 11 EVs on sale in the next five years. Hyundai has indicated similar aspiration, though it has yet to cite an exact target number. 

What’s also hugely interesting about the Imagine’s showroom equivalent is that it will be set up to use an ultra-fast 800-volt battery system that could bring 15 minute EV pit stops to the masses.

To date, the only production EV with that capability is the Porsche Taycan, which with a peak charge of 270 kiloWatts can achieve a charge of five percent to 80 percent in about 20 minutes. That’s with the right kind of charging network in place, of course; you’re talking about 300kW charging stations.

Kia is talking about its car will have a range of just over 300kms, which is hardly going to impress Tesla-rati and in fact isn’t a lot more than a Niro. But, then, it could be sitting in the replenishment phase for much less time. And it will also be ludicrously quick, with 0-100kmh in under three seconds vowed for the hottest version. That’s comparable to the Taycan and the fastest Teslas and, obviously, a lot faster than any other car Kia has ever created.

There’s one small disappointment about the project in that the identity behind the concept is no longer with the company. Luc Donkerwolke has just resigned as chief design officer of Hyundai Group, citing personal reasons.

When Imagine was unveiled, the 54-year-old was then Kia’s head designer and, when questioned a year ago about the feasibility of Imagine hitting the street, he was quite confident it could do so with minimal change.

“I don’t see anything that’s really not feasible. There are some cost-related issues that have to be validated, but it hasn’t been done by designers who don’t understand how to build a car for production.”

Donkerwolke was lured to South Korea in 2016, having been with Volkswagen Group for 22 years. He was lured to Seoul with the promise of a free reign to set the design pathways for Hyundai and Genesis; he achieved this with radical effect, not least after achieving in 2018 the role he now leaves, a job that pulled Kia into his portfolio, succeeding Peter Schreyer.

Skoda shows off big Greenie

The electric Skoda destined for New Zealand has been unleashed in an appropriately green land.

THE covers - well, camo - are still on, but a lot of details have nonetheless come out about Skoda’s first electric vehicle for international markets, the Enyaq iV.

Even though the car is still under disguise, a media preview effort that involved taking it to Ireland - because, in addition to the ‘E’ also referencing ‘electric’ and the ‘q’ conforming to an in-house naming practice, Enyaq derives from the Gaelic girl’s name Enya (which means ‘fire’ and ‘kernel’), plus green is Skoda’s colour and Ireland is the Emerald Isle – to release video, images and a ton of spec information – there’s been little holding back on detail.

For instance, Skoda has confirmed a car earmarked for sale here within two years will come with the options of three battery sizes, five power variants and a driving range of up to 500 kilometres. It also provisions in rear-drive in entry form and four-wheel-drive further up the range and a performance all-paw RS edition with 225kW is on the cards.

The car, of course, bases off the common underpinnings and drive units developed by Volkswagen for the ID.3 hatch and ID.4 crossover and also heading to SEAT, for the el-Born: Also already cited as a local starter.

Where it prices is anyone’s guess, but in size Skoda’s EV slots between the Karoq and the Kodiaq, being 4648mm long, 1877mm wide and 1618mm tall, on a 2765mm wheelbase.  

It is also classed as an SUV, though realistically that’s just a convenience. The message from commentators who got to see and drive it is that, because of the massive battery pack within the floor, there isn't a great deal of ground clearance so don't expect to go very far off-road in it.

However, it is designed to tow (if only up to 1200kg) and will is as roomy as the Kodiaq, with a big cabin – made all the more spacious by the lack of a transmission tunnel – and a 585-litre boot. Unlike some other electric SUVs, there isn't a storage area under the bonnet.

If Skoda NZ entertains taking the full range, then conceivably Enyaq would provision in more variants than virtually any model it presently sells here.

The line starts with the 109kW Enyaq iV 50, driven by a rear-mounted electric motor (so, rear-wheel drive) with a 55kWh battery pack and a maximum driving range of 340 kilometres.

Above this is the Enyaq iV 60, also rear-wheel drive but with a 62kWh battery and a 390km driving range, then the Enyaq iV 80, the highest choice in the rear-motored set. It has an 82kWh battery offering 150kW and up to 500 kilometres’ range.

Beyond this are dual-motor all-wheel-drive 80X and RS variants, also with the 82kWh battery pack, but with a second electric motor driving the front wheels. In this form the 80X has 195kW and the RS another 30kW more. The extra grunt comes at expense of range, but not greatly, with 460km claimed. The RS is the only variant that Skoda has announced a 0-100kmh time for; claiming it’ll smash that in 6.2 seconds. That’s 0.8s better than the fastest current Kodiaq, the RS. 

Fast charging is also promised with an 80 percent 'fill' possible from 40 minutes at a 125kW DC-powered station … provoding, that is, you’re talking about the 82kWh models. The onboard 11kW charging unit will enable users with a suitable domestic wallbox to replenish the battery charge in six to nine hours, depending on battery size.

Skoda wouldn’t allow photos of the interior, but media noted it doesn’t have the usual Skoda instrument displays, but instead takes a small digital display ahead of a two-spoke steering wheel plus an augmented head-up display that projects onto the windscreen, as in the Volkswagen ID.3. A centrally mounted freestanding touchscreen sits atop the dashboard, and this will come in two sizes, 10- or 13-inch, depending on model.

Skoda’s bent for practicality reveals with decent interior storage, including a generous console between the front seats. It gets a large wireless charging pad that can charge two phones simultaneously. Oh yes, and it has the trad umbrella. 

Skoda has a wide variety of specification grades, starting with Studio, available in the Enyaq 50 alone. Additional Loft, Lodge, Suite and Eco Suite trim levels will be available on the 60 and 80 models, and Eco Suite features more sustainably sourced materials. The 60 and 80 versions will gain the largest touchscreen display, a 13-incher. 

The car taken to Ireland was an Enyaq 80 and even with four adults on board, it was determined to have plenty of performance to offer with the typical instantaneous pick-up that is associated with electric motors.

What stood out for invitees was the smoothness of the ride over secondary road surfaces. Said one Irish publication: “It impressively soaked up larger bumps and the damping effect was equally polished, despite the lack of air suspension. How much that will differ in cars fitted with the largest 21-inch wheels remains to be seen, but running on 19-inch rims (also wearing winter tyres), it left a positive impression.”