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Porsche Taycan debut set for September 4, top facts about upcoming sports EV emerge
Porsche has confirmed that the formal debut of its first modern all-electric car, the Taycan, is set for September 4, 2019 at 9 a.m. EST. The vehicle will be launched at three locations: one in Canada, one in Germany, and another in China. With the Taycan’s launch, Porsche would be breaching a premium EV market that is so far dominated by Tesla and increasingly populated by veteran automakers such as Jaguar, Audi, and Mercedes-Benz.
The Taycan’s unveiling is only a few weeks away, and Porsche has been notably more open about giving access to its highly-secretive vehicle to the media. So far, the vehicle has been received extremely well. Fifth Gear presenter and Fully Charged host Jonny Smith, for one, was allowed to test the repeatability of the Taycan Turbo’s maximum performance during launches. The vehicle proved impressive for the host, as he was able to launch at max power 26 times with nary a drop in the car’s 0-60 mph performance.
Motoring publication Car and Driver was also able to experience the Porsche Taycan Turbo. Together with Porsche product line director for EVs Robert Meier, the publication was able to get some unique insights on the upcoming vehicle. The Taycan pre-production prototype, behind all its camouflage, was equipped with active anti-roll bars, carbon-ceramic brake rotors, rear-wheel steering, air springs, and a 21″ wheel and tire setup.
During Car and Driver‘s ride-along, Meier noted that the Taycan, thanks to its floor-mounted battery pack, actually has the lowest center of gravity in the company’s entire lineup. Comfort was a key portion of the Taycan’s development process as well, considering that the vehicle will be marketed as a four-door sedan that’s a step beneath the Panamera (and in turn, the Tesla Model S) in size. Highlighting the Taycan’s quickness, the Porsche executive noted that the vehicle will not see a drop in performance even when the battery is discharged past 50%.
Also notable is that the Taycan, unlike Tesla’s offerings like the Model 3 Performance, features a two-speed gearbox on its rear axle. This marks one of the first times that a production EV will be equipped with a two-speed gearbox, and it should provide a sizable benefit in both performance and efficiency. It would be interesting to see how Porsche manages the Taycan’s gearbox, considering Tesla’s experience with the original Roadster. During Tesla’s early days, the company equipped the original Roadster with a two-speed gearbox, but the components just kept breaking since the gearboxes could not handle the punishment from the vehicle’s electric motor.
Porsche states that the Taycan will have a range of 500 km (311 miles), though Car and Driver notes that this figure is based on the European NEDC cycle, which is far more generous than the more stringent and real-world accurate EPA cycle. During its ride-along with the vehicle, the publication noted that the Taycan showed a predicted 234 miles of range on a full charge, which reportedly seemed accurate considering that the trip’s route consisted of twisty mountain roads and 70-mph highway cruising. Meier’s comments to the publication’s team about being “conservative” with the Taycan’s range figure further adds to the idea of the vehicle having a US range rating that’s likely closer to 200 than 300 miles.
The Taycan has other notable quirks, including, but not limited to, two charging ports, its lack of one-pedal driving, and its sound, which could be heard especially at low speeds. This was particularly audible during Fully Charged host Jonny Smith’s first drive of the vehicle. With its low, bass-filled whine, the Taycan sounds not unlike those futuristic vehicles in sci-fi films.
Watch Fully Charged‘s experience with the Porsche Taycan Turbo in the video below.
A Tesla upfitter has offered to take over Cybertruck lines from the company in a last-ditch effort to save the all-electric pickup from being completely canceled in the middle of 2027.
Unplugged Performance, the Hawthorne, California-based Tesla aftermarket specialist, has publicly offered to take over Cybertruck production from Tesla, funding the effort “through a consortium of investors.”
An open offer to Tesla: We fully support putting Cybercab first, and we’d be glad to take the Cybertruck line off your hands.
We’d fund it with a consortium of investors and run it at no cost to Tesla’s floor space, headcount, or focus. All of that goes to Cybercab. Cybercab gets first call on battery cells too. We’ll wait our turn.
Tesla gains incremental profit: a license fee, plus FSD and Robotaxi network revenues on every vehicle built.
We’d build the Cybertruck, a three-row CyberSUV, and an unmanned CyberCargo hauler. More autonomous miles, across every surface of this planet and beyond.
Worth a conversation?— UP (@UnpluggedTesla) November 10, 2026
The proposal comes as Tesla prioritizes its Cybercab Robotaxi program and prepares to wind down Cybertruck assembly at Gigafactory Texas around mid-2027.
Founded in 2013 by Ben Schaffer and located adjacent to Tesla’s Design Studio and SpaceX, Unplugged Performance has become a leading provider of premium upgrades for Tesla vehicles, including extensive Cybertruck packages under its UP INVINCIBLE line.
Through its UP.FIT division, the company has also developed purpose-built police and fleet versions of the Cybertruck, including deliveries to agencies such as the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.
In an X post on Tuesday, Unplugged said:
“An open offer to Tesla: We fully support putting Cybercab first, and we’d be glad to take the Cybertruck line off your hands. We’d fund it with a consortium of investors and run it at no cost to Tesla’s floor space, headcount, or focus. All of that goes to Cybercab. Cybercab gets first call on battery cells too. We’ll wait our turn. Tesla gains incremental profit: a license fee, plus FSD and Robotaxi network revenues on every vehicle built. We’d build the Cybertruck, a three-row CyberSUV, and an unmanned CyberCargo hauler. More autonomous miles, across every surface of this planet and beyond. Worth a conversation?”
The arrangement would free Tesla resources and manufacturing capacity for Cybercab while allowing continued production of the stainless-steel pickup and expanded variants. Unplugged Performance indicated it would wait for battery cells after Cybercab needs are met and would generate ongoing revenue for Tesla through licensing and software/network services on the vehicles it produces.
Following strong initial interest, Unplugged Performance posted a follow-up inviting potential investors and strategic partners to email cyber@unpluggedperformance.com. The company clarified that the outreach is solely to gauge interest and does not constitute an offer to sell securities or acceptance of funds at this stage.
The proposal arrives shortly after Elon Musk indicated that Cybertruck production in Texas would be phased out by roughly the middle of 2027 to expand Cybercab output.
Whether Tesla engages with the offer remains to be seen, but the public overture highlights both the aftermarket specialist’s deep experience with the Cybertruck platform and the growing focus on autonomy within Tesla’s manufacturing plans.
Elon Musk said the Tesla Cybercab will perform “a majority of all passenger miles” where it is allowed to operate and that point is “obvious to anyone with eyes and a brain.”
Musk used the point to double down on the company’s decision to ax the cult-favorite Cybertruck, as its production space will be removed and transitioned into additional Cybercab lines. The move has catalyzed a polarizing conversation on whether its right or wrong.
Whatever side you are on — it’s happening.
Dodge ended the Viper.
Audi retired the R8.
Mitsubishi said goodbye to the Lancer Evo.
Ford bid farewell to the Bronco (at one point).
Chevrolet sunset the Camaro.Tesla is ending the Cybertruck. I’m pissed. I’m upset.
Fans of those five automakers mentioned did the same thing. It happens. It sucks. I don’t like it.
But I still love Tesla. I love my Model Y. I hoped to be in a Cybertruck in a little under two years.
I won’t be. But I still won’t put my family in anything else. Too safe. Too advanced. Too much better than everything else.
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) November 10, 2026
Regardless, Musk seems to be getting to the point that he is done talking about the choice. At some point, you have to think that this was truly a difficult decision for him and the company as well, and this is not something he took lightly. In fact, he’s probably a little bit disappointed with it, too.
But the point remains that the Cybertruck is gone. Musk’s focus is purely on developing an autonomous platform that the world will utilize for transportation, and he’s telling you that anyone “with eyes and a brain” can see it:
@PalmerLuckey @carlhancock Cybercab will do a majority of all passenger miles in any jurisdiction where it is not prohibited by law.
Obvious to anyone with eyes and a brain.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 10, 2026
Tesla is betting that all of its passengers in the future will be okay with not owning their own personal cars and will be fine with ride-hailing for the rest of their lives. Every dinner, every errand, every trip to the airport and transportation thereafter, will all be operated by ride-sharing, and in Tesla’s perfect world, it will happen in a Cybercab.
As of now, Cybercab is only active in Austin, but it has been spotted all over the country with a driver behind the wheel in those prototypes. In Austin, the car has no steering wheel or pedals for people to control the vehicle.
The Cybertruck dilemma is one that has truly come across the entire Tesla community and while it seems to be a great idea to keep it because people love it, the business side of things is steering Musk and Tesla in another direction.
Tesla has slimmed its Cybertruck offerings to offer only its most expensive trim: the Cyberbeast.
After announcing that the Cybertruck would no longer be produced and the company would wind down manufacturing sometime in the middle of 2027, Tesla started to eliminate some of the configurations offered to customers.
Tesla has stopped taking orders for the Cybertruck Premium AWD.
The Cyberbeast is now the only trim you can order, and its price went up $7,500 to $109,990.
Estimated deliveries have also slipped to March–June 2027 as the Giga Texas line heads toward its mid-2027 wind-down. https://t.co/o28epA0ZQl
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) November 10, 2026
Now, only one remains: the $109,990 Cyberbeast. This is truly what seems like Tesla’s last effort to deter any remaining orders from coming in: eliminate the cheap trims and leave only the high-dollar vehicle within the lineup of Cybertruck options.
Those who want to take advantage of this last-ditch opportunity to own Tesla’s symbolic pickup have to pay to play.
Tesla says the reason for the wind down is truly because of Cybercab and its importance to the future.
Despite cries for Tesla to continue production of the pickup, Musk says it is too difficult to ramp a high-volume line instead of ending the truck altogether. He also says Cybercab is what will take passengers around for the “majority of all miles in any jurisdiction where it is not prohibited by law.”
@PalmerLuckey @carlhancock Cybercab will do a majority of all passenger miles in any jurisdiction where it is not prohibited by law.
Obvious to anyone with eyes and a brain.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 10, 2026
Tesla is going all in on autonomy, and that’s never been a secret. But the commitment to a two-door, two-seat Cybercab truly limits people from having options for labor or hobbies. It also limits people from having their entire family in a single car.
Parents with even a single child will be required to take multiple vehicles if Cybercab is truly the only option Tesla plans to have.
Elon Musk keeps justifying Tesla Cybertruck’s cancelation, but it’s confusing
Tesla has stated the Robovan will also be in production eventually, but it still does not seem like the most ideal vehicle to own. It seems like it is geared more toward commercial uses, but Tesla might have something in the pipeline for families.
Tesla upfitter offers to keep Cybertruck alive
Elon Musk says Tesla Cybercab future is ‘obvious to anyone with eyes and a brain’
