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On Thursday , Porsche ingest the wraps off the Macan EV , a long - detain labor that will test whether consumer still have the drive to spring for an electric vehicle that be more than $ 78,000 .
The reveal come at a polar metre for Porsche — and many other automakers . Demand for expensive eV has wane in late months , prompting some automakers to rick back toward hybrid vehicles and curb costly stamp battery manufactory plan .
The Porsche Macan EV cater the ideal testbed for gauge consumer thought — which will diddle out when the company begins deliveries of the all - electric thickset SUV in the second half of the year . ThePorsche Macan EV will not only go up against thebest - trade gas - powered Macan , but it will also be more expensive .
The Porsche Macan EV will be extend in two variants : the Macan 4 and Macan Turbo ( yes , Porsche continues to hold up on to to its inheritance badge in bitchiness of this being an EV ) . The Macan 4 lead off at $ 78,800 and the Macan Turbo starts at $ 105,300 , price that do n’t let in the $ 1,650 delivery , processing and manipulation fee . Meanwhile , the gas - power Macan starts at $ 62,550 and tops out at $ 88,450 for its most expensive trim .
Porsche president and CEO North America Timo Resch does n’t see a struggle and or else figure an opportunity to give customers more option .
“ Ultimately , it ’s a client ’s choice , ” Resch recite TechCrunch in a late audience , adding that early on in the process , Porsche client think through their labor panache and habit . “ For what I require to do , is it more on the intimate combustion engine side or am I on the battery electric side ? And then this pretty much settle what direction to go . I suppose this is the direction forward , and for Porsche , there could n’t be any other counseling because we always endeavor to make the customer and their decision and their desire for our production , our highest antecedency . ”
Nuts and bolts
Porsche has dribble out specs on the future Macan EV since 2019 , when the fellowship first announced it would wrick its best - trade U.S. vehicle into an electric vehicle . It even allow TechCrunch and other mediadrive the prototypelast year . With the prescribed launching , Porsche released more contingent about the two Macan EVs with the exception of barrage range . The company sound out EPA range figures will be uncommitted nearer to rescue escort .
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The Macan EV is Porsche ’s 2nd all - electric vehicle and the first to utilise the freshly developed Premium Platform Electric ( or PPE ) , which was develop in collaboration with Audi AG and is plan for the producer to easily adjust wheelbase , track width and ground clearance .
The automaker is sell two variation of the all - electric SUV , both of which are equipped with electric motors on the front and rearward axles , which pull energy from a 100 - kilowatt - time of day lithium - ion stamp battery clique locate in the underbody of the fomite .
First up is the Macan 4 , an all - electric SUV fit with a powertrain that can produce up to 402 horsepower and 479 pound - foot or torque . The Macan 4 can accelerate from a standstill to 60 miles per hour in 4.9 seconds and a top track speed of 136 miles per hour .
As the name suggests , the more muscular Macan Turbo can generate up to 630 hp and a maximum 833 lb - ft of torsion . That also translate to faster speedup ; the Macan Turbo can go from 0 to 60 mph in 3.1 seconds and a top track speed of 161 mph .
It ’s worth noting that the Porsche Macan EV is the first Macan to have rear - axle guidance . As we noted in our test driving last twelvemonth , the rear wheel turn up to five point opposite the front roulette wheel when drive at speed of about 50 miles per hour or slower , which lets the driver feel the car as it rotates through turns .
Android software
Another notable feature is the software , namely that is not the computer software 1.2 platform that has been under growing — andrepeatedly delayed — by VW Group ’s Cariad software unit . The software 1.2 was being created specifically for the Porsche Macan EV and the Audi Q6 E - Tron and was earlier scheduled for mop up in 2022 . Cariad pushed the release date to the end of 2023 to be ready for 2024 VW mannequin when Peter Bosch take over in May . Now it looks like the software 1.2 platform wo n’t be in car until at least 2025 .
That left Porsche hanging , and ultimately the automaker turned to Google . The Porsche Macan EV ’s infotainment system is based onAndroid Automotive OS , which is sit after Google ’s open reservoir wandering operating scheme that runs on Linux . This should n’t be confused with Android Auto , an app that run for on the user ’s sound and wirelessly communicates with and project piloting , parking , media and messaging to the vehicle ’s infotainment system , or Google built - in , which is power by its Android Automotive operating system and integrates Google services directly into the fomite .
Android Automotive OS essentially allows Porsche to construct out and mix its own products and service such as navigation and apps . It also supports Apple CarPlay , which allows owners of Apple phones to project onto the infotainment sieve .
“ The engineering science advantages are very obvious and can be felt by our customers instantly when they get into the car , ” Timo say , who did n’t provide any information on the 1.2 software delay or if Porsche would ever adopt it . “When they get into the Macan electric car , it looks like a very debauched , very intuitive Porsche drug user interface because in terms of the facial expression and finger , the icon , everything else , it is conversant to the Porsche count and feel . ”
