Porsche Taycan (2025-) Review

Introduction

Ever since its introduction, the Porsche Taycan has been as popular with customers as it has been with the critics. Adored for its handling, performance and quality, it has ticked a lot of boxes for a lot of electric car drivers, and it’s no surprise that it’s now one of Porsche’s most popular models.

But even the best in the business need to stay one step ahead, and Porsche has decided to update its money-making electric vehicle (EV) for 2025. By getting rid of the smallest battery option and adding a new, bigger one above the existing system, the company has improved range immediately, while interior tech has been updated and the exterior design has been very lightly modified. But is that enough to make sure the likes of Audi haven’t quite caught up?

At a Glance

The latest-generation Taycan has had a mild visual update, but it was hardly in desperate need of a facelift. So modern is the saloon that Porsche has only really felt the need to change the lights and the front wings, leaving the rest more or less untouched. And the Sport Turismo estate and its jacked-up Cross Turismo sibling are both as attractive as ever.

Similarly, the interior hasn’t changed much, but it didn’t need to. The quality on show is almost flawless, and there’s a clean, minimalist and very German style to the design, which is centred around three well-organised and well thought-out screens. But there’s space, too, with lots of rear legroom and decent boot space, particularly in the estate versions.

Essentially, Porsche has used most of its engineering might on the latest-generation Taycan’s battery pack. The majority of new models, aside from some of the cheapest models, get the new Performance Battery Plus, which can hold a massive amount of power and gives the most efficient Taycan models a real-world range of up to around 400 miles. And it charges outrageously quickly.

Even the cheapest Taycan is blisteringly fast on the road, too, with performance that suits the Porsche badge on the nose, while the range-topping Turbo GT provides an exceptional supercar-esque turn of pace. They’re all great to drive, too, thanks to Porsche’s near-perfect steering and spectacular suspension set-ups.

Key Features

Perhaps the most appealing aspect of the latest-generation Taycan is that new Performance Battery Plus, which offers the lowly, relatively entry level, rear-wheel-drive Taycan an incredible real-world motorway range of more than 400 miles on a charge. Admittedly, you might not achieve that especially regularly – cold weather, for example, will have a notable impact – but it means you will have to worry about charging much less than before. And even more powerful, twin-motor models with the less aerodynamic body will still happily cover about 200-250 miles, even in the depths of winter. And when you do come to charge, you can do so at incredibly rapid rates, assuming you can find a charger capable of delivering the 320kW maximum charge speed the Taycan is capable of.

Whatever you think of the battery, though, the Taycan has always been a Porsche at heart, and that means handling is one of its key selling points. It may be available as a Sport Turismo estate, but the Taycan still feels like a sports car on the road, with incredible poise, balance and steering even in relatively unexciting forms. And if you try the Turbo GT model, you had better be ready to watch the laws of physics bend in front of your eyes. That car’s sheer pace, stability and agility need to be seen to be believed, but the DNA is still there in base models, which handle fabulously on the road. Even the Audi RS e-tron GT – a close relative of the Porsche – doesn’t quite have the same level of poise and precision.

Range & Batteries

As standard, the base Taycan (known simply as the Taycan) comes with Porsche’s Performance Battery. It’s an 89kWh battery pack that feeds the single 408hp rear motor, and gives the Taycan Sports Saloon a range of up to 367 miles on the official efficiency test. Whether you’ll manage that in the real world depends on all manner of things, including weather, driving style and the route you take, but it should still provide enough range for most drivers to be getting on with.

If you so choose, however, you can specify the basic Taycan with the Performance Battery Plus that’s standard on all other models. Do that and you’ll get a bonus improvement in power, as well as 105kWh of total battery capacity, allowing an official maximum range of 421 miles on a charge. And on our test, this version of the Taycan managed just over 400 miles on the motorway, suggesting the right weather conditions and a light foot can make such figures achievable.

Unfortunately, while almost every other version of the Taycan gets the Performance Battery Plus as standard, the Taycan Sports Saloon with the Performance Battery Plus offers the greatest range of all of them. So no other variant will go quite as far on a charge, but we’ve managed more than 200 miles in the real world from every version we’ve tested apart from the Turbo GT, and that was because we sampled it on a race track. Realistically, very few new Taycan customers are likely to have a problem with range, unless their driving style is at fault or the weather is particularly inclement.

Performance & Drive

As usual, Porsche is offering a bewildering array of different versions of the new Taycan. The basic Sports Saloon and Sport Turismo models come with the smaller 89kWh Performance Battery and 408hp electric motor, which is more than quick enough for most. Getting from 0-62mph in well under five seconds, but those who want more range and more power can upgrade to the 105kWh Performance Battery Plus get a 435hp electric motor driving the rear wheels.

If, on the other hand, you choose the Cross Turismo body shape, the range kicks off with the Taycan 4, gets all-wheel drive (as opposed to the rear-wheel-drive layout of the Sports Saloon and Sport Turismo models) and 435hp as standard.

But no matter which body shape you choose, you can still have the more powerful 4S model with twin-motor all-wheel-drive propulsion and either 462hp (if you choose the basic Performance Battery) or 517hp if you choose the Performance Battery Plus. For many, these will be some of the most useful models in the range, especially in Sport Turismo or Cross Turismo forms.

Above the 4S is the GTS, which is not available in Cross Turismo form, and comes with the Performance Battery Plus as standard, as well as up to 700hp from its two electric motors. And if that isn’t enough, you can always go for the Turbo and Turbo S models, which are available in every body shape and come with 884hp and 952hp respectively.

But the flagship of the range is the Turbo GT with a whopping 1034hp, which is enough for an outrageous 2.2-second dash to 62mph. And the Turbo GT gets some other performance-related upgrades, too, but you don’t need to go for the Turbo GT to get a Taycan that handles sensationally.

Every model drives brilliantly, including the basic Taycan. The steering is brilliant and the balance of the car is fantastic, regardless of whether you choose the Sports Saloon or the Sport Turismo. Yes, the taller, higher-riding Cross Turismo feels a bit less stable thanks to its extra ride height, but the Sport Turismo is impressively close to the Sports Saloon on the handling front.

Admittedly, the brilliant body control and agility means the Taycan rides a little firmly, but it’s hardly uncomfortable. On a long motorway journey, it’s more than supple enough, but the ride is a little unforgiving around town, especially in the more powerful cars such as the GTS, which has sportier suspension than the base models.

There are definitely differences between the different versions – the Turbo GT, for example, is staggering on a race track, with unbelievable suspension that somehow keeps the body level no matter what, while the Turbo is set up for long distances and fast A-roads – but every car, from the lowliest Cross Turismo to the most hardcore Turbo GT, is miles ahead of its rivals.

Charging

How fast the Taycan will charge depends partly on which version you choose. The base model with the Performance Battery offers a maximum charge speed of 270kW from a DC charging point, and that means it’ll fill from 10% to 80% in less than 20 minutes at maximum charge speed. Although that does assume you can plug into a charger powerful enough to deliver that kind of rate.

You’re likely to have the same problem with the Performance Battery Plus, which can charge even more rapidly, at 320kW. That means it’ll take 18 minutes to fill it from 10% to 80%, but only if you can find an ultra-rapid 350kW charge point.

And if you charge at home, the size of both batteries may pose a problem. Porsche quotes a full charge time of more than 11 hours for the Performance Battery using a 9.6kW AC charge point, and that time rises to 13 hours for the Performance Battery Plus. However, most UK home ‘wallbox’ charging points will only deliver around 7kW. At least you won’t have to charge that often, and even a 50% charge should give you well over 100 miles of real-world range.

Running Costs & Emissions

Despite being a Porsche – and despite being a very fast Porsche, at that – the Taycan is still going to prove much cheaper to run than Porsche’s other four-door saloon, the Panamera. With Benefit-in-Kind (BIK) tax kept to a minimum by the electric motors, it’ll be popular with company car drivers, while the promise of lower fuel costs will appeal to plenty of private customers. And if you’re charging at home, the cost of electricity will be so small that it won’t matter all that much whether you’re charging a top-of-the-range Turbo GT or a basic Taycan – they’ll cost much the same to fill, even if the performance models won’t go quite as far between charges.

Interior & Technology

Although Porsche has made some tweaks to the Taycan’s front end, with the new lights and new front wings, the differences inside are much harder to spot. Get the magnifying glass out and you might notice the new door sill protectors or the new ambient lighting technology, both of which now come as standard, but that’s about it. In essence, it’s exactly the same as before.

That means you get a clean interior dominated by two central touchscreens – a lower one for climate control and various other functions, and an upper one for media and navigation and the like. Both look great, with Porsche’s latest-generation software and crisp graphics, but the upper screen is much easier to use. That’s partly because it’s responsive and the menus are well laid out, but it’s primarily because it doesn’t have the strange haptic feedback of the lower screen, which can feel odd and leave you wondering whether you commanded the car to do anything at all.

Then there’s the digital instrument display, which is gloriously clear and sharp, and works a treat. Configuration is controlled via buttons on the steering wheel, and it’s all very intuitive, smart and well thought through.

And all that tech is packaged in a cool, minimalist and modern interior design that’s beautifully constructed. From the stitching of the upholstery to the solidity of the switchgear, it all feels every bit as premium as the list price suggests, even if it is a little dark in the saloon versions. Sport Turismo estate models, on the other hand, are available with a clever panoramic glass roof that uses electric currents to change the opacity, allowing it to block most of the light at the touch of a button.

But while all that’s very clever, we are a little puzzled by some of the ergonomics. You might expect the Germans to excel in that area, and Porsche generally does, but the dash-mounted gear selector toggle and start button are a bit awkward, as are the buttons around the digital instrument display.

Practicality & Boot Space

Clearly, how practical your Taycan is depends largely on whether you choose a saloon, a Sport Turismo or a Cross Turismo version. Opt for the sleeker saloon option, and you get ample space in the front and quite generous rear legroom, but rear headroom is a little compromised. Choose one of the two Turismo estate versions, and the higher roofline means rear headroom is a bit better, and the car is better suited to carrying adults in the back.

If you go for the basic saloon, you also get a 407-litre boot, which is a bit small when compared with that of the BMW i5 or the Mercedes-Benz EQE, but it is bigger than that of the Audi S e-tron GT. And it’s supplemented by a handy 84-litre front storage area, or ‘frunk,’ as some people call it. In comparison, the basic Taycan Sport Turismo gets the same 84-litre cargo bay at the front and a 446-litre boot.

From here, however, things get a bit complicated. Though the all-wheel-drive, two-motor Taycan 4S Sports Saloon gets the same 407-litre and 84-litre cargo bays as the single-motor, rear-wheel-drive car, the 4S Sport Turismo only has a 405-litre rear luggage bay. Yet weirdly, the 4S Cross Turismo has the same 446 litres of rear cargo space as the standard, rear-drive Taycan Sport Turismo.

Then, if you choose a GTS Sports Saloon, which is another two-motor, all-wheel-drive version, you get a 336-litre boot, while the Sport Turismo version’s boot (there’s no GTS Cross Turismo) drops to 405 litres. For reasons unknown, the more powerful Turbo Sport Turismo, though, has 446 litres of rear luggage space.

In short, then, exactly how much boot space you get is all quite confusing, but Sport Turismo and Cross Turismo models are generally more practical than the Sports Saloons, both in terms of boot space and rear cabin space. Yet no Taycan is especially practical alongside more conventional saloons and estates, such as the BMW i5 and i5 Touring.

Safety

Though the new-look Taycan has not been crash-tested by Euro NCAP, the outgoing model is almost identical in structural terms, so that car’s rating is expected to apply to the new model. And it’s a very strong five-star rating, thanks to a solid showing across the board. Both the adult and child occupant protection scores were strong, and the safety assistance tech was solidly rated.

And the Porsche certainly comes with a fair bit of that. The legally mandated autonomous emergency braking and speed limit assistance systems are all present and correct, as are lane departure warning, a reversing camera and cruise control. You have to pay extra for adaptive cruise control that maintains a safe distance to the car in front, though, and blind-spot monitoring is an option, too.

Options

As usual, the Taycan range is large and complex. And the key differences between the versions are largely mechanical, whether that’s a question of stiffer suspension or more powerful motors. And this being Porsche, optional extras are outrageously numerous.

The base model is the rear-wheel-drive, single-motor Taycan, which comes with 19-inch alloy wheels, leather upholstery and eight-way electric comfort seats. Memory seats are standard, too, along with two-zone climate control, two central touchscreens and a digital instrument display, along with a multi-function steering wheel, a reversing camera and satellite navigation. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone connectivity are both included with the standard specification.

Moving up to the 4 or the 4S models doesn’t add all that much in the way of standard specification, but the GTS models get sportier styling, black exterior trim and dark wheels, as well as red brake callipers and sportier suspension. The Turbo models, meanwhile, get 20-inch aerodynamic alloys, upgraded seats and a handful of other upgrades, and the Turbo GT gets an outrageous aero kit, 21-inch alloys and various lightweight features, not to mention carbon-weave dashboard trim and microfibre upholstery. And if you go for the Weissach Package, you get even more aero equipment, including a fixed rear wing.

And this is before we even look at the choices of Sports Saloon, Sport Turismo and Cross Turismo models, as well as the lengthy options list. Seat ventilation, rear seat heating and more upmarket headlights are all optional extras. Rear-axle steering, extra driving modes, privacy glass and a head-up display are worth considering, too. As is adaptive cruise control, a surround view parking camera and blind-spot monitoring.

Rival Cars

Direct rivals to the Taycan are fairly limited at the moment, but the list is growing. Naturally, the closest alternative comes from Audi, which has built its e-tron GT models around the same platform as the Porsche. Choosing between the two on the basis of looks is, of course, subjective, but we reckon the Porsche is the better of the two to drive and it has much better efficiency.

But the electric four-door market is growing all the time, and the Taycan now faces more oblique competition from the BMW i5, which is high-tech and great to drive, and the Mercedes-Benz EQEBYD Seal, which has great range and lots of gizmos. And for those on more of a budget, the bears more than a passing resemblance to the Taycan but costs a bit less.

You could also consider the more powerful versions of the new Tesla Model 3 as credible Taycan alternatives, and although that car is now much better than it was when it was first launched, it still can’t match the Porsche’s quality or handling.

In truth, though, while numerous cars have tried to offer some of the same qualities as the Taycan, few of them can really compete. No other electric car drives as well as the Porsche, and very few other cars – regardless of powertrain – can compete with the Porsche’s build quality.

Verdict & Next Steps

With that new battery providing exceptional real-world range, and the same sensational driving dynamics as before, the Taycan has undoubtedly improved as a result of the update. You might not notice the styling or the tech, but you will notice the improved usability and capability of the electric powertrains, which ensure this is still right up there with the very best on the market.

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**Score based on Select’s unique meta score analysis, taking into account the UK’s top leading independent car website reviews of the Porsche Taycan.

**Correct as of 14/03/2025. Based on 9 months initial payment, 5,000 miles annually, over a 24 month lease. Initial payment equivalent to 9 monthly payments, or £2,051.91 (Plus admin fee) Ts and Cs apply. Credit is subject to status.