Porsche’s Latest Generation Of The Taycan Models, Swaggering With New Upgrades

Thanks to technological developments, the Porsche Taycan and Taycan Cross Turismo have received significant upgrades for the latest generation model.

In a nutshell, the electric sports cars’ driving range has been improved, along with a couple of system updates and new paint job options.

Porsche’s Taycan model line vice president, Kevin Giek, remarked, "The latest generation of Taycan impresses with seamless smartphone connectivity, which now includes Android Auto. Our all-electric Taycan range is growing and thriving. The new Cross Turismo, which was added to the line-up in the spring, is proving extremely popular with our customers, as has been shown by the excellent number of orders being taken for it.”

To begin with, the new model now has more range to offer. As such, it will not be homologated separately, thus, there are no longer any new WLTP range values.

However, the real-world driving range is now greater in day-to-day use, owing to extensive technological developments that have been executed to achieve this increase.

Under Normal and Range modes, the front electric motor is almost completely decoupled and de-energised in the partial load range in the all-wheel-drive models.

Furthermore, no drive is transmitted to either axle when the car is coasting or at a standstill. This electric free-wheel function reduces drag losses. 

The motors are switched on again within milliseconds only when the driver requests more power or changes the driving mode.

Apart from that, the thermal management and charging functions have also been further improved significantly.

With the Turbo Charging Planner, the high-voltage battery can now be heated to a slightly higher temperature and enable fast charging at an earlier and higher charge level.

Also, the waste heat from the electrical components is used to an even greater extent for battery temperature regulation.

Then comes the system updates. The latest generation of Taycan now comes with a driver assistance feature called the Remote Park Assist.

This new feature makes it possible to remotely control parking manoeuvres via a smartphone when driving into and out of parking spaces without the driver needing to be behind the wheel.

Its automatic control function enables for both parallel and perpendicular parking spaces and in enclosed areas like garages. 

Meaning, the system automatically detects parking spaces and measures them using the vehicle’s ultrasonic sensors and camera systems.

If there is enough space, the driver can start the parking process via the Porsche Connect app and then get out of the vehicle. 

Using a smartphone, the driver can continuously monitor the parking process by pressing and holding a button in the app’s interface.

Said function independently takes over steering and control of the forward and reverse movements of the vehicle, and upon releasing the button, the Taycan immediately stops the parking manoeuvre.

Next is the infotainment system, which features the 6th generation of Porsche Communication Management (PCM). 

The all-electric sports car has always been a connectivity pioneer, starting with the seamless integrations of Apple Music and Apple Podcasts. 

Now, the latest Taycan generation furthers that innovation with the integration of Android Auto, along with Apple CarPlay support for iPhone.

Selected phone functions and smartphone apps that do not adversely affect driving safety can now be operated via PCM 6.0 or the Google Assistant voice.

Additionally, the Voice Pilot voice assistant now also understands instructions in everyday language even better. 

Moreover, the satellite navigation system calculates more quickly, primarily uses the online search for points of interest (POI), and also displays its information more clearly.

Plus, the layout and operating system have also been revamped, it now has five menu options instead of three on the left side of the central display, and the icons can be arranged individually.

Last but not least, Porsche’s iconic cult colours have made a comeback. These eye-catching hues are part of the continually evolving personalisation strategy of Porsche Exclusive Manufaktur.

Offering even more individuality to the paint job, the Taycan is now available with Paint to Sample and Paint to Sample Plus, in addition to 17 standard paint colours. 

Presently, the first option allows painting with 65 additional colours. E.g., Moonlight Blue Metallic, Acid Green, Rubystar Red, Riviera Blue and Viola Metallic.

Alternatively, the Paint to Sample Plus gives customers almost complete freedom in their choice of colour, even permitting them to match their Taycan to their favourite accessory.

All in all, for Porsche, the Taycan is their bestselling model thus far, and it has been particularly successful during recent months.

Garnering approximately 20,000 vehicles delivered in the first half of 2021 alone, the year-to-date number is only slightly below the total for 2020 as a whole.

That said, sales of the latest member of the model range are therefore on a par with those of the sports car icon, the 911.