See how there’s the Macan to the Cayenne, and similarly there’s the 718 Cayman to the 911? Well, it seems like Porsche is looking to utilise the same strategy with its electric cars by introducing a smaller and cheaper sibling to the Taycan electric sedan, aiming its gun barrel directly towards the BMW i4.
The rumour comes from Autocar UK, who learned that the new model – seventh in Porsche’s line-up – is currently under the German carmaker’s consideration. According to insiders, it has not been approved for production just yet, so technical details remain scarce for now.
However, if the model does get the proverbial green light, it’s understood that it will be built on the Premium Platform Electric (PPE) architecture that is jointly developed between Porsche and its sister company Audi to underpin a range of EVs.
The next-generation Porsche Macan EV will also use the same PPE architecture, and it is understood that the new baby Taycan will share most of its drivetrain and battery components with the compact SUV.
Autocar believes that the new model will be offered with a single-motor on the rear axle as standard, though all-wheel drive will come as an extra cost option or made standard on upmarket variants – similar to how Porsche markets the Taycan.
Just like the Taycan, the new model will also have a sleek, fastback-like silhouette. However, the British publication says that new Porsche model will still be a four door electric sedan, around the same size as the Audi A4. If the rumours are true, that means that the new baby Taycan will be a competing in a completely new segment for Porsche.
Pricing for the new compact electric sedan will allegedly start in the vicinity of GBP50,000 (~RM293k), putting it just above the Porsche 718 Cayman in the United Kingdom. Here in Malaysia though, the Taycan already starts just slightly above the Cayman due to our unique excise duty structure for electric cars. Could we see an even cheaper entry point to the famed German brand? Only time will tell.
Obviously, Porsche did not comment on the report, but Autocar says that it won’t arrive until 2022 at the earliest – that is, if the model gets the nod of approval from Porsche’s board – as that’s when the other PPE-based cars are scheduled to enter production.
In addition to the upcoming Macan EV, the PPE platform will also underpin the next-generation Audi A6 that’s due in 2024, as well as a new crossover called Q6 e-Tron that will be unveiled in 2022.
All that’s left, then, is the name – there are suggestions that the new model take on the “Cajun” name first trademarked by Porsche in 2011. What do you think?
