- Interior comfort and premium finish
- Some shortcomings
- Final thoughts: the RWD Taycan is still a head turner
RWD Porsche Taycan. Image: Bridie Schmidt
It’s priced at around half the price of its premium stablemates, but even at around $158,100, the rear-wheel-drive electric Taycan – the “entry-level” version of the Porsche’s all-electric sports car – is still a head turner.
It’s certainly a step down from premium stablemates (you can read about our reviews for the mid-range 4S, high-end Turbo Cross Turismo and GTS here), at a price of $176,595 (driveaway, once the on road costs are included in NSW), it’s still a pricy piece of electrical machinery.
Of course, the power output is not as heartstoppingly fast as that of its more monied stablemates, but it still packs enough of a punch for a bit of fun on the road.
Where the dual-motor Turbo Cross Turismo can accelerate from 0-100km/hr in a 3.3 seconds (for a mere $130,000 more), the single-motor plain-jane Taycan does it in 5.4 seconds.
The car has around 450 kilometres of range, which is more than adequate for most uses. On the highway I consistently achieved under 20 kilowatt hours per 100 kilometres, which is better than the other Taycans I’ve driven, thanks to the 2.05 tonne weigh-in which makes it the lightest of its siblings.
RWD Porsche Taycan. Image: Bridie Schmidt
There are some obvious differences to the initiated when you hop into, or rather lower yourself, into the car. And this is to be expected if one is to wipe a small house deposit off the starting price of a luxury vehicle.
The first thing that stands out is that Porsche has done away with the extraneous passenger touchscreen, which let’s be honest was probably only needed if you have a passenger with sharing issues. Porsche has also removed the retro-style clock on the dashboard. I like that. My partner did not.
RWD Taycan dashboard. Source: Porsche
There are also fewer driving modes – the Sports Plus is missing, leaving Normal Sport, and Range mode, which limits the car’s speed to 100 kilometres an hour. (in the Cross Turismo you will also get Gravel Mode for those times when you need to take a $300,000 vehicle “off-road”.)
The car of course handles beautifully. Taking it for a spin in the hinterlands of Northern NSW, its RWD format hugs the corners and has just enough room in the back for a couple of extra friends, albeit ones with short legs.
I had a chance to take the car out to a hinterland pub over the weekend I had the car. We were able to fit in four adults in the car fairly comfortably (although the shortest among us chose the back seat.)
Interior comfort and premium finish
While the RWD Taycan still has electronic seats, the seat controls are a step down from the full gamut of options the premium variants. There is no lumbar support and leg width adjustment, or lower thigh support.
Despite these omissions, the seating position and the steering wheel were both quite comfortable and easy to adjust into a comfortable spot, particularly for someone with long legs.
The interior of the car is very comfortable. Its two tone interior with a dusky upholstery and doors are complemented by black molded accents on the pillars, dash and top of the doors. In the doors, there are the usual controls including seat memory functions, and for locks and windows.
There’s enough room in the door for a two medium-sized bottles in the centre console, as well as a small storage area behind the cupholders. In the back row, there is a cardan tunnel in the car which unfortunately means Porsche has not taken advantage of the extra space that can be gained from having an electric drivetrain.
Some shortcomings
Despite the still-hefty price tag, the RWD Taycan still has some shortcomings, unfortunately.
And as with all Taycans, its charging location is somewhat awkward. Because of its placement at the bottom of the A-pillar, the cables for certain chargers don’t quite reach far enough to be able to park within the lines (we didn’t have this problem at other fast-chargers, thankfully). But it did leave me hoping another EV didn’t pull up and think, “Bloody inconsiderate Porsche driver.”
Thankfully, the ultra-rapid 270kW charing means I didn’t need to be there for long anyway.
RWD Porsche Taycan charging awkwardly. Image: Bridie Schmidt
Also, don’t expect to have oodles of space if you’re going on a trip with more than yourself and one passenger. While the cargo space offer 405 litres with the seats up and 841 litres with the back seats down, the front seats must be moved forwards to achieve this leaving less leg room in the front.
RWD Porsche Taycan. Image: Bridie Schmidt
RWD Porsche Taycan. Image: Bridie Schmidt
RWD Porsche Taycan. Image: Bridie Schmidt
RWD Porsche Taycan. Image: Bridie Schmidt
Although there are a slew of driver safety assist features you’d expect from Porsche, including first-person-view and top-down view from the car’s various cameras when in reverse.
The top-down view – also known as “helicopter view” – is a composite image. It’s a bit annoying because the default is a fish-eye effect which stretches the car’s surrounds out of proportion. It can be turned off, but like other default options (such as regenerative braking which is turned off by default) there doesn’t seem to be a way to save the view.
Final thoughts: the RWD Taycan is still a head turner
Despite the RWD Taycan’s expected omissions and some shortcomings, it is still a head turner. The port wine colouring of the loaner I drove proved this was indeed enough, attracting more attention than either the baby blue 4S or the crayon grey Cross Turismo.
It has all the seductive sports car vibes but at a price that puts it in the same category as the Tesla Model S. While there Model S has no pricing right now, last we checked it sat around the $170,000 driveaway. When Tesla does price it again in Australia, it is without a doubt going to be north of that for a Long Range S.
Not that the Taycan RWD and Long Range Model S are comparable: the former offers all the cache that comes with the storied Porsche name, while the other offers dual-motors, an acceleration of 3.2 seconds (2 seconds for the Plaid) and a minimalist rethink of what a car should be.
But if you’re after Model S specs in a Porsche you’ll be looking at top-spec variants north of $300,000 after on-road costs. In the meantime, the RWD Taycan makes a good proposition to those after a premium electric option.
Keyword: Taycan RWD review: Half-priced “entry-level” electric Porsche still a head turner