Porsche Taycan review

Range takes comparable hikes elsewhere in the model line-up – as does peak power output (which, in the case of all but that entry-level rear-wheel-drive Taycan, is available for short periods of time only, during Launch Control starts and driver-selected moments of push-to-pass-style motor and battery overboost). The Taycan 4S can now develop as much as 590bhp, the GTS 690bhp, the Turbo 872bhp and the Turbo S a whacking 939bhp. Turbo models use a rear motor of longer 'effective length' than the others, at 210mm versus 130mm (diameter is a constant 254mm, however).

The Taycan range is mostly structured as it was. So there’s a single-motor base model at the foot of the line-up and, above that, incrementally more powerful twin-motor 4S, Turbo and Turbo S models, leading up to the new range-topping Taycan Turbo GT. For bodystyles, you can still choose between regular four-door saloon, five-door Sport Turismo wagon and five-door, high-rise, all-surface Cross Turismo wagon versions (although there’s no single-motor Cross Turismo, but instead a Taycan 4 model in its place). Thanks to the aforementioned upgrades, the 0-62mph sprint for the single-motor Taycan is cut from 5.4sec to 4.8sec, while for the Turbo S it’s trimmed from 2.8sec to 2.4sec.

All versions of the car are now air suspended as a minimum, and all get more comfort and convenience features (a reversing camera, heated front seats, a heat pump for the powertrain and a wireless smartphone charger) as standard.

However, the Taycan can also be had with a new Porsche Active Ride system. This is an interlinked active damping system that uses electrically pressurised hydraulic reservoirs to manipulate each wheel in order to smooth out the ride and likewise even actively influence and change the car’s body posture within just fractions of a second. Our Turbo S test car uses the system, as well as rear-axle steering.

In the case of the Taycan Turbo, the car’s appetite for speed can begin to feel quite savage when fully tapped - but linear and perfectly responsive accelerator pedal calibration means that, even here, you never put on more speed than you intend. All versions of the Taycan we've tried have much the same character, it's just the quantity of the performance that changes.

Porsche has added a push-to-pass button on the car’s steering wheel-mounted drive mode selector knob, which dials up a 10sec hit of additional motor power on cars so equipped (dual-motor, Sport Chrono package, optional bigger battery) - but with so much power under your toe to begin with, it’s something you seldom find a need for on the road.

Use Normal driving mode and there’s no noise to speak of from the Taycan’s powertrain; dial up Sport or Sport Plus and there’s a synthesised electric powertrain noise to add some performance flavour - but you can turn it off individually if you so choose, and it’s one of the most subtle of its kind. The way it helps to telegraph throttle load, as well as the point at which the rear motor changes from first to second gear, can actually be quite useful, though some testers just found it annoying.

Drivability is kept simple. Except for the GTS, which optionally features steering wheel paddles, there are no dedicated physical energy regeneration controls, although one of the steering wheel buttons can be mapped to switch regen between off and either auto or 'on'. Even in its strongest mode, it's quite mild – certainly not enough for one-pedal operation – and most of the regen is controlled via the brake pedal.

Neither is the Taycan, even in RWD guise, as effortlessly adjustable as the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N, though this isn’t to say it lacks the impulse to rotate through bends. You just have to set things in motion earlier, and with some weight transfer, after which the big Porsche will adopt little slivers of yaw easily and with an amazing sense of security. On track, when you can really magnify this kind of behaviour, the Turbo S transitions from grip to slip as easily as a Cayman GT4, seeming almost to rotate around a point inside the bonnet. It’s superbly controllable.

The interesting addition here is the new Porsche Active Ride system. It adds 30kg but on occasion it seems to deduct 10 times that in mass from the chassis. In handling terms, its effects are rather subtle, and Porsche admits the technology is geared more towards enhancing ride quality; at its most 'active', you can just about feel it tilting the car's body gently into corners to mitigate passengers' sensation of lateral forces, and 'helicoptering' the body to incline gently forwards as the car accelerates, and then backwards as it brakes, to have the same softening effect on longitudinal load. The extra bit of flatness it allows the body to retain on uneven roads is certainly discernible, though, even when the car isn't cornering or accelerating; and this permits the inherent balance and precision of the Taycan to shine more brightly. The system is also fast-reacting – hit a trough at speed and the cushioning is all but instant.

Note that the 'active' effects of the system are most pronounced in Normal mode but lessen for Sport mode and are disabled entirely in Sport Plus, when the suspension reverts to the same behaviour present in cars without an active element in order to load the tyres and suspension more predictably.

You'll find the biggest handling differences in the Panamera range between the rear-drive and four-wheel drive cars, and between cars with and without four-wheel steering and Active Ride. Although the GTS gets bespoke tuning for the suspension and four-wheel steering, the effects are incremental at best. Instead, think of the 4, 4S, GTS, Turbo and Turbo S simply as different levels of power and acceleration.

Comfort & isolation

What you can’t fail to notice, whatever mode the Taycan is in, is a car with superb body control, lovely uncorrupted steering, and only a modicum of road noise to mar its otherwise excellent touring manners.

The most refined of the Taycans is the Cross Turismo, with its softer springing and less performance-focused remit. However, the Turbo S is also a remarkably comfortable car in the context of its wild performance and you could argue that nothing else out there combines such pace and grace.

Having recently reconfigured the way we test noise, we don’t yet have any direct comparisons to make, but subjectively the Porsche is quiet enough on the move to justify its luxury positioning. A reading of 66dBA at 70mph is Mercedes E-Class-demure.

The new active suspension is also, in our view, worth having. It not only gives the Taycan mind-blowing primary ride quality but ameliorates the impact of potholes and speed bumps. Think of it like this: some of us have a habit of braking before speed bumps then gently moving onto the throttle to lift the nose as the bump begins. This lessens the impact, and the effect of the active suspension is to do this sort of thing for you, all of the time.

The result of all this is that the Taycan, while supercar-fast, is more than capable of fulfilling the GT-car role, as you may well use it for, given the greater range it now possesses.

During rapid charging testing, we weren’t able to achieve the Taycan's claimed 320kW, but that's mainly due to the difficulty of finding a charger that outputs enough power. Because MIRA’s chargers only reach 300kW, but the Taycan consistently drew more than 290kW from 10-60%, only dropping below 100kW or so as the battery reached 85% capacity. A very impressive result.

For maximum range potential, opt for the RWD Taycan with the Performance Battery Plus (£4454).