The New Porsche Taycan Turbo S Develops Nearly 1000bhp

Not long after revealing its second all-electric car, the new Macan, Porsche has turned its attention back to its first, revealing a facelift for the Taycan. No, really, this is the facelifted car, promise!

Porsche hasn’t done much to the looks, calling it a day after some new front and rear lights, more pronounced front wings and an admittedly much cleaner-looking front bumper, but the changes to the car’s bones are much more significant.

The headline numbers, as is usually the case with EVs, relate to acceleration. The base rear-wheel-drive Taycan will now sprint to 62mph in 4.8 seconds, while the range-topping Turbo S is now capable of the same in a staggering 2.4 seconds. That means it’ll outrun a 918 Spyder to 62, and don’t forget that Porsche is notorious for underestimating acceleration figures - it could well be even quicker than that.

This savage turn of pace isn’t limited to standing starts, either. If specced with the Sport Chrono pack, the Taycan now includes a ‘push-to-pass’ function that summons up an espresso shot of extra power for up to 10 seconds. In the Turbo S, that ups the maximum output to 939bhp, in case the standard 764bhp just isn’t enough for you.

Porsche has lightened the load slightly - 15kg has been shed from the Turbo S - but even the basic RWD car will still come in comfortably over two tonnes, so there are chassis tweaks to keep this weight in check with all that extra power. All cars have adaptive air suspension as standard, and all-wheel drive cars can be optioned with Porsche’s new Active Ride system, which counteracts pitch and roll motions through corners.

There are some range and charge speed improvements, too. The WLTP range is now as high as 422 miles for the rear-drive Taycan, and even the sledgehammer Turbo S manages a quoted 391 miles. Porsche also says that on a mild day, the base car can now charge from 10 to 80 per cent battery is now possible in 18 minutes, versus 37 for the old car.

These efficiency gains come courtesy of a new rear axle motor, uprated batteries and heat pump, and improved regenerative braking. All cars now also have more aero-friendly wheels and tyres with lower rolling resistance.

The interior, like the exterior, has largely been left alone. All cars now get Porsche’s brilliantly tactile little drive mode selector on the steering wheel, which now has an additional push-to-pass setting on Sport Chrono cars. Control of driver aids has been centralised on a new lever behind the steering wheel.

Perhaps the best news is that in addition to the saloon, both estate variants of the Taycan - the low-slung Sport Turismo and the rufty-tufty, Audi Allroad-style Cross Turismo - live on with the facelift. All body styles are initially available in four versions - the basic rear-drive Taycan, the all-wheel drive 4S, the Turbo and the range-topping Turbo S. Currently, the more handling-focused GTS doesn’t carry over, but it may well reappear further down the line.

Order books for the UK - which Porsche says is one of the car’s four biggest markets along with Germany, China and the US - are now open, with prices starting at £86,500 for the entry-level Taycan saloon, and rising to £162,500 for the priciest version, the Turbo S Cross Turismo. Still fancy that Lucid Air?