Porsche News
Moderator
- Joined
- 8 Feb 2008
- Messages
- 7,426
Porsche is set to pull the plug on its internal combustion Macan later this year. This new EV better be good...
This is not a Porsche Macan Electric. It’s not a Porsche Macan EV, or BEV, or E. This is simply the new Porsche Macan, and it is now an electric car. Which is a punchy move by Porsche. It’s all very well putting out a niche, bespoke grenade like the Taycan, but when the Cayenne and Macan are your bread and butter models globally (with the Macan being Porsche’s best-selling model in the UK), going full EV early feels… bold. And yet, there are complications. We’ll get to the details of the rewired Macan in a minute, but first we must address the slightly complicated birth.
First up, petrol-powered Macan are going off-sale in Europe on the 1st July this year, but not because they fail to meet any particular emission standard, or because Porsche is being pre-emptive. It’s because they fail to meet new EU cybersecurity rules that came into force after the current crop was designed. Interestingly, Porsche will continue to sell Macan in the UK for ‘at least the rest of 2024’, because Brexit allows for more loopholes than a knitting club. So the new, fully-electrified Macan has arrived alongside the four and six-cylinder petrols looking fresh, sporting the upgraded bytes and ready to try and convince people.
The bones seem satisfying. Two initial models - Macan 4 and Macan Turbo - both on Porsche’s new 800-volt PPE (Premium Platform Electric - which is incidentally the first time Porsche has electrified a standing model), both with dual-motors and all-wheel drive, and both get the same 100kWh battery, of which 95kWh is useable. That 800v platform is good news because it allows for more efficient charging, with the DC peak at 270kW, good for 10 to 80-percent charge in just over 20 minutes. At a 400-volt charging station, the battery can ‘bank charge’ or split the battery into two separate modules, allowing for - again - efficient charging at up to 135kW. And it’ll draw up to 11kW on the AC port. Range is slated at 380 miles for the less powerful 4, 367 for the faster Turbo, so you’ll be looking at high 200s in the real-world. Which is all very nice.
So it’s a very decent electric car. But it wouldn’t be a Porsche if it were slow or cumbersome, so Porsche hasn’t skimped. The Macan 4 puts out just over 400bhp at max and hits 62mph in 5.2 seconds with a 137mph top speed. The Turbo is capable of 630bhp with launch control, can hit 62mph from rest in just 3.3 seconds and run on to a 162mph max. Rapid as you like, but not exactly earth-shattering for electric cars these days. Although a moment must be taken for the fact that saying that about a Macan isn’t actually that controversial; raw speed has very much been democratised. Still, there are also changes to the handling, involving rear-wheel steer and two-valve dampers which give a broader range between full squish and hard-nosed aggression, plus a longer wheelbase than the ICE cars. There’s also the usual set of Scrabble scores for assisted sportiness, including Porsche Traction Management (e-PTM), Porsche Torque Vectoring plus (PTV plus), and Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) to go with the air suspension - although that can be ordered as an option with the basic steel springs and is standard on the Turbo. Both cars run an aggressive rear-bias apparently, with the front motor going dormant until needed for efficiency purposes. The company is promising ‘quintessentially Porsche dynamics’ and ‘characteristic steering feel’ - which sound like the usual fluff for (what must be) a necessarily plump EV, but given what the company managed with the Taycan, you might not want to bet too heavily against it.
As far as the looks, it’s a kind of photofit of modern Porsche, shrink-wrapped to Macan size. The front has a quad of daylight running lights with the main headlights in the pod underneath - what looks like the top of a side intake on the side of the bumper. There’s a strong bonnet, frameless doors, sideblades available in three styles (black, matte and carbon), up to 22-inch wheels. Plus the rear has a wraparound lightbar and the sporty, fastback styling that’s reminiscent of the Porsche Cayenne Coupe. The Turbo gets a little ‘vent’ at the outside edge under the lightbar, by the way. And generally the whole thing is smart without being shouty, and looks very clean in the metal.
But the good news doesn’t stop there, because the electric Macan gets the new interior, and it is surgically lovely. Quality material choices - recycled nylon bits, cow-free leather and all - excellent ergonomics, the usual Porsche visual cleanliness. The big centre console makes the whole thing quite cockpit-esque rather than the big spaces of most EVs, and there’s a mix of analogue switches for the air-con and the usual digital bits. Of which there are a lot: a 12.6-inch instrument cluster that curves around in front of the driver, a 10.9-inch touchscreen flush with that. There’s also an optional passenger screen so that you can have a proper wall of high-defness, but that does feel a little overwhelming. One thing it all seems to be though, is Porsche fast. Baked-in Android, super sharp reflexes and app integration - it feels as snappy as it looks. Oh, and there’s the LED strip that runs around the beltline of the cabin that flashes and pulses in time with navigation and ADAS systems, as well as providing ambient light for the spacious interior.
And spacious it really is. There’s plenty of room front and back thanks to that longer wheelbase, and the front seats sit 28mm lower than the ICE models - a bonus when EVs usually feel like you’re riding on rather than in. The rear seat is also lower, and there’s both a voluminous 540-litre boot and for the first time, a frunk. So that’s an extra 84-litres of storage - a good size for cables and other stuff.
So this is all solid expectoration from the press release, and probably enough to convince those already keen on electric. But the Macan - especially in the UK - is a bit of a gateway drug to Porsche ownership. Currently, a a basic Porsche Macan with a 263bhp turbo petrol four-cylinder engine costs £53,400. The most expensive six-cylinder Macan GTS weighs in at £71,700. That’s good value. The electric version will go on sale with prices starting at £69,800 for the Macan 4 and £95,000 for the Macan Turbo. But you can still get creative with EV benefit-in-kind and salary sacrifice to mitigate some of that. The question being, should you swap early, or buy a petrol Macan GTS late this year and run it until it falls to bits? We’ll have to wait to drive the Macan electric to figure it out…
This is not a Porsche Macan Electric. It’s not a Porsche Macan EV, or BEV, or E. This is simply the new Porsche Macan, and it is now an electric car. Which is a punchy move by Porsche. It’s all very well putting out a niche, bespoke grenade like the Taycan, but when the Cayenne and Macan are your bread and butter models globally (with the Macan being Porsche’s best-selling model in the UK), going full EV early feels… bold. And yet, there are complications. We’ll get to the details of the rewired Macan in a minute, but first we must address the slightly complicated birth.
First up, petrol-powered Macan are going off-sale in Europe on the 1st July this year, but not because they fail to meet any particular emission standard, or because Porsche is being pre-emptive. It’s because they fail to meet new EU cybersecurity rules that came into force after the current crop was designed. Interestingly, Porsche will continue to sell Macan in the UK for ‘at least the rest of 2024’, because Brexit allows for more loopholes than a knitting club. So the new, fully-electrified Macan has arrived alongside the four and six-cylinder petrols looking fresh, sporting the upgraded bytes and ready to try and convince people.
The bones seem satisfying. Two initial models - Macan 4 and Macan Turbo - both on Porsche’s new 800-volt PPE (Premium Platform Electric - which is incidentally the first time Porsche has electrified a standing model), both with dual-motors and all-wheel drive, and both get the same 100kWh battery, of which 95kWh is useable. That 800v platform is good news because it allows for more efficient charging, with the DC peak at 270kW, good for 10 to 80-percent charge in just over 20 minutes. At a 400-volt charging station, the battery can ‘bank charge’ or split the battery into two separate modules, allowing for - again - efficient charging at up to 135kW. And it’ll draw up to 11kW on the AC port. Range is slated at 380 miles for the less powerful 4, 367 for the faster Turbo, so you’ll be looking at high 200s in the real-world. Which is all very nice.
So it’s a very decent electric car. But it wouldn’t be a Porsche if it were slow or cumbersome, so Porsche hasn’t skimped. The Macan 4 puts out just over 400bhp at max and hits 62mph in 5.2 seconds with a 137mph top speed. The Turbo is capable of 630bhp with launch control, can hit 62mph from rest in just 3.3 seconds and run on to a 162mph max. Rapid as you like, but not exactly earth-shattering for electric cars these days. Although a moment must be taken for the fact that saying that about a Macan isn’t actually that controversial; raw speed has very much been democratised. Still, there are also changes to the handling, involving rear-wheel steer and two-valve dampers which give a broader range between full squish and hard-nosed aggression, plus a longer wheelbase than the ICE cars. There’s also the usual set of Scrabble scores for assisted sportiness, including Porsche Traction Management (e-PTM), Porsche Torque Vectoring plus (PTV plus), and Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) to go with the air suspension - although that can be ordered as an option with the basic steel springs and is standard on the Turbo. Both cars run an aggressive rear-bias apparently, with the front motor going dormant until needed for efficiency purposes. The company is promising ‘quintessentially Porsche dynamics’ and ‘characteristic steering feel’ - which sound like the usual fluff for (what must be) a necessarily plump EV, but given what the company managed with the Taycan, you might not want to bet too heavily against it.
As far as the looks, it’s a kind of photofit of modern Porsche, shrink-wrapped to Macan size. The front has a quad of daylight running lights with the main headlights in the pod underneath - what looks like the top of a side intake on the side of the bumper. There’s a strong bonnet, frameless doors, sideblades available in three styles (black, matte and carbon), up to 22-inch wheels. Plus the rear has a wraparound lightbar and the sporty, fastback styling that’s reminiscent of the Porsche Cayenne Coupe. The Turbo gets a little ‘vent’ at the outside edge under the lightbar, by the way. And generally the whole thing is smart without being shouty, and looks very clean in the metal.
But the good news doesn’t stop there, because the electric Macan gets the new interior, and it is surgically lovely. Quality material choices - recycled nylon bits, cow-free leather and all - excellent ergonomics, the usual Porsche visual cleanliness. The big centre console makes the whole thing quite cockpit-esque rather than the big spaces of most EVs, and there’s a mix of analogue switches for the air-con and the usual digital bits. Of which there are a lot: a 12.6-inch instrument cluster that curves around in front of the driver, a 10.9-inch touchscreen flush with that. There’s also an optional passenger screen so that you can have a proper wall of high-defness, but that does feel a little overwhelming. One thing it all seems to be though, is Porsche fast. Baked-in Android, super sharp reflexes and app integration - it feels as snappy as it looks. Oh, and there’s the LED strip that runs around the beltline of the cabin that flashes and pulses in time with navigation and ADAS systems, as well as providing ambient light for the spacious interior.
And spacious it really is. There’s plenty of room front and back thanks to that longer wheelbase, and the front seats sit 28mm lower than the ICE models - a bonus when EVs usually feel like you’re riding on rather than in. The rear seat is also lower, and there’s both a voluminous 540-litre boot and for the first time, a frunk. So that’s an extra 84-litres of storage - a good size for cables and other stuff.
So this is all solid expectoration from the press release, and probably enough to convince those already keen on electric. But the Macan - especially in the UK - is a bit of a gateway drug to Porsche ownership. Currently, a a basic Porsche Macan with a 263bhp turbo petrol four-cylinder engine costs £53,400. The most expensive six-cylinder Macan GTS weighs in at £71,700. That’s good value. The electric version will go on sale with prices starting at £69,800 for the Macan 4 and £95,000 for the Macan Turbo. But you can still get creative with EV benefit-in-kind and salary sacrifice to mitigate some of that. The question being, should you swap early, or buy a petrol Macan GTS late this year and run it until it falls to bits? We’ll have to wait to drive the Macan electric to figure it out…
Attachments
Last edited:
good SUV
