Porsche’s first electric car is a smash hit, usurping the Cayenne to become Porsche GB’s second best-selling model. But which is the right Taycan for you? We pick the best three
3. Taycan Cross Turismo Turbo S
This is it – the full-house flagship. Despite the absence of any actual turbos, Turbo S badging puts this car at the top of the Taycan tree (just as it does with the 911 Turbo S). At the same time the Cross Turismo, a recent addition to the range, bumps the price up further still but brings a sports-estate body, increased ride height and a dedicated gravel mode. You also get Porsche’s bigger battery – usually an option – as standard. As you might expect for £140k…
The net result is a ludicrously fast, great to drive and impressively versatile all-rounder. The Cross Turismo is more practical than the standard Taycan; easier to get in and out of, bigger boot, more passenger headroom. It also looks great, like someone mashed the genes of a 911 with those of an Audi RS6 and struck gold.
On the move the Cross Turismo’s more comfortable and easier to get your head around than the sports saloon Taycan, with a little more natural bodyroll, better visibility courtesy of the higher driving position and more ground clearance. And yet this thing’s still supercar-quick point-to-point, with huge grip, great balance, relentless speed and awesome brakes.
Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo Turbo S: £139,910, 750bhp twin e-motors, 2.9sec 0-62mph, 155mph (limited)
2. Audi e-Tron GT
When is a Taycan not a Porsche? When it’s Audi’s new e-Tron GT, which borrows the Taycan’s trailblazing battery-electric engineering but sticks it in an Audi that design boss, Marc Lichte, reckons is the best-looking car he’s ever created.
Audi was never going to simply clone the Taycan (both marques are part of the VW Group), and on the road the e-Tron GT has a character all its own. It’s more relaxing than the Porsche, less frantic, and works beautifully as a fast and refined GT. It also gets a funkier interior.
And while the RS version is more powerful it’s also considerably more expensive (to the tune of £30k) and doesn’t travel as far on a single charge (293 miles versus the non-RS’s official figure of 303 miles).
Audi e-Tron GT: £80,850, 469bhp/523bhp twin e-motors, 4.1sec 0-62mph, 152mph
1. Porsche Taycan
Yep, the best Taycan by most metrics is also the least expensive, and the one you’ll find right at the bottom of the range. The Taycan’s list price of £70,690 is getting on for half that of the Turbo S Cross Turismo, and makes it a rival to the likes of Jaguar’s i-Pace and Mercedes EQC.
Performance is dialled back significantly, with one motor and rear-wheel drive versus the twin motors and all-wheel drive you’ll find in every other version of the Taycan. But 0-62mph in 5.4sec is not slow, just as a 143mph top speed is hardly lacking. The driving experience is also every bit as enjoyable and rewarding as that of more powerful versions. Range is generous, too – just over 300 miles with the £4k optional Performance Plus battery.
We have a winner...
Porsche Taycan: £70,690, 321/375bhp single e-motor, 5.4sec 0-62mph, 143mph