News / 7 February 2024 / Michael Taylor

New Porsche Taycan revealed with over 800km of range – When it’s going on sale in South Africa

Porsche has revealed the extensively updated Taycan which improves upon its predecessor with greater performance, range, and charging times.

The electric supercar has also seen a revision to its design, and customers will be able to look forward to an expanded equipment list once the car goes on sale in the near future.

A representative from Porsche South Africa confirmed to TopAuto that the new Taycan will arrive here in the last quarter of 2024, but that its pricing and model line-up is not yet available.

An extensive update

The Taycan has been a big hit for the German carmaker, as more than 150,000 units have already been produced since its global introduction in 2019.

To keep the vehicle up-to-date with the rapidly evolving electric vehicle (EV) landscape, the family of cars has seen an upgrade to their performance, starting with the Taycan and Taycan S.

These models, which mark the entry-point to the series, have seen their 0-100km/h acceleration time cut down from 5.4 to 4.8 seconds, and they now have a WLTP driving range of 503-678km in highway conditions and 569-821km when driving in town, in comparison to the current models’ 354-431km allotment.

At the other end of the spectrum, the Turbo S can now rocket to 100km/h in 2.4 seconds instead of 2.8 seconds, and can drive for 558-630km on the highway or 621-691km through the suburbs, instead of the 340-412km managed by the previous model.

The improvements to the Porsche’s acceleration and range are the result of an increase in power and battery efficiency, as a new rear-axle motor means Taycan and Taycan S have jumped from 300kW to 370kW, while the Turbo S has received another 140kW to reach a total of 700kW.

The batteries, which have a new capacity of 105kWh instead of 93kWh, can be topped up at an 800V DC station where they can charge at a rate of up to 320kW – 50kW more than before – which can be sustained for up to five minutes.

As a result, where the previous models took approximately 37 minutes to charge from 10-80% in 15°C conditions, the incoming versions can manage the same feat in just 18 minutes.

Additionally, all versions of the Taycan are now equipped with adaptive air suspension as standard, and Active Ride suspension can be ordered for the all-wheel-drive models.

The air suspension keeps the car level at all times, even during dynamic braking, accelerating, and steering manoeuvres, to ensure better comfort, while the Active Ride system balances the load on each wheel for better grip and can compensate for pitching and rolling motions to reduce the forces acting on occupants, said Porsche.

Brake energy recuperation has also been improved by more than 30% to return up to 400kW during deceleration, and all models now come standard with 21-inch alloy rims with reduced-rolling-resistance tyres.

Standard equipment on the new Taycan includes aluminium door sills, ambient lighting, a reverse camera with a parking assistant, heated front seats, the Porsche Intelligent Range Manager, a wireless charger, charging ports for both front passengers, a driving mode selector, and Power Steering Plus.

The cabin has been updated with new functions for the instrument cluster, infotainment, and optional passenger-side displays, and a new control lever behind the steering wheel allows for more intuitive management of the car’s assistance systems.

Buyers who install the Sport Chrono package will also find an extra button on the steering wheel which can summon another 70kW for 10 seconds when pressed.

Visually, the supercar’s headlights have been redesigned and feature HD Matrix technology with the brand’s four-point LED aesthetic, and the Porsche badge has been given a 3D glass-look appearance and can optionally be made to light up with welcome and leaving animations.

The Turbo and Turbo S have additional accent colours to make them stand out from the other models, too.

More information on the new Porsche Taycan, including its South African model line-up and pricing, will be revealed closer to its launch date in the last quarter of 2024.