From the heart of the Porsche world, born strong

Tonight, we were amazed not only by the Taycan, but also by their understanding and dedication to electrification.

The famous British science fiction writer Aurthur C. Clarke once said: "Any sufficiently advanced technology is no different from magic." This sentence could not be more appropriate to describe the car, because when the wheel of time came to the era of change that had not been seen in a century, the complexity of the automobile industry had long been greatly beyond the scope of daily simple thinking.

It is hard to imagine that it took nearly four years from the launch of the Mission E concept car to the launch of the Taycan. The people, technology and funds poured into it established the Taycan as a heavy-duty model that cannot be ignored in the global electric vehicle market. It is not just one, but actually a new beginning for the next car-making career. New Travel is in Fuzhou today, meeting the official arrival of the Taycan – a new model born in the heart of the world, Zuffenhausen.

At the end of the global three-place simultaneous press conference, the specific price of Taycan was announced: Taycan Turbo sold 1.498 million; Taycan Turbo S sold 1.798 million.

This technical communication meeting of Taycan was actually held nearly half a month ago, and the confidentiality was not allowed to be released until today after the Taycan was officially launched in the world. The price of participating in this conference was that I lost contact with the outside world for almost half a day. Of course, the amount of information in this technical communication meeting is also very large. I will share with you one by one from various aspects such as the body chassis, interior interconnection, and charging ecology.

In this article, you can see the following:

First, the appearance of detailed explanation: highly restored Mission E concept car design

Two: Interior details: the family’s first model with 4 screens

III. Detailed explanation of the power system: standard front and rear dual motors + double-speed transmission

IV. Detailed explanation of the battery system: 93kWh battery NEDC comprehensive battery life of 465km

5. Detailed explanation of charging ecology: self-built overcharging piles, 200kW fast charging piles

Body and safety details: independent battery frame

VII. Chassis and automated driving assistance systems

Exterior details: Highly restored Mission E concept car design

According to the old rules, let’s take a brief look at the Taycan first. This is its first pure electric vehicle, built on a new platform, and the new car has been officially launched worldwide tonight. In other words, the purpose of developing the Taycan is to bring a pure electric vehicle that perfectly fits the brand to the road and bring the soul of the car into a new technological era.

Taycan is actually the production version of the previous Mission E concept car, with body size between 911 and Panamera. At this technical exchange meeting, the official also officially announced the final production version of the body size, with length, width and height of 4,963×1,966×1,378 mm (excluding the exterior rearview mirror), and the weight of the vehicle is 2338kg.

From the perspective of size, the length of the Taycan is relatively close to that of the Model S, with the length and width being almost the same, and the height being relatively lower.

Admittedly, in the face of a car born in the Zuffenhausen factory, how can I unravel my curiosity? Only by looking at the picture:

The Taycan is a brand-new model designed from scratch, which highly restores the design language of the Mission E concept car, taking into account the needs and solutions of the automotive industry. The Taycan has two high-performance sub-models: the Taycan Turbo and the Taycan Turbo S. They have different promotional colors to distinguish the appearance details, the Taycan Turbo is gentian blue, and the Taycan Turbo S is fine white.

LED Matrix Headlight Group, named: Porsche LED Matrix System

Standing in front of the actual car, the high raised fenders, the lowered front cover, and the mature design language brought by the full lines all tell you that this is a car. In addition, the four-point LED daytime running lights are also eye-catching artifacts. The sense of technology created by understatement can be described in two words: in place.

Vertical air intake (air curtain) is designed under the headlight, which can be opened or closed

The radar probe assembly in the front of the car indicates that the Taycan is also equipped with an automatic driver assistance system

The side posture of the Taycan is still eye-catching. From the data, the Taycan is close to the Panamera, but the near-perfect slipback roof in the center of the back door creates the unique texture of the Taycan. To sum up, it is not so much an electric Panamera, but an electric four-door 911.

Aerodynamic Design of Air Channel and Door Sheet Metal

The Taycan not only has an air inlet on the front face, but also a wind guide opening at the back end of the front fender. The upper and lower ends of the opening pull back the shoulder and waist lines of the vehicle. In addition to strengthening the diversion effect to reduce wind resistance, this design also enhances the three-dimensional sense and movement of the side. To say more, promoting a good wind resistance coefficient is the mission of the Taycan, so its wind resistance coefficient is only 0.22-0. 25.

In addition, there is another design worth mentioning on the body structure of the Taycan, that is, the design of the charging port. The Taycan adopts the design of the electric charging port cover, which can be opened by hand gestures outside the car and buttons inside the car. The electric charging port cover is equipped with dual motors, which have an "ice-breaking function". In some areas with icy winter, the charging port cover may be frozen. One of the motors responsible for ice-breaking will first shake left and right to break the ice, and then the other motor will be responsible for opening the charging port.

The maximum output torque of the two motors is 4Nm, which is enough to play an "ice-breaking" role. It should be noted that the electric charging cover is only available in the Turbo S version, and the Turbo model needs to be optional.

The door handle will automatically pop up after unlocking.

The Taycan doesn’t actually use the hidden design that electric vehicles like to use at present, but this door handle is also quite interesting, and it will automatically pop up after unlocking. Ritual feeling? There must be.

245/45 R20 Michelin PS4 with ceramic brakes, tough enough…

Taycan will come with rear axle steering

Previously, the Taycan appeared in the public eye with a lot of camouflage stickers, until today’s official debut, the complete details of the rear of the car were finally revealed in front of us, and the family-style through taillights of the new generation of models were indeed not absent.

As a high-performance sports car, it is impossible to lack an electric tail lift

The boot opening button is "simply and roughly" hidden on the edge of the rear bumper

The battery pack is located at the bottom of the body, so there is no need to worry about the flatness and integrity of the entire chassis

Interior details: The first model in the family to feature 4 screens

Still adhering to the driver-centric design concept, there is a 16.8-inch screen in front, one more for the center and co-pilot positions, and one more for the central passage below.

The main functions of the top three screens are: the leftmost is the instrument panel, the center is the multimedia information screen, and the rightmost is the operation screen of the co-pilot, which has fewer vehicle setting functions than the central screen. From the overall experience, the response speed of the middle and rightmost screens is the same as that on the Panamera, with a little delay. And the commonly used physical keys are cancelled, and they are all collected on the central screen for operation.

Taycan is the first model to use a full LCD dashboard, and uses a TFT curved screen, measuring 16.8 inches, with touch function on both sides. The dashboard has no dashboard, and the glass surface has a polarizer and reflective coating, so although there is no dashboard, the dashboard will not be blurred by reflection under any lighting conditions.

The dashboard offers four display styles: classic mode, map mode, full map mode, and pure (lean) mode:

• The classic mode (power meter) uses a typical round meter style, which is presented in a concise form for the driver to read information quickly. The central power meter replaces the tachometer.
• Map mode replaces the central power meter with a map.
• The full map mode eliminates the circular gauges and replaces them with a full-screen navigation map.
• The pure (reduced) mode displays only the most basic driving information such as speed, road signs, and navigation instructions (displayed with the simplest arrows).

In addition, on both sides of the dashboard screen are two touch operation function panels, which can control functions such as lighting, adjusting suspension, chassis mode, etc. It is also because of these two small touch operation panels that the Taycan’s dashboard is wider than the steering wheel.

After looking at the dashboard, let’s take a look at the steering wheel. The Taycan offers two steering wheel styles, one is the ordinary style and the other is the GT style. The GT style steering wheel has an extra round driving mode switch in the lower right corner compared to the ordinary version.

Looking further to the right, there is the central control area, consisting of three screens, which is also the first time so many screens have been used in the car. In the center is the 10.9-inch infotainment system display, which is also the main screen in the car. It integrates various applications such as navigation, phone, media, comfort functions and Porsche Connect. At the same time, all the settings of the vehicle can be completed through this screen, including the Active Suspension Management System (PASM).

There is also a 10.9-inch display screen on the right side of the central control screen and in front of the passenger seat. It is similar in function to the central control screen. This screen is mainly for passengers in the passenger seat. It is worth mentioning that if there are no passengers in the passenger seat (detected by the sensor of the seat), this screen is turned off and only displays the model name of the Taycan. However, it should be noted that this screen needs to be purchased at a cost.

At the bottom of the center screen is another touch operation screen, measuring 8.4 inches, and this screen also has touch feedback. Its function is mainly to adjust the air conditioner, display charging information and so on.

It is worth mentioning that the air conditioning system, the Taycan sold in China is equipped with a four-zone air conditioner as standard. In addition to the air conditioning operation panel under the front central control, the rear central trend position also provides a 5.9-inch air conditioning operation panel for rear passengers.

The trend is no longer the traditional grille bar style, but an electric trend, similar to the Model 3, which can adjust the wind direction through the touch screen below the central control. The vehicle has built-in two air conditioning modes: "Focused" and "Diffused". In the centralized mode, the air volume is the largest, and the passenger’s sensory experience is the highest. Diffused mode provides airless air conditioning function.

Taycan interiors are also available in a variety of styles, from classic leather to olive-leaf tanned eco-friendly Neodermal Leather (OLEA). In addition, for the first time, the interior is offered without leather at all, and instead is made of Race-Tex material combined with leather-free fabric. According to reports, Race-Tex is a microfiber material containing recycled polyester fibers, which produces 80% less carbon dioxide than traditional materials. Floor mats are made of recycled fibers "Amanyl ?", which are mainly produced from recycled fishing nets and other materials.

The interior color scheme is available in black and limestone beige, blackberry, Atacama beige, and Mellon brown. Optional interior components are available in black, dark silver, or champagne neodymium gray, providing a special contrast effect in multiple areas of the interior. Doors and center consoles can be finished in woodwork, matte carbon fiber, deep embossed aluminum, or fabric.

In terms of storage space, the Taycan provides two luggage compartments at the front and rear, with a volume of 80L in the front, which is relatively small, a circle smaller than the Model S. The rear luggage compartment has a volume of about 400L, which is smaller than the Model S 745L.

The front seats offer 14-way electric adjustment, and there are three different interior options in leather, premium leather, and non-leather. These are included in the options menu.

The overall sense of high-end is very strong, the package of seats is biased towards sports cars, and the support is quite good. And in the second row, in order to allow passengers to have more legroom, a foot pit is designed. Even at a height of 175cm, I can get better legroom in the second row.

However, the overall space is not outstanding, and there is still a big gap compared to the luxurious second row of Panamera.

The Taycan uses an integrated glass roof, similar to the Model 3. The glass on the roof can be insulated in summer and winter by using a special film, and can be 100% insulated from ultraviolet rays.

Detailed explanation of the power system: standard front and rear dual motors

Taycan will launch two versions of Turbo and Turbo S in China. According to the naming convention, Turbo S is a more powerful version.

1. Standard front and rear dual motors

Whether it is a Turbo or a Turbo S, the Taycan comes standard with front and rear dual motors. The detailed performance parameters are as follows:

The main difference between the Turbo and Turbo S power systems is the front motor, and the Turbo S uses a more powerful motor. In normal mode, the Turbo version of the system has a combined output power of 460kW, and the supercharged mode can be increased to 500kW, with a maximum output torque of 850Nm. The Turbo S version of the system has a combined output power of 460kW, and can be increased to 560kW in supercharged mode, with a maximum output torque of 1050Nm.

Taycan does not use asynchronous induction motors that are biased towards acceleration performance. This is because the Taycan, as a pure electric sports car, needs to be able to meet the same requirements as the fuel sports car in the state of repeated rapid acceleration and rapid deceleration. In this regard, the permanent magnet synchronous motor has better stability and efficiency. At the same time, it can achieve more accurate output control than the induction motor in the high torque output state. On the other hand, the permanent magnet synchronous motor is also smaller in size and lower in weight.

2. Equipped with a dual-speed transmission

Inside the rear axle motor, engineers also arranged a two-speed transmission for the Taycan, which is also one of the few pure electric transmissions with a multi-speed transmission. It is also easy to understand for the Taycan that the built-in two-speed transmission can better take into account the starting acceleration performance (1-speed small transmission ratio), and at the same time, it can better reduce energy consumption at high speeds, and improve the vehicle’s top speed (2-speed large transmission ratio).

3. Four driving modes

Taycan offers a total of four driving modes: Normal, Sport, Range, and Personality. In these four modes, the driving mode of the vehicle and the starting logic of the two-speed transmission are also different.

Normal mode: In normal mode, the vehicle is in four-wheel drive mode, and the front and rear motors work at the same time. The transmission preferentially uses the second gear, and only uses the first gear when the maximum torque is required.

Sport mode: In Sport mode, the vehicle is also in four-wheel drive mode, with the front and rear motors working at the same time. The transmission preferentially uses one gear (for example, when starting to get the maximum torque output), and in the power-saving driving style, it will be upgraded as soon as possible to extend the range, and in the sports driving style, the transmission will shift to higher speeds when working characteristics.

Range range mode: In this mode, the vehicle can get the longest range. At this time, only the rear motor works, and the vehicle’s drive mode changes to rear drive. The transmission also only uses second gear in this mode (except for reversing, which requires first gear).

Personality mode: In this mode, the driving form of the vehicle and the working logic of the transmission are not fixed, and they are adapted according to the settings of different users.

4. Three modes of kinetic energy recovery

The Taycan offers three different modes of kinetic energy recovery. The first is the same as most pure electric vehicles. Kinetic energy recovery is turned on when the accelerator pedal is lifted. The second is that kinetic energy recovery is turned on only after the brake pedal is pressed. The last is based on the camera’s analysis of the road conditions ahead. Automatically determine when the kinetic energy recovery is turned on.

In the setting of the Taycan, when the braking deceleration is below 0.3G, all braking processes can be completed by kinetic energy recovery. The kinetic energy recovery function can also be used in the highest performance driving environment, with a maximum braking power of 265 kw.

It seems unwise to use one pedal to control acceleration and braking at the same time. The coasting mode without foot control can make the driver more comfortable. The Taycan therefore reduces the headshot caused by sudden deceleration. So the Taycan will not do the "single pedal" setting logic.

Detailed explanation of battery system: standard 93kWh battery NEDC comprehensive battery life 465km

Taycan carries soft pack batteries from LG Chem, which are assembled into packs at its factory in Stuttgart. The battery pack consists of a total of 396 cells, with a single cell capacity of 64.6Ah and a total battery pack capacity of 93kWh. The official WLTP comprehensive battery life is 450km, and the NEDC comprehensive battery life is 465km.

At present, there is no official release of detailed battery energy density information. However, from the information obtained from the scene, the weight of the battery pack is about 650kg, and it can be easily estimated that the battery energy density is about 143.07Wh/kg.

It is worth mentioning the shape design of the battery pack, which is a small highlight. Although the Taycan’s battery pack is tiled under the car like other electric vehicles, a layer of modules is removed in front of the second row of seats, which can ensure the leg height of the second row of passengers and avoid the situation of sitting on a small bench. Internally, this design has a very down-to-earth name, called "foot pit".

Detailed explanation of charging ecology: self-built overcharging pile, 200kW fast charging pile

For Taycan, another point of concern is that it can support a maximum charging power of 350kW, which is currently the maximum charging power that can be supported in all production cars. It has been officially announced that in Europe, authorized dealers will build corresponding 350kW fast charging piles. However, due to the limitations of the power grid in China, a maximum of 200kW fast charging piles can only be built. Taycan will provide three specifications of charging piles in China: 800V DC charging: can directly charge the battery, the highest power of the national standard is 200kW;

400V DC charging: the voltage needs to be raised to 800V through a high-voltage booster, with a maximum power of 100kW.

220V single-phase AC charging: 7.2kW charging power can be achieved at 32A current.

220/380V three-phase AC charging: GB charging port can reach 11kW.

According to the plan, these 200kW fast charging piles will be built in officially authorized dealerships, and will be the first to be deployed in four cities, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Chengdu, starting next year. In the future, these charging piles can be provided to Taycan users for free charging.

In addition to the dealer network, it also plans to build its own overcharging pile and destination charging network in China, which are only open to users. The location of the overcharging pile will be set with an intelligent ground lock, and users can make an appointment remotely through the APP. After charging, payment can be automatically made through the APP.

The charging information of third parties will also be integrated into the mobile APP of the vehicle, including special calls, star charging, and the data of the group’s self-built charging piles will also be integrated into the charging piles of the mobile APP.

In terms of service, Taycan will also launch a "valet charging" service in the future. Place an order through the mobile APP to make an appointment, the service staff will pick up the car to charge, and the whole process will be recorded with a camera. This is also a new attempt on Taycan.

In addition, for users in Shanghai, an experiential program will also be launched for Taycan users, that is, they can enjoy a free three-day fuel car rental experience. However, this service is only an experiential program. After one experience, they can no longer experience it through payment.

Body and Safety Detailed: Independent Battery Frame

The Taycan does not have an all-aluminum body, but is made up of a mix of different materials.

• 40% cold-rolled steel sheet (mainly chassis components)
• 23% hot-rolled steel sheet (mainly for frame stress structures, such as central longitudinal beams, A and B columns, and roof side beams)
• 18% aluminum alloy sheet (body cover, doors, front and rear cover main structure and front and rear sub-frames)
• 11% aluminum alloy extrusion profile (mainly used in the side beam under the threshold bar, rear sub-frame reinforcement and door reinforcement, in the event of collision, withstand pressure to protect the battery module and occupants)
• 8% cast and forged aluminum alloy (mainly used in suspended tower tops)
• 0.7% other materials

In terms of body connection, more than 8 different connection processes are used:

• Resistance Spot Welding: 3,139 pcs;
• Metal active gas shielded arc welding: 5.7 m;
• Melted inert gas shielded arc welding: 7.5 m;
• Pressure connection: 734 pcs;
• Half-pipe rivets: 1,642 pcs;
• Hot melt self-tapping screws: 714 pcs;
• Adhesive bonding: 195 m;
• Solid stamped rivets: 16 pcs;
• Robot piping: 8.5 m;
• Friction welding: 100 pcs.

With crash safety in mind, a separate frame was designed for the Taycan’s battery pack, and a strong conduction path was also designed on the rigid frame that makes up the battery compartment. In the event of a collision, the external impact force received can be transmitted to the body to avoid damage to the battery pack. The entire battery frame is connected to the body by 28 bolts.

Chassis + autonomous driving assistance system

After talking about the body and safety, let’s talk about the Taycan chassis again. The Taycan chassis comes from the Panamera MSB platform and is equipped with Active Suspension Management System (PASM), Rear Axle Steering System, Dynamic Chassis, Control System (PDCC), Three Cavity Air Suspension, Traction Management System, Torque Vector Control, etc. Thanks to the arrangement of the underbody battery, the wider wheel base of the vehicle and the lower body center of gravity, the Taycan’s vehicle center of gravity is lower than that of the 911 GT3.

The three-chamber air suspension on the Taycan can be equipped with different modes to meet the needs of different scenarios such as daily driving and track. And in order to reduce weight requirements, a large number of lightweight fiberglass and resin components are used. In addition, the air suspension can automatically adjust the vehicle’s ground clearance, reducing 10mm at speeds over 90km/h and 22mm at speeds over 180km/h.

In terms of autonomous driving assistance systems, the Taycan is equipped with front and rear radars, wide-angle cameras, ultrasonic sensors, front-facing cameras, night vision cameras, and long-range radars.

Functional level includes lane change assistance system, automatic emergency braking system, adaptive speed limiter, full-speed adaptive cruise system with start-stop function (within 210km/h), active cruise assistance system with overtaking assistance, lane keeping assistance, parking assistance system with real panoramic images, etc. From a functional perspective, the Taycan already has the L2 level of automatic assisted driving that most models are currently equipped with.

Editor’s summary/

As the first pure electric vehicle, the Taycan has no lost brand genes. In the Taycan, we have also seen many innovations, including the first four-screen design in the car, the full LCD dashboard with touch function, the rear "foot pit" design, and so on. In the Taycan, you can see the different thinking points of traditional big brands in pure electric vehicles. Again, the Taycan is a car first, followed by a pure electric car.