Family sedan, Porsche style
The Taycan facelift is faster, lighter, has more range and charges faster
LAUNCHED IN 2019, THE TAYCAN HAS garnered praise all over the world for being a fun, practical super sedan. Now, Porsche has rolled out the facelift which, on paper, is quite impressive. For starters, there’s more power across the board, with the top-end Taycan Turbo S now producing 939bhp, making it the most powerful production Porsche. The base RWD Taycan makes 429bhp, the 4S 590bhp, and the Turbo makes 872bhp. There are bigger batteries as well – 89kWh and 105kWh, up from 79.2kWh and 93.4kWh previously, and a new motor on the rear axle makes up to 107bhp more while weighing around 10kg less. All of these improvements should make the Taycan a beast off the line. The Taycan Turbo S, for example, now gets to 100kmph in just 2.4 seconds, 0.4 seconds faster than its predecessor, while the base Taycan is now 0.6 seconds quicker.
Another improvement is the extended range – up to 35 per cent more than the previous models. Figures for the entire range aren’t out yet but Porsche claims a maximum WLTP range of 678km. Charging speed has gone up to 320kW which translates to a reduced 10-80 per cent charge time of 18 minutes. More efficiency measures are in place, like better powertrain components, a modified pulse inverter, revised heat management, and 30 per cent more recuperation capacity than before.
The exterior design has also received a facelift, featuring new front and rear-end styling with enhanced headlights and taillights. The interior features an updated digital instrument cluster and central display. An optional passenger display is also there now. The new Taycan also boasts a long list of standard equipment including ambient lighting, park assist, heated front seats, Porsche Intelligent Range Manager (PIRM), Power Steering Plus along with aero-optimised wheels and reduced-rolling-resistance tyres. Adaptive air suspension also comes as standard now, while the new Porsche Active Ride suspension is available as an option for all-wheel-drive versions.
Since the Taycan range is already available in India, we can expect the updated models to land here too. When, remains to be seen. ⌧