Porsche’s first battery-electric effort isn’t so bad, after all
After a slew of bad publicity concerning the Taycan’s range and efficiency, independent testing indicates the battery performance of Porsche’s new EV isn’t so bad after all. It turns out the Taycan is capable of as much as 40 per cent better range than the car’s official EPA range indicates.
It’s well known that the US’s EPA testing of electric car range tends to be tougher than Europe’s equivalent WLTP metric. Consequently, quoted EPA ranges for many electric cars are more pessimistic than the WLTP figure. Even in that context, however, the mere 201-mile EPA range of the Taycan Turbo was disappointing. By that measure – and given the car’s large 93.4kWh battery pack – the Taycan rates as the least efficient EV on the market, as we reported last month.
Meanwhile, in the EU’s WLTP test, the Taycan Turbo clocks up a much healthier 279 miles of range. It remains unclear why the EPA result is quite so bad. But the latest independent testing suggests that the EPA figure is not realistic. In the real world, the Taycan’s range is proving to be much better.
US website Autoblog found their Taycan Turbo test car still had 78 miles of range remaining after a gentle 209-mile route, thereby making for an overall range of over 285 miles. Even over a more demanding route that dipped into the Taycan’s immense performance reserves, the result was nearly 250 miles of range. Meanwhile, in constant high speed testing on the German autobahn at over 80mph, which represents a worst case scenario for an EV in terms of battery drain, the Taycan has reportedly been found to exceed its EPA range.
Range is not the only important metric for a modern EV, of course. Charging speed is critical, too. In theory, no EV charges faster than the Taycan. But range has been one of the key selling points for the biggest brand in electric cars, Tesla, and the early ambiguity around the Taycan’s range has been inauspicious at the very least.
The Taycan will go the distance, according to European WLTP Figures.
