The arrival of what will be the most expensive electric vehicle on the Australian market is all-but complete, with German car maker Porsche prepariong to make the first deliveries of its all-electric Taycan four-door sedan in Australia on the weekend.
Porsche is believed to have close to 100 Taycan EVs in the country, enough to meet the initial demand for the long-awaited EV, and for each of its 14 stores in Australia to have some on show and available for test drives, which will happen this weekend along with the first deliveries.
The Driven understands that various “VIP” events are also being held in coming days, althoug media test drives were badly affected by the sudden Covid restrictions in Victoria last week, and The Driven will have to wait for its opportunity next month.
The new electric Taycan – which come in a few variants priced from the high $A190,000s to the mid $A330,000s, are modelled in the unmistakable style of the Stuttgart company’s trademark luxury sports sedan.
Orders can also be placed online via the Porsche Car Configurator, which is now live with local specifications and pricing for the Taycan 4S, the Taycan Turbo and the Taycan Turbo S.
According to The Driven’s configurations, based on all standard or baseline colours and features and a Victorian postcode, the “drive away” prices for the three models range from $209,818 to $291,202 and a heady $364,142, respectively.
Billed as having the “soul of Porsche, electrified,” all three models have plenty of poke. Porsche says the Taycan Turbo S can go from 0-100 km/h in 2.8 seconds, the same acceleration figures as a 911 GT2 RS; the Taycan Turbo, 0-100km/h in 3.2 seconds.
On range, the Taycan 4S offers a base of 365km, or 414km with the addition of Porsche’s Performance Battery Plus, which also boosts that model’s battery capacity by 18% from 79.2kWh to 93.4kWh, and its “performance” to 420kW of power and 650 Nm of torque.
The Taycan Turbo has a range of 420km, and generates up to 500kW/680 PS* (horsepower) of overboost power in combination with Launch Control, and offers a top speed of 260km/h.
The “flagship” Turbo S has a range of up to 405km when the battery is fully charged and can generate up to 560kW/ 761PS* (horsepower) of overboost power in combination with Launch Control.
On charging, the Taycan has a system voltage of 800 volts, which Porsche says enables consistent high performance, reduces the charging time and decreases the weight and installation space of the cabling. It also offers a maximum peak charging capacity of 270kW with Performance Battery Plus.
In Australia, Porsche says Taycan owners will have several options for charging their Taycan, including High Performance Charging, Home Charging and Porsche Destination Charging.
Australian models come with the Mobile Charger Connect as standard, providing intelligent charging functions as well as a Charging Cable (Mode 3) for use at AC public charging stations. For charging at 400 volt charging points, there is a 150kW on-board DC-Charger.
As The Driven has reported, Taycan drivers in Australia will also benefit from a complementary three year charging subscription thanks to a deal with Chargefox, Australia’s most extensive DC fast charging network.
The Taycan will be able to take advantage of Chargefox’s ultra-fast rapid charging units – keeping in mind that although its 800 volt architecture is technically capable of the full 350kW offered by Chargefox’s Tritium and ABB chargers, it is currently limited to a maximum 270kW charge rate.
According to Porsche’s Australian Standard Specifications for the Taycan, charging time for direct current with maximum charging power and with Battery Performance Plus is 22.5 minutes.
There’s a decent range of colours on offer for no added cost, including a basic black and white, and a range of 11 metallic shades, including the likes of Mamba Green, Frozen Blue, Cherry, and Frozenberry.
Inside, there is a range of colour and material options, too, including five leather-free colours or colour combinations.
The cockpit, says Porsche, “signals the start of a new era,” with a clear structure and a completely new architecture.
This includes a free-standing, curved instrument cluster; a central, 10.9-inch infotainment display and an optional passenger display, combined to form an integrated glass band in a black-panel look.
In terms of gadgets, Porsche says the number of classic hardware controls such as switches and buttons has been greatly reduced, and instead you can just tell the car what to do, using touch operation or the voice command: “Hey Porsche.”
Additional reporting by Giles Parkinson.
Sophie is editor of One Step Off The Grid and deputy editor of its sister site, Renew Economy. Sophie has been writing about clean energy for more than a decade.