Latest news with #Taycan
The Citizen
9 hours ago
- Automotive
- The Citizen
All-electric Porsche Taycan Turbo GT goes fastest once again
This Taycan has 580kW of power on tap which increases to 760kW during launch. The ridiculously fast Porsche Taycan Turbo GT has just gone and added the Yas Marina Circuit to the growing list of global racetracks where it is officially the fastest production battery electric vehicle. The record lap time of two minutes 7.247 seconds was set using the current 5.2km F1 GP World Championship circuit in Abu Dhabi. Strict regulations A new official lap record format from the Emirates Motorsport Organisation (EMSO) dictates that cars undergo strict scrutineering prior to track activity. This is done to ensure the cars are being run standard production car trim and specification. On track activity is then limited to a 60-minute practice session, followed by a 45-minute qualifying session. It's during this qualifying session that the lap record time must be set. ALSO READ: Porsche's most powerful jolt ever released called Taycan Turbo GT UAE-based GT racing driver and instructor Ramez Azzam was the man behind the wheel of the Porsche Taycan for the record attempt. 'We all know electric vehicles can be fast in a straight line. To be fast over a whole lap is where the Porsche Taycan Turbo GT really shines,' said Azzam. Eye-popping oomph Using the expertise Porsche has developed from its championship-winning 99X Electric race car that competes in the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, the Taycan Turbo GT is able to bring that technology to the street as the most powerful production Porsche ever. The car offers 580kW of power for normal use. But this number jumps up to a full 760kW with launch control activated. An optional Weissach package is available for the Porsche Taycan Turbo GT. What this means for the man in the street is that there are no rear seats. There is also more carbon fibre and this in turn offers a better power-to-weight ratio. The Weissach package saves 75kg while a fixed rear wing provides extra downforce. Porsche Taycan Turbo GT race-ready The Porsche Taycan Turbo GT comes standard with lightweight ceramic brakes based on the Porsche Ceramic Composite Brake. The car is also equipped with the Dynamics Package that includes the Porsche Active Ride suspension with GT-specific tuning. The Porsche Taycan Turbo GT is said to accelerate from 0 to 100km/h in just 2.2 seconds. And reach a top speed of 305km/h. If only The Citizen Motoring could get our hands on one, this Porsche just might be able to topple Mercedes-AMG's GT 63 S E Performance Coupe from the top of our sprint table too.
Top Gear
10 hours ago
- Automotive
- Top Gear
Porsche Taycan Sport Turismo Driving, Engines & Performance
Driving What is it like to drive? The chassis and suspension are identical to the standard Taycan and the estate is only 15kg heavier. And since we're talking about 2,310kg of mass, that weight difference is beyond negligible. So aside from the rear glass being further away in the rear view mirror, there's not much change for a driver to detect. Treat with extreme scepticism anyone who says the handling is more tail-happy because that 15kg extra mass is mostly over the rear axle. Advertisement - Page continues below Noted. Is this very much a sports estate then? It is. The Cross Turismo is a fairly racy crossover, and this is a fairly racy estate. However, the Cross Turismo is more languid, has detectable pitch and dive which we think actually suits the role of an estate car better. The Sport Turismo is slightly harder, sharper and more immediate. It has lovely steering and is immaculately behaved through corners, doing a very impressive job of disguising its mass and maintaining impressive body control over rough surfaces. Certainly crisper to drive than an Audi RS6. Does this only apply to the GTS? It applies to the GTS most of all, since this is – and probably always will be – the sportiest machine in the range. Not that other Sport Turismos drift that far from the template laid down by the GTS though. One thing about the GTS: it's the most rear-biased Taycan. Because of how the motors work, the GTS shuffles a greater proportion of torque to the rear axle than even the Turbo S. In fact as far as it can, it'll only send power to the rear axle, activating the front motor as it gets close to the fringes of grip. Advertisement - Page continues below Can you feel it? Not on the public road. But the Sport Turismo is a very well-balanced car. You'll get some understeer if you really hurl it along, but on the whole it grips tenaciously and behaves neutrally at the limit. You can up the ante with the Sport Turismo as well: £6,939 buys you the Dynamic Package that, alongside adjustable suspension, brings Porsche's phenomenal Active Ride technology which works to keep the body level no matter the forces working on it. It really impressed us in the Panamera, but the even lower centre of gravity here means it's not something we would consider a must fit. Same applies to the £7,230 PCCB ceramic brakes (which have gone almost £1,000 in the last four years). At least rear wheel steering is now standard, and helps give Taycans fitted with it crisper, more immediate turn-in. How's the powertrain? More polished than just about any other electric car out there, but where electric motors are concerned those margins are small. The background fake engine noise is actually pretty decent and the calibration of the throttle is brilliant – gives you faith in the car no matter what mode you're in or where you're driving. The GTS, as with all Taycans, is an effective deliverer of speed (0-62mph in 3.3secs, 100mph in 6.9secs – a whole second faster than the pre-facelift car). But that's with Launch Control's overboost function or keeping the push-to-pass button pressed. The rest of the time instead of 691bhp you have to make do with 597bhp. Don't stress. It's more than enough to put the hound in the boot on red alert. Highlights from the range the fastest 700kW Turbo S 105kWh 5dr Auto 0-62 2.4s CO2 0 BHP 938.7 MPG Price £163,200 the cheapest 320kW 105kWh 5dr RWD Auto [Revised] 0-62 4.8s CO2 0 BHP 429.1 MPG Price £89,200 the greenest 440kW 4S 105kWh 5dr Auto [5 Seat] [Revised] 0-62 3.7s CO2 0 BHP 590 MPG Price £97,570
Top Gear
10 hours ago
- Automotive
- Top Gear
Buy Porsche Taycan Sport Turismo Price, PPC or HP
You still need to treat the sticker price as a jumping-off point, though. Get on the Porsche configurator and you'll see just how quickly and easily the price rises by thousands. It's hard to keep a base rear-drive £89,200 Sport Turismo below £100,000 once you've added a bit of spec. If you want a really sporting electric estate , there's nothing out there to beat the Taycan Sport Turismo. You'll pay a lot more for the Turbo models and besides yet more forceful power delivery, there's not much point. Leasing? Shop around and you might find somewhere willing to lease you a car for less than £1,000 a month after a £10k deposit, but read the small print very thoroughly indeed. The trouble is that all Taycans have suffered large depreciation recently. Well, that's true of all premium EVs in the UK. But for a while UK business tax regulations ensured we were the world's second biggest Taycan market after China, ahead of the USA and Germany. And that the Taycan was Porsche's number one seller in the UK ahead of the Macan and Cayenne. Those times have gone and when so many lease deals on 3-4 year old cars came up for renewal, used values hit the skids. We've got to assume not much is going to change with the facelifted car. On to more practical matters. Get a home charger installed and the running costs should be low – a full recharge from empty could cost as little as £7 if you get your overnight charging tariff right.
Top Gear
13 hours ago
- Automotive
- Top Gear
Porsche Taycan Sport Turismo Review 2025
Porsche claims the designers have 'sharpened the lines'. But they appear to have done so with blunt pencils. Not much has changed there. Still a good looking car – better than the Taycan saloon we reckon – so we'll forgive and move on. Reckon it's a shame the Sport Turismo doesn't get the full house Turbo GT motors? You're wrong in the head. 2.4-to-62mph is enough for anyone. Those are the most significant, yes. Look, the motors are more powerful but rather than list them all, let's focus on the mid-range GTS. Instead of 509bhp (589 with launch control) you now get 597bhp, rising to 691. So about a hundred more. Worth having. The Turbo S now peaks at 939bhp. Despite the bigger battery and more standard kit, weight is claimed to be down across the range, if only by 15kg. About 0.7 per cent. Be warned, the updates are geeky. Battery size has increased from 93kWh to 105. Together with some nifty software tweaks and upgrades this means it charges faster (up to 320kW rather than 270, so 10-80 per cent in 18 minutes) and goes further. Up to 35 per cent further in the case of the entry level Taycan Sport Turismo and its 404-mile range. Even the hairiest Turbo S claims 375 miles. Previously, peak power figures were only available with launch control. However now there's a 'push to pass' button in the centre of the rotary drive mode controller on the steering wheel, which gives you 10 seconds of maximum attack. Provided you've had the Sport Chrono kit fitted. Is the Cross Turismo still kicking around? It is, and you can read about it here. Clicking a link too much for you? Here's a precis: it's pretty much identical to the Sport Turismo but has a higher ride height and some extra body cladding to give it more of an off-road vibe. The Cross Turismo also has a couple of small adaptations to make it ride slightly more gently – new wheel mounts and softer anti-roll bars. Back to the Sport Turismo though – a rival to the Audi RS6 and BMW M5 Touring, then? Absolutely, provided you're happy to give up your V8 soundtrack as well as your hydrocarbons. The £119,200 GTS is the most driver focused Sport Turismo (20 per cent more roll stiffness than the Taycan Turbo S. That's a thing) and priced in line with both rivals. It's a sharper handling, better riding car than both as well, manages to feel small on the road when it absolutely isn't (measuring 4,963mm long by 1,966mm wide) and has a turn of pace neither can match. But as we all know, the engine and gearbox combo is a hard one to give up. Even if you could square that away, another problem is likely to rear its head – the Sport Turismo's lack of cabin space. Is it really that small inside? Unfortunately, yes it is. While it is very useful having an 81-litre frunk if you are doing a quick shop or just need somewhere to put your cables, the premise for the Sport Turismo is to double up as a family holdall. However, the boot only measures 405 litres, extending to 1,171 with the seats folded. This puts it in line with the VW Golf (381/1237 litres).If you are assuming all the space has been put into the rear seats, you're wrong. More on all this in the Interior tab. How about the rest of the driving environment? In terms of interior functionality and design, it's thoroughly thought through and every bit as impressive to use and live with as the regular Taycan. Great cabin design, top notch quality. It is low though and for that and a couple of other reasons we'd point you at a Cross Turismo if you have practicality in mind. The plastic cladding should shirk scuffs and it has a sense of ruggedness that's more likely to play better with family life. What does the Sport Turismo cost? £1,000 more than the equivalent four-door Taycan saloon, which makes it the better choice as far as we are concerned. There are five models in the range, with prices starting from £89,200 for the entry level 435bhp model, through to £163,200 for the flagship Turbo S. The sweet spot lies more down the range than up it. You've probably read the horror stories about depreciation already. We'll cover that in the Buying tab. How does it drive? As we said, the sweet spot is low down the range. The faster ones just bring bigger, shinier numbers. Chiefly the price. The GTS is quite compelling though. The adaptive three-chamber air springs and low centre of gravity combine to create a car with immense body control and family-friendly comfort levels. Although think control rather than cushioning as the general strategy. It's crisp, smooth and quiet, just with a fraction more emphasis on steering clarity and chassis response than other Taycans. But the margins of difference between the models are slight and seem only more so when the only way to tell the powertrains apart is from the level of shove in your back.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Time of India
Ferrari delays second EV model to at least 2028 because of weak demand
Ferrari has delayed plans for its second fully-electric model that was due out in 2026 to at least 2028, because of a lack of demand for high-performance luxury EVs, two sources close to the matter told Reuters. Known for its roaring petrol engines, Ferrari has sold hybrid models since 2019 and will begin unveiling its first EV in October this year in a three-stage process culminating in a world premiere in the spring of next year. First deliveries to customers are expected in October 2026. Aside from the lack of a throaty roar that comes with an electric sports car - the top selling point for many wealthy buyers - automakers have struggled to overcome the fact that EV batteries are far too heavy and simply lack the sustained power of a fossil-fuel engine. As part of Ferrari's undisclosed internal plans a second EV model was planned for around the end of 2026. But now it is not expected before 2028, one of the sources said, who added that real, sustainable demand is non-existent for an electric sports car. The source said low market interest would also give Ferrari time to further develop in-house technology for its second electric vehicle, although soft demand remained the main reason for the delay. Ferrari declined to comment. Both sources declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter. Ferrari has announced long-term plans to sell EVs and Reuters previously reported Ferrari has a second EV model under development, but the carmaker has not publicly disclosed any plans beyond its first EV. Other sports car makers have already postponed or scaled back their electric ambitions because of a lack of consumer interest. Ferrari's Italian rival Lamborghini, a unit of Volkswagen , said in December it will launch its first electric model in 2029 instead of 2028 and Germany's Porsche cut back its plans for EVs amid soft sales of its electric Macan SUV and Taycan models. Earlier this year Maserati, the luxury brand of Stellantis , cancelled plans for an electric version of its MC20 sports car. The plan for a second Ferrari EV has been delayed twice by the Maranello, Italy-based company. Initially there was a one-year postponement, but now the model will launch in 2028 at the earliest, the second source said, adding that demand for high-performance is currently "zero". The source said that internally, Ferrari's second electric car is seen as the real game changer for its EV strategy, while the first one is more of a low-volume, symbolic milestone model that will meet its promise to launch its first EV in 2026. Ferrari's first EV, which was co-designed by former Apple Chief Design Officer Jony Ive, will cost over $500,000, Reuters reported last year. One of the sources described it as an atypical model for Ferrari, saying it would be larger than normal, but it would not be an SUV. The source said the second EV model will be more in line with the company's strategy of delivering around 5,000 to 6,000 units over a five-year lifespan for a typical Ferrari model, which is currently unsustainable because of a lack of customer interest. Ferrari will present its new long-term business plan to investors on Oct. 9.
