What is the Taycan?
The Porsche Taycan is a four-door electric car and the first fully electric vehicle from Porsche. Although it's tempting to imagine that the Taycan is based on Porsche's other four-door sedan, the Panamera, the two have little in common aside from a few minor suspension components.
The Taycan is available in four trims. The 4S, Turbo and Turbo S carry over from last year and are joined by a new entry-level model simply called the Taycan. Two battery packs are available: one with a 79.2-kWh capacity is standard on the Taycan and 4S levels, while a larger pack with 93.4 kWh is standard on the Turbo and Turbo S and optional for the others. For 2021, the Taycan debuts with a host of new options. There's a newly available head-up display, and the air suspension can now be programmed to automatically lift the car once a user stores a geo-specific spot in the car's memory. Porsche is introducing over-the-air feature unlocks, so if you decide after you buy your Taycan that you did, in fact, want lane keeping assist, you can have it activated by clicking a button. These features can be unlocked on a permanent or month-to-month basis. We're also expecting the rollout of the wagonesque Taycan Cross Turismo.
The only real electric competitor to the Taycan is the Tesla Model S, which has a much more attractive pricing structure. Performance-wise, the Tesla is on par with the Porsche, at least in a straight line, and the Tesla has exclusive use of its touted nationwide charging network. But the addition of the Cross Turismo, along with the arrival of an entry-level Taycan, will undoubtedly amp up the competition.