Cars

The Porsche Taycan Turbo GT Shows BMW Needs An Electric M Car

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Porsche already offers multiple versions of its Taycan electric sedan but it’s now adding an extra layer of performance with the Turbo GT. Positioned above the already immensely potent Turbo S, the new range-topping version is intended for track use while remaining fully street-legal. It has more power and less weight, but that’s only part of the story since there are other tweaks inside and out.

The Taycan Turbo GT takes the title of Porsche’s most powerful production car ever by offering a whopping 1,092 hp. However, that kind of output is available only for two seconds. With launch control turned on, it still offers an immense 1,019 hp. In normal mode, the driver has 777 hp at their disposal. As for torque, you get up to 988 lb-ft (1,340 Nm), available virtually instantly as with every other EV out there.

Porsche touts a 0 to 60 mph in 2.2 seconds for the Taycan Turbo GT. It can actually do the job in just 2.1 seconds if the hot EV is fitted with the Weissach Package. It shaves off weight by removing the rear seats. Yes, you can buy a four-door sedan that has only two seats. It’s been done before – remember the Jaguar XE SV Project 8?

Just as impressive is the 0-124 mph (0-200 km/h) sprint in 6.6 seconds for the regular Taycan Turbo GT or 6.4 seconds if you get the hardcore Weissach Package. The latter is a no-cost option and removes 157 pounds (71 kilograms) of fat by getting rid of the rear seats and speakers. It also has a simplified trunk that does away with the electric soft-closing feature. Both flavors of the electric sedan make extensive use of carbon fiber and have 21-inch forged wheels. Porsche throws in lighter ceramic composite brakes and an adaptive rear spoiler with a Gurney flap.

Flat out, the meanest Taycan of them all can reach 190 mph (305 km/h), making it one of the fastest EVs money can buy. As expected, this level of performance doesn’t come cheap since Porsche wants $230,000 before options and the mandatory $1,995 destination/handling fees. The Taycan Turbo GT is already available to order and will reach dealers in the United States this summer.

Buying one will get you the fastest series production electric car on two iconic race tracks: Nürburgring (7 minutes and 7.55 seconds) and Laguna Seca (1 minute and 27.87 seconds). Both records were established with a pre-production version piloted by Porsche development driver Lars Kern.

The new Porsche Taycan Turbo GT doesn’t have any competition from BMW to worry about. A fully electric M car is still several years away, with the first model likely to be an M3-like sedan codenamed “ZA0.” In the meantime, the Bavarian marque has an assortment of electric M Performance models, including the i4 M50, i5 M60, iX M60, and the i7 M70. These are joined by hot plug-in hybrids such as the M760e and the XM.

Based on our sources, the electric M3 – which won’t be called iM3 – will have less than 1,000 hp when it arrives around 2027. It remains to be seen how many motors the electric M will have, but our money is on two at the very least. Mounting one at the front axle and another at the rear would give the super sedan xDrive but M boss Frank van Meel said engineers are exploring a twin-motor, rear-wheel-drive setup. In addition, BMW has been testing a quad-motor xDrive prototype based on the i4 M50 for some time.

Aside from leveling up the Taycan, Porsche is now also selling an all-electric Macan that will go up against the next-generation iX3 coming next year on the Neue Klasse platform. BMW could also make an iX4 in the latter half of the decade, without giving the X4 with combustion engines a new generation.

Source: Porsche

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