Porsche Spices Things up: the new Cayenne Electric
Hello dear Wanderers,
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It has not been a kind year for German premium manufacturers. Cratering sales in China, slower than expected rise in electric vehicle demand and all kinds of geopolitical havoc have made the world a scary place for the once mighty, and maybe a bit arrogant, rulers of the roost. Kudos for Porsche that they are pushing through with the launch of the all electric Cayenne in these circumstances.
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I don't think the car needs an introduction. This is the car that Porsche fanatics love to hate, the original sin so to say. A Porsche can't be an SUV right? Well, to those hard-core fans the world has taken an even more evil turn as the big slug is now also electric! The reality for manufacturers is also pretty straightforward, their sporty products might define the brand, it's the SUVs that bring in the money.
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Is the Cayenne any good? I haven't driven it yet so my current judgement is based on what is available from Porsche and the journalists that have had their first live encounters. I must say that I'm of two minds. The first feeling is one of: nah! Let's face it, there is hardly anything in the specs that Geely daughter Lotus didn't bring to market 3 years ago with the Eletre. Yes, the Eletre was presented in 2022 with a 112 kwh battery that could charge at 350 kw. The Cayenne in 2025: 113 kwh and 400 kw. I mean come on! What took them so long? Fast cars clearly aren't necessarily made by fast companies.
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Taking a deep breath and putting my glass half full hat on I'm actually pretty excited about the Cayenne. It is one of those vehicles that will put the whole electric vs ICE discussion behind us. The battery is big enough, the consumption low enough and the charging fast enough to make this a perfect travel companion and claim its place as the (rich) family car to go skiing with. Lots of space and power that you will never use. I mean 1.156 horses and a sprint from 0-100 km/h in 2.5 seconds for a car with a 3 meter wheelbase and almost 800 liter of trunk space is ridiculous and frankly makes me a little scared. It can also pull a 3.5 tonne trailer in case the horses or the boat need to tag along. The good thing about Porsche is also that they have built up quite a good reputation of usability. Don't expect your Cayenne to charge any slower after a fast run or heavy pull, the care that is given to keeping the battery at exactly the right temperature is outstanding. You will also not be replacing the brakes very often as this car can feed up to 600 kw of kinetic energy back into the battery when slowing down.
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So yes, the Cayenne seems to be a phenomenal new electric addition to the Porsche lineup and I'm convinced that it will be a serious success in those markets where it makes fiscal sense. Hey, it might even have some success in those markets where people realize that with a machine like this it's not a burden to live a bit greener!
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Electrive launch article.
Grtz
Pieter
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