The Porsche Taycan sets the standard for all electric cars of the future

It’s easy to think of the electric car as the motoring equivalent of veganism, that it’s green, not quite convenient and yet another grand attempt at virtue signalling. But going electric only means being different, and “different” isn’t always a bad thing. Take the Porsche Taycan for example – the first all-electric production supercar from the industry’s traditional heavyweights. 

Porsche’s €6 billion (S$9.58 billion) electric investment comes at a rather opportune moment, creating the perfect bump in a road to ecological doom. If Europe, for instance, can kill gasoline and diesel cars by 2035 like they’re hoping to, then the Taycan is what we need for the internal combustion engine to call it a day.

Unmistakably a Porsche, it manages to wrap the idea of a 911 or Panamera around a new platform. Unlike some electric vehicles, it drives nothing like a glorified go-kart. It’s graceful yet astonishingly fast (launch control will rocket you to 100km/hr in 5.4 seconds or 2.8, if you get the Turbo S upgrade). It steers with a good amount of weight, kneading into rougher terrain with aplomb, and everything feels natural once you put the brakes on. Depending on how powerful you want it to be, top speeds will range from 230 to 260km/hr, which works out to a whopping S$400,000 more than “entry-level”.

Quick-tempered as it may be, the Taycan on the inside is a lot more practical and restrained. Luxurious, vintage and bred with a hint of Space Age, it is well-equipped with all the latest gizmos and space that you need. The boot and legroom are decent, even for sizeable humans, and while it is built only for four, there is the option for a five-seater, if you must. 

Engine: A pair of asynchronous electric motors
Vehicle type: Rear engine; rear-wheel-drive
Transmission: Two-speed automatic
Power: 402hp
Torque: 345Nm
0-100km/hr: 5.4 seconds
Top speed: 230km/hr
Range: 310km
Maximum charging power: 720kW
Charging time (direct current for up to 100km): 5.3 min
Price: From S$345,858 (before COE)

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