2020 Porsche Taycan Review

Should I Buy the Porsche Taycan

If you have the desire and the means, you should consider the 

Porsche Taycan. Pricing starts around $104,000, but for higher 

trim levels, it can soar north of $200,000 with options. For many 

shoppers, this puts the Taycan out of reach.

If you simply want a luxury electric car with strong performance 

and a quality interior, the $39,000 Tesla Model 3 and $80,000 

Tesla Model S are more-attainable options. Both are expected to 

provide longer driving ranges as well, though we’ll have to wait 

for the Taycan’s official EPA ratings to be sure.

Porsche Taycan Interior

How Many People Does the Taycan Seat?

The Porsche Taycan is a four-door sedan with standard seating for 

four. A middle seat is optional for the second row, raising the 

capacity to five people.

The Taycan’s front seats are soft and supportive, and they provide 

a wide range of adjustment. Finding an ideal driving position is 

easy. There’s generous head- and legroom up front as well. 

Visibility is great to the front and sides of the car, though rear 

visibility is poor because of the slim rear window.

The Taycan’s outboard rear seats are similarly comfortable and 

well-bolstered in all the right places. The back seat is roomy 

enough for two adults on shorter trips, but tall passengers are apt to 

find both head- and legroom to be snug.

Partial leather upholstery is standard. Options include full leather 

upholstery or leather-free suede, heated front and rear seats, 

ventilated and massaging front seats, and a heated steering wheel.

Taycan and Car Seats

The Taycan has two full sets of LATCH connectors for securing 

child car seats.

Taycan Interior Quality

The Taycan sets the new standard for luxury EV interiors. The 

attention to detail and material quality are exceptional. The cabin 

is also well-insulated, and there’s little of the road and wind noise 

at higher speeds that many electric vehicles are plagued by.

The overall styling is modern but faithful to Porsche cars of late. 

Most surfaces are wrapped in soft leather. Optional accents include 

wood, aluminum, and carbon fiber.

Taycan Cargo Space

The Taycan has 12.9 cubic feet of rear trunk space and 2.8 cubic 

feet of front trunk space. The front trunk – or "frunk" – is big 

enough to fit a duffle bag or a few grocery bags. The rear trunk can 

accommodate a pair of large suitcases with room to spare. The 

back seats fold in a 60/40-split, making it easier to fit longer items.

Taycan Infotainment, Bluetooth, and Navigation

The Taycan’s cockpit is dominated by screens – up to four in total. 

Behind the steering wheel is a curved 16.8-inch digital gauge 

cluster, which has crisp graphics and a highly configurable layout, 

so you can see as much or as little driving information as you want.

A 10.9-inch touch screen is located in the center of the dashboard. 

It handles most of the infotainment functions, like the radio, 

navigation, and Apple Car Play. Below it on the center console is a 

second touch screen. This display manages the climate control, 

seat heating, and volume settings. An optional third touch screen is 

located on the passenger-side dashboard, and its abilities are 

similar to the main infotainment screen: audio tuning and 

navigation, mostly.

This layout is futuristic and easy on the eyes, but apart from the 

gauge cluster, it has a steep learning curve and can be 

overwhelming to use. There aren’t any physical buttons or knobs, 

making it difficult to adjust settings quickly on the go. Even the air 

vents are a process to adjust, requiring you to delve into sub menus 

on the center console screen. These controls may become more 

intuitive over time, but initial impressions are lukewarm.   

Taycan Performance

Taycan Engine: Lightning Fast

The Porsche Taycan has an electric all-wheel-drive system. It 

consists of two electric motors (one at each axle) that produce a 

combined 429 horsepower in the 4S model and 616 horsepower in 

the Turbo and Turbo S models. If that sounds like a lot of power, 

it's because it is. The Taycan 4 S can zip from zero to 60 mph in 

under four seconds, and that acceleration keeps building well 

beyond legal speed limits. The two Turbo models cut this sprint to 

just three seconds.

This straight-line speed is only part of the Taycan’s allure though. 

Switch into Normal or Range mode and the Taycan behaves like 

any good luxury sedan. It’s easy to drive. The throttle has a linear 

and responsive feel, the electric motors hum along quietly at 

highway speeds, and passing power is delivered with a satisfying 

surge.

Unlike other EVs, the Taycan has a two-speed transmission 

integrated into the rear axle. This helps the car accelerate quickly 

at low speed and cruise more efficiently at high speed.

Taycan Mileage, Range, and Charging: TBD

At the time of writing, the EPA has not released driving range or 

mileage estimates for the 2020 Porsche Taycan.

Charging the Taycan at home using a 240-volt household charger 

or a Level 2 public charging station takes 10 to 11 hours. Level 3 

public chargers can get the Taycan to 80% capacity in 90 minutes 

or less. To get the fastest charge, you’ll need to find a public 

charger that can provide 270 kilowatts, such as those offered by 

Volkswagen’s Electrify America initiative. Using this method can 

charge the Taycan to 80% in just over 20 minutes. Taycan drivers 

can fast charge for free at Electrify America stations during their 

first three years of ownership (limited to 30 minutes at a time).

These fast charging speeds are made possible by the Taycan’s 800-

volt architecture (most EVs have 400-volt systems). Another 

benefit to this setup is lower operating temperatures for the motors.

Taycan Ride and Handling: True to the Porsche Way

The Taycan may be Porsche’s first EV, but it drives just as well as 

the brand’s more traditional offerings. This sedan feels 

exceptionally stable and surefooted on tight, winding roads. Its 

standard air suspension does a great job of soaking up large bumps 

and dips in the pavement, yielding a smooth ride, but it still 

communicates smaller irregularities in the road to the driver. At 

highway speeds, the Taycan cruises straight, with minimal jostling 

from crosswinds.

This car achieves a delicate balance of comfort and sportiness that 

few rivals can match. Porsche dials this in even further with 

performance add-ons like optional four-wheel steering and active 

anti-roll bars. Critics point to two letdowns though. The steering 

doesn’t provide the tactile feedback that some drivers have come 

to expect from a Porsche. The bigger issue is the regenerative 

braking system.

Most EVs begin to slow down as soon as you pick your foot off 

the throttle. This is a result of the electric motors being used as 

generators to recharge the battery pack. The Taycan is different in 

that it provides almost no regenerative braking when you let off the 

throttle. Instead, it coasts along at speed, which is a little unsettling 

if you’re accustomed to the ‘one pedal driving’ offered by other 

electric vehicles, though it’s likely not a big deal if you’re coming 

from a gas-powered vehicle. On the plus side, the brakes provide 

strong and linear stopping power when you do press the brake 

pedal.

Taycan Reliability

Is the Porsche Taycan Reliable?

The Taycan doesn't have a predicted reliability rating from J.D. 

Power at this time.

Porsche Taycan Warranty

Porsche covers the Taycan with a four-year/50,000-mile new car 

warranty and an eight-year/100,000-mile battery warranty.

Taycan Safety

Taycan Crash Test Results

Neither the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration nor 

the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has released crash test 

results for the 2020 Taycan.

Taycan Safety Features

The 2020 Taycan comes standard with a rear view camera, front 

and rear parking sensors, traffic sign recognition, lane keep assist, 

adaptive pivoting headlights, forward collision warning, and 

automatic emergency braking.

Available driver assistance features include blind spot monitoring, 

adaptive cruise control with low-speed traffic jam assistant, a 

surround-view parking camera system, and a night vision camera.

Taycan Dimensions and Weight

The Porsche Taycan is 16.3 feet long. Its curb weight ranges from 

4,777 to 5,132 pounds, depending on how it's configured.

Where Is the 2020 Porsche Taycan Built?

Porsche builds the Taycan in Germany.

Which Porsche Taycan Model Is Right for Me

The 2020 Porsche Taycan is available in three trim levels: 4S, 

Turbo, and Turbo S. The entry-level Taycan 4S is the best pick for 

most shoppers. It’s equipped with many of the same features as the 

upper trims and it offers similar driving dynamics, but it costs 

between $47,000 and $81,000 less in its standard configuration.

Porsche Taycan 4S

The base model Taycan 4S has a starting MSRP of $103,800. Its 

power train includes a 79 kWh lithium-ion battery pack, all-wheel 

drive, and two electric motors.

Standard features include a 10.9-inch infotainment screen, Apple 

Car Play, navigation, Bluetooth, HD and satellite radio, 10 

speakers, four USB ports, partial leather upholstery, 8-way power-

adjustable front seats, dual-zone automatic climate control, key 

less entry, a panoramic sunroof, an adaptive air suspension, and 19-

inch wheels.

Standard safety features include a rear view camera, parking 

sensors, forward collision warning with brake assist, lane keep 

assist, traffic sign recognition, and adaptive LED headlights.

The optional Premium package ($7,170) adds ventilated front 

seats, blind spot monitoring, and a surround-view parking camera 

system. The Performance package ($6,430) adds four-wheel 

steering, active anti-roll bars, and the Sport Chrono stopwatch. A 

larger 93 kWh battery pack is available for $6,580, boosting the 

car’s output to 482 horsepower and likely extending the driving 

range.

There are numerous individual options. They include full leather or 

leather-free upholstery ($4,130), heated front and rear seats ($530), 

massaging front seats ($2,000), an additional rear passenger seat 

($480), a heated steering wheel ($280), and quad-zone automatic 

climate control ($990). You can also opt for a passenger-side 

infotainment screen ($1,130), a 14-speaker Bose stereo ($1,200), a 

21-speaker Burmester stereo ($7,000), adaptive cruise control 

($2,050), a night vision camera ($2,420), carbon ceramic brakes 

($9,080), 20- and 21-inch wheels ($2,380 to $8,770), and an up 

rated 150 kW on board DC charger ($460 ).

Porsche Taycan Turbo

The midrange Taycan Turbo starts at $150,900. It features an 

upgraded version of the 4 S’s power train with 616 horsepower and 

a larger 93 kWh battery pack. This trim also adds full leather 

upholstery, heated front and rear seats, 14-way power-adjustable 

front seats, a 14-speaker Bose stereo, and 20-inch wheels. Many of 

the same options carryover unchanged, but some of the prices 

fluctuate.

Porsche Taycan Turbo S                                                       

The Taycan Turbo S has an MSRP of $185,000. It shares the same 

power train as the Turbo model, but it’s tuned to deliver more 

horsepower when using launch control. The Turbo S adds leather-

free suede upholstery, 18-way power-adjustable front seats, the 

Sport Chrono package, four-wheel steering, carbon ceramic 

brakes, and 21-inch wheels. Most options carryover unchanged.

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