Porsche Taycan Turbo S: The ‘Straight Pipes’ Take
Can the all-electric Taycan Turbo S compete with the top Tesla models as well as traditional supercars? That is the $200,000 question.
Since Porsche released its Taycan Turbo S the car has garnered praise from all those that have tested it. Naturally, it has been compared to the offerings from the current electric car leader Tesla. However, this is a Porsche after all, so can it also be a viable alternative to traditional gas-powered supercars? Yuri Tereshyn and Jakub Ciesla from the YouTube channel The Straight Pipes helps us answer that question.
As they typically do, they began their review with a demonstration of launch control. The result? Holy sh**! The almost silent acceleration to 60 mph in about two and a half seconds has the hosts nearly unleash expletives to describe it. The instant torque of electric motors makes them inherently quick and the Taycan Turbo S brings 774 lb-ft of the stuff for staggering acceleration. It is on par with cars such as the Lamborghini Huracan Evo. Of course, the Porsche sounds nothing like the Lambo, it sounds more like a X-34 Landspeeder as it accelerates.
Going fast in a straight line is one thing, but does it handle like a Porsche? With Ciesla at the wheel, he takes the Taycan around one of the best-known corners on his test loop. “Ok this is, wow, this is easily one of the fastest cars we’ve driven through here…this feels like a video game.” Exclaims Ciesla. “There’s no shifting it’s just linear power the whole way.” Adds Tereshyn. “It feels a lot better than the Model 3 Performance did, which also felt really good.” Continues Tereshyn. So, that is acceleration and handling sorted. How does this thing look?
The Taycan is obviously based on the Mission E concept car Porsche unveiled a few years ago, and the Taycan is a faithful representation of that concept. “A lot of companies screw up their concept to actual production and I think they did a really good job of keeping most of the best elements.” Says Ciesla. The car looks good from all angles. “Side view is pretty cool, like it kind of looks like a 911 and a Panamera hybrid.” Offers Ciesla. There is also a cool little Easter egg in the back of the car, under the Porsche script there is an electric circuit design. The car accelerates, handles and looks great from the outside. Does the winning streak continue on the inside?
Being a premium, modern car, the interior is dominated with a number of large screens. There is a curved screen for the gauges, and two screens for the infotainment. Except for on the steering wheels, there are no physical buttons or knobs, everything is controlled via the screens, even the air vents. The gauge cluster screen is a major departure for Porsche in at least one aspect. Previous cars were known for the prominent central tachometer, but this being an electric car it is simply not needed so there is no tach at all. However, this screen is highly customizable and will allow you to display everything from you power usage to drive modes and navigation maps. The seats are well bolstered and comfortable and in back there is plenty of room for even taller folks to be comfortable. The interior overall is a very nice place to be and measures up with the rest of the car.
You can’t review an electric car without a discussion about its charging capability. The Taycan uses 800-volt architecture so it can charge faster than other electric cars, at least in theory. Currently there are not many 800-volt chargers out there so the infrastructure needs to catch up. As it stands now, at most 50-kilowatt charging stations, it will take about an hour and a half to charge up from 5 to 80 percent.
With the Taycan Turbo S ringing in at around $200,000 is it worth the money? Do you get this over a P100D or even Porsches own 911 Turbo S? Well, that obviously can only be decided by the person writing the check. We can say that while the Taycan Turbo S has a steep price, it has the performance and the technology to justify it. Keep in mind this is the first all-electric car for Porsche, so they should just get better from here.