This coming year is going to be a major one for Porsche. Why? Because its first-ever all-electric production model will debut. The Porsche Taycan sedan will be only the first of a salvo of EVs the German carmaker will launch in the coming years. Will the 911, of which an all-new model will debut this week, be on the electrification list? Not for several more years, though a hybrid 911 is expected within five years or so. But the Taycan is all-new territory for Porsche and, naturally, there could be some skepticism amongst the Porsche faithful, especially over range anxiety. Fear not, as Bloomberg reports.
Porsche chief executive officer Oliver Blume recently told the German language Welt am Sonntag that the Taycan will enable drivers to travel 250 miles after charging the car for less than 20 minutes. That’s not even a full charge, which we’ve heard will match that of the Tesla Model S P100D’s 315-mile range per charge. The Model S P85D, to further compare, has a 253-mile range per charge, so the Taycan will have no problem meeting or likely beating several of the Model S’s capabilities.
The Taycan will feature a new 800-volt electricity supply system capable of powering it for about 62 miles after only a four-minute charge, according to Blume. Impressive. In about a decade’s time, a new generation of battery technology will double range to around 620 miles and reduce charging time even further.
Is that the technology we could potentially see in a future all-electric 911? It’s certainly possible, all the more so because Porsche is not only facing competition from Tesla and pretty much all other automakers, but there’s also pressure coming from global governments anxious to phase out internal combustion vehicles in about 20 years’ time. Blume did specifically say he has the “highest respect” for Elon Musk for creating a new industry segment.
By 2025, Porsche plans to offer half of its new models to be hybrid or electric and will keep the 911 with a conventional flat-six “for as long as possible.” In other words, not forever.
