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Porsche Taycan is here: 0-60 mph in 2.6 sec, 750 HP, good looks with a 911 price tag

The Porsche Taycan Turbo S. (Credit: Porsche AG)

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7 years ago

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The Porsche Taycan is here. In three simultaneous events in Canada, Germany, and China, the veteran automaker took the wraps off its first all-electric sports car. Addressing the audience at Niagara Falls, Porsche Executive Board Member for Sales and Marketing Detlev von Platen highlighted the importance of the Taycan to the company, particularly as it is a vehicle that is designed to carry Porsche into the electric age. 

“The Taycan links our heritage to the future. It carries forward the success story of our brand – a brand that has fascinated and thrilled people the world over for more than 70 years. This day marks the start of a new era,” he said. 

Porsche will be starting its electric car push with the Taycan’s top two configurations: the Taycan Turbo and the Taycan Turbo S. The base Taycan, as well as the midrange Taycan 4S, are expected to follow later this year, while the vehicle’s first derivative, the outdoor-themed Taycan Cross Turismo, is poised to be launched by the end of 2020. The company noted that by 2022, it would have invested over $6.6 billion in its electric vehicle initiatives.  

Following is an overview of the Taycan’s characteristics, from its design and performance to its safety features and price. 

The Porsche Taycan Turbo and the Taycan Turbo S. (Credit: Porsche AG)

Design

Immediately noticeable from the production version of the Taycan is that the vehicle is very close to the appearance of the Mission E sedan. The Taycan is 1,966 mm (77.4 inches) wide but only 1,380 mm (54.33 inches) high, which gives the car a wide and flat look that is distinctly Porsche. It’s very low to the ground, being 40 mm (1.5 inches) lower than the Panamera. From the rear, the Taycan is shaped by a roofline that slopes downward to the rear, while its side sections are highly sculpted, giving the vehicle a wide and sporty stance. Overall, the Taycan has a length of 4,963 mm (195.39 inches) and a wheelbase of 2,900 mm (114.17 inches). The vehicle also has a 0.22 drag coefficient, which is currently the lowest of all cars Porsche has released to date. 

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Performance

Porsche has only revealed the performance figures of the Taycan Turbo and Turbo S. With Launch Control, the Taycan Turbo S is capable of going from 0 to 60 mph in 2.6 seconds. The Taycan Turbo is only a fraction of a second behind, with its 0-60 mph time of 3.0 seconds. Quarter-mile times for each vehicle stand at 10.8 seconds for the Taycan Turbo S and 11.1 seconds for the Taycan Turbo. 

The secret to the Taycan’s speed lies in its two electric motors, the front of which has a max output of 190 kW for the Turbo S and 175 kW for the Turbo. The Taycan’s 335 kW rear motor, as well as its dedicated Launch Mode options with “Overboost,” ultimately allows the Taycan to have a maximum torque of 1,050 Nm for the Turbo S and 850 Nm for the Turbo variant. 

The Porsche Taycan Turbo and the Taycan Turbo S. (Credit: Porsche AG)

Safety

The Taycan’s body is comprised of an aluminum chassis reinforced with hot-formed steel on pillars and doors. Porsche highlighted that the vehicle was designed with strict requirements to ensure that nothing can puncture the car’s battery pack. In the event of a frontal crash, the Taycan’s front assemblies slide away from the pack to prevent intrusions into the cabin. The Taycan is equipped with a suite of sensors as well, including front and rear radar, wide-angle cameras, a mono front camera, ultrasonic sensors, and long-range radar. 

Battery

Porsche opted to utilize a 100 kWh battery pack with the Taycan, though only 93 kWh of this is usable. The Taycan’s batteries are made from Li-ion pouch cells that are provided by LG Chem. The Taycan’s aluminum battery pack has a 2 mm thickness on the bottom, with cell modules resting on top of the cooling system on the battery pack. 

The automaker utilized its 800-volt architecture for the Taycan, which, Porsche noted, reduces the current needed to produce large amounts of power. The lower current also means that Porsche could use thinner cables for the vehicle, allowing the Taycan’s wiring system to be lighter. Ultimately, Porsche notes that the Taycan’s 800-volt tech enables higher continuous power and faster charging.

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The Porsche Taycan Turbo and the Taycan Turbo S. (Credit: Porsche AG)

Range

The Porsche Taycan has not been issued with an official EPA rating yet, though the Turbo S has been given a 388–412 km (241-256 miles) range per charge under the WLTP standard. The Taycan Turbo was given a higher max range rating by the WLTP, outlasting its more powerful sibling with an estimated range of 381-450 km (236.74-279.61 miles) per charge. 

The Taycan Turbo has a power consumption of 25.7–24.5 kWh/100 km under the WLTP, which makes it more efficient compared to the Taycan Turbo S’ 26.7–23.0 kWh/100 km. Overall, the Taycan Turbo has a combined power consumption rating of 26.0 kWh/100 km under the NEDC, while the Turbo S variant is rated at 26.9 kWh/100 km. 

Features

The Porsche Taycan’s storage area is comprised of a rear trunk and a frunk. According to the vehicle’s official spec sheet released for North America, the Taycan’s frunk has 2.8 cubic feet of space, while its rear trunk has 12.9 cubic feet of space. The Taycan is also equipped with two charging ports. Interestingly, the Taycan has a nifty feature for times when its charging port door is stuck due to ice. In such instances, the Taycan’s charge port door will vibrate and gradually increase the force until the vibrations break the ice. This should help electric car owners charge their vehicles during winters. 

Price

Porsche states that the Taycan is one of its most important vehicles since the 911. In this sense, the Taycan is priced in pretty much the same bracket as the flagship sports car. The Taycan Turbo starts at $150,900 ($153,310 at launch), which is comparable to the price of a 2019 Porsche 911 Turbo. For comparison, Porsche Fremont’s official website lists the 2019 911 Turbo with an MSRP of $161,800.

The Taycan Turbo S is Porsche’s flagship electric car to date, and it is priced as such. The vehicle starts at $185,000 ($187,610 at launch), making it comparable to the price of a 2019 Porsche 911 Turbo S, which is listed in the United States with an MSRP of $190,700. 

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Watch the Porsche Taycan’s unveiling in the video below. 

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Simon is an experienced automotive reporter with a passion for electric cars and clean energy. Fascinated by the world envisioned by Elon Musk, he hopes to make it to Mars (at least as a tourist) someday. For stories or tips--or even to just say a simple hello--send a message to his email, simon@teslarati.com or his handle on X, @ResidentSponge.

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Lifestyle

Watch Tesla’s “guardian angel” FSD feature take over for collision evasion

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3 hours ago

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September 28, 2026

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Tesla’s Automatic Collision Evasion feature can be seen in one of the first owner videos of it in action.

Tesla owner Spencer (@scotsrule08) posted on Monday that the feature “worked flawlessly,” saying FSD reengaged itself just as he was about to hit a curb. Ashok Elluswamy, who leads Tesla’s AI team, shared the clip and wrote, “A guardian angel always looking out for you.”

The video arrives in the middle of a staged rollout. Tesla first shipped Automatic Collision Evasion with FSD (Supervised) v14.3.9 in software update 2026.27.6 earlier this month, which Teslarati covered as it reached cars. Update 2026.27.10, which began going out on September 19, carried the feature improvements with FSD v14.3.10, according to release notes tracked by Not a Tesla App. The newer 2026.27.11 build is now reaching another wave of vehicles.


The feature only runs on HW4 vehicles, and it requires an active FSD purchase or subscription with both FSD (Supervised) and Automatic Emergency Braking enabled. HW3 owners receive FSD v14.2 Lite in the same updates, but that build does not include collision evasion.

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Tesla’s release notes describe two triggers. The first is an imminent frontal collision that braking alone may not prevent, in which case the car can activate FSD to steer, brake or accelerate around the hazard. That scenario is limited to highways below 85 mph, with no pedestrians or cyclists detected and no slippery road surface. The second covers a driver who appears inattentive, such as reaching into the back seat, or who seems to have switched off FSD by accident. Spencer’s curb clip appears to fall into that second category.

Tesla plans big safety improvements for Full Self-Driving v15

Once the system takes over, the accelerator is muted and light brake input will not cancel the maneuver. Drivers need to apply firm, deliberate steering force to take back control, and the car chimes to hand control back once the danger has passed.

Elluswamy recently noted that earlier hazard prediction, faster reaction time and better collision avoidance would arrive with FSD v15, the next major version.

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News

Tesla Roadster event gets delayed due to unfavorable weather

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7 hours ago

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September 28, 2026

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla is delaying its event for the Roadster, moving it from this Thursday, October 1, to Thursday, October 15, due to unfavorable weather.

The company has said it has been tracking the weather for this Thursday closely with local meteorologists, and because the event can only be held outside, Tesla is making the call to delay it:

“We’ve been tracking the weather closely with local meteorologists, but given the severe conditions predicted & because this event can only be held outdoors, we’ve made the difficult decision to reschedule. New date is October 15. Additional details to follow.”

We are sure that this is bringing back PTSD for some Tesla fans, and we know it is not ideal, but this also reveals some things about the event. Tesla said that this can only be held outdoors, meaning it bodes well for the rumors that the vehicle could potentially hover.

Some believe that this was essentially confirmed by the FAA airspace restriction they were granted, but this could have been for a drone show or to keep drones from spying on the event.

Tesla Roadster is available for order once again following brief hold

The Roadster event has been long-awaited, and it is unfortunate that the weather is going to keep us all waiting a little bit longer.

The Tesla Roadster will be unveiled in Waco, Texas.

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Elon Musk

SpaceX turned a heralding moment for Starship into its greatest

Starship reached orbit despite losing an engine, deployed 26 Starlink V3 satellites on Flight 14.

Published

8 hours ago

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September 28, 2026

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SpaceX’s Starship reached orbit for the first time on Monday, and for a few nail-biting minutes it looked like it wouldn’t. During ascent on Flight 14, one of Ship 41’s six Raptor engines shut down early, and SpaceX’s livestream host Dan Huot told viewers the team had decided not to commit to orbit. Minutes later, after what Huot described as a lot of conversation in the control room, the final poll came back in favor, and a roughly 19 second burn of a single Raptor pushed the ship into orbit about 170 miles up.

The reversal matters because SpaceX had written the exit ramp into the mission plan. The company said it would only fire the orbital insertion burn if flight controllers confirmed enough backup hardware remained for the deorbit burn, a condition Teslarati laid out ahead of the flight. Losing an engine was exactly the scenario that rule was built for.

Pressing forward fits Elon Musk’s history. Falcon 1 failed three straight times before its fourth launch reached orbit in 2008, with SpaceX nearly out of money, and Starship was developed by flying prototypes until they broke. What changed this year SpaceX going public, and with $SPCX sliding below its IPO price in July when Flight 13 slipped, the short interest climbed significantly, as Teslarati reported at the time. A Starship potentially lost today with revenue generating next-gen Starlink satellites aboard would have landed directly on shareholders.

That pressure showed up after orbit. SpaceX cut a flight planned to last nearly 10 hours to about three, moving splashdown from west of Chile to the North Pacific near Hawaii. SpaceX gave no reason, though Musk said this month the company was being extremely cautious about debris risk. The single Raptor for deorbit worked, and Ship 41 completed its flip and landing burn before breaking apart in the water, an outcome SpaceX expected. Musk has structured SpaceX’s governance to shield long term bets from market pressure.

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The payload is the bigger business story. Musk posted that all 26 Starlink V3 satellites deployed and are “operating nominally.” Each V3 is rated for about 1 Tbps of downlink and 160 Gbps of uplink, so this single launch adds roughly 26 Tbps, about 10 times what a Falcon 9 load of V2 Mini satellites adds. The V3 is too large for Falcon 9, making Starship the only vehicle that can build out the planned 100,000 satellite constellation, at up to 60 per flight once it reaches routine service. Unlike the 20 V3 units on Flight 13, which reentered on a suborbital path, these will raise their orbits and could begin serving customers within weeks and bring in hundreds of millions of additional dollars in projected Starlink revenue.

SpaceX has already begun winding down Falcon 9 Starlink launches from Florida in favor of Starship. Reported targets put Flight 15 as early as October 19, leaving about three weeks to diagnose Monday’s engine shutdown before the next orbital attempt.

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