When you hear the word Porsche, the phrase that comes to mind may not be ‘eco-friendly’.
But the German high performance sports car company has just released their first all-electric car.
The car is called the Taycan -- its name translates to “spirited young horse” -- and this young buck could change the perception of electric cars, even among high performance car nuts.
That’s according to Pete Stout, co-founder and editor of 000 Magazine, a sumptuous quarterly journal focused on Porsche.
The Porsche Taycan can go from five percent charge to 80 percent in roughly 20 minutes. Photo courtesy of Porsche AG
The Porsche enthusiast got to ride in a Taycan, and met up with DnA at the A+D Museum in the Arts District, where there is an exhibit about his magazine.
He says the four-door sedan with a battery tucked along the bottom, still has the sporty look and feel of a classic Porsche, but with “a seductive noise.”
So is the Taycan, which will cost around $150,000, a competitor to Tesla?
“Yes and no,” Stout says, adding that “in terms of philosophy they're quite different. The Tesla seats are flat. The Porsche seats are designed to go through the curves and that says a great deal about the difference in the cars.”
He points out however that drivers might find themselves charging their Taycans from Tesla power walls or even the rival company’s EV charging infrastructure.
But will an all-electric Porsche drive sports car lovers to embrace clean energy vehicles?
Absolutely, concludes Stout, “because it expands the conversation to car enthusiasts... And this car is designed to make them think twice about electric vehicles aren't for me. This is a car that's designed to open the conversation for them to say electric vehicle can be fun. It can be passionate…”