Last year Porsche Centre Vancouver kindly loaned me a Porsche Taycan 4S to test drive. I enjoyed the opportunity to experience a Porsche electric vehicle for the first time. Recently, a gentleman I know offered me the opportunity to drive his Porsche Taycan Turbo. I had mentioned to him my disappointment with the acceleration of the Porsche Taycan 4S. He insisted I drive his Porsche Taycan Turbo. He was confident that I would find the acceleration of the Taycan Turbo to be superior to the Taycan 4S. To be clear, the Porsche Taycan 4S is a fast car electric car, but it did not blow my mind with its acceleration. With delight, I accepted his offer to explore the performance of the Porsche Taycan Turbo.

2021 Porsche Taycan Turbo

7.00 / 10
Key Features
  • Adaptive Air Suspension including Porsche Active Suspension Management
  • Performance Battery Plus 93.4 kWh
  • Porsche Torque Vectoring Plus - variable drive torque distribution
  • Vehicle stability system
  • LED MATRIX headlights
Specifications
  • Engine/Motor: Porsche E-Performance powertrain with a permanent magnet synchronous motor on the front and rear axle
  • Horsepower: 670 hp
  • Torque: 626 lb-ft
  • Transmission: 2-Speed Transmission On rear Axle
  • Range: 212 Miles
Pros
  • Acceleration 0-60 3.2 seconds
  • Long list of optional extras
  • Excellent build quality
  • Dual charging ports on driver and passenger side
  • Quick charging
Cons
  • Ingress and egress is not easy
  • Muted styling
  • Pricey optional extras

The Taycan Turbo's Drive Modes And Range

2021 Porsche Taycan Turbo Rear Quarter
Jason Grunsell

The Porsche Taycan 4S I tested a few months ago was a gorgeous Gentian Blue. The Porsche Taycan Turbo I drove the other day was a sinister black model. Darth Vader would have been thrilled with the styling of this Taycan Turbo. To add to the sinister element, the side and rear windows had a dark tint. The most important control on the Porsche Taycan Turbo is the drive mode dial. This all-important dial is on a stalk on the right-hand side of the steering wheel. The mode that turns on all the power in the Turbo model is Sport Plus. This enables the driver to deploy the full 670-hp capacity of the electric batteries.

The Porsche Taycan 4S I drove in the summer had to make do with an anemic 563 hp. The base Porsche Taycan 4S comes with a 79.2-kWh battery pack that is only good for 522 hp. Thus, the pedestrian performance of the Porsche Taycan 4S. The Taycan Turbo comes with a performance battery Plus. This is an expansion of the standard 79.2 kWh performance battery to a gross energy content of 93.4 kWh. The Performance Battery Plus enables greater range thanks to its additional cell modules. In addition, the Performance Battery Plus offers a higher performance potential.

Related: Porsche Suspends Production Of Its All-Electric Taycan

Experiencing The Taycan Turbo's Performance

Porsche Taycan Turbo
Jason Grunsell

I kept the Porsche Taycan Turbo in normal Drive Mode until I made it onto the highway. There was no need to eat into my 212-mile range unnecessarily. At one time, where a clear section of the highway opened up, I dialed in Sport Plus mode and mashed the accelerator peddle. The Porsche Taycan Turbo took off like a scalded cat. This caused me to let out a little yelp as I was forcefully pushed back into my seat. Triple digit speeds were rapidly and effortlessly achieved.

My initial impression was the Porsche Taycan Turbo is significantly faster than the Porsche Taycan 4S. Being the diligent supercar adventure writer I am, I needed more proof. I spent the next hour or so using as much of the 670 hp in the battery pack of the Porsche Taycan Turbo as I could within the bounds of sane driving.

The greatest feature of the electric motor is the ability to deliver instant acceleration. That instant acceleration never grows old. If anything, it grows more addictive. Porsche is adamant that the driver stays engaged in the driving experience and the Porsche driving experience is not diluted using electricity. For this reason, Porsche has made the acceleration pedal behave as it would in a regular Porsche. The driver commands the acceleration and uses the brakes to stop or majorly decrease speed, unlike the Tesla accelerator which can be used as a brake pedal. Having driven several Teslas over the years, I was more accustomed to this style of driving an electric car, but I adapted to the Porsche set up during my time with the car.

Related: These Are The World's Best Road-Legal Performance EVs

Taycan Turbo Offers Incredible Electric Acceleration

2021 Porsche Taycan Turbo drivers side charging port.
Jason Grunsell

I first became addicted to electric acceleration during my time looking after a Tesla Model S. My addiction has only grown more ardent ever since. My favorite section of the Sea-to-Sky Highway is an uphill climb that begins before you transit back onto the main highway into Vancouver.

I have indulged my speed freak mode in all manner of cars up this hill, from Lamborghini to Ferraris, but the biggest thrill has always been in an electric car. This was the final test for the Porsche Taycan Turbo, and man did it fly up the hill. I was sorely tempted to let the 670 hp propel the car to its top speed of 260 km. God knows the Porsche Taycan Turbo was more than willing to indulge me, however, that was not prudent or an advisable way to drive in this manner. I definitely need a long runway or VW's test track at Ehra-Lessien in Germany to go full speed.

The climb up the hill was simply a demonstration of the seemingly effortless power of electrification. Another contribution to controlling the power and direction of the Porsche Taycan Turbo is Porsche Torque Vectoring Plus (PTV Plus). The Taycan Turbo utilizes variable drive torque distribution at the rear wheels including electronically controlled rear differential lock to optimize traction and steering precision. The serpentine flow of the Sea-to-Sky Highway allowed maximum use of this feature as I put the Taycan Turbo through its paces.

Related: Bill Nye Explains Why The Porsche Taycan Is Like An Electric Toothbrush

The Taycan Turbo Is A Smooth Ride

2021 Porsche Taycan Turbo steering, drive mode button.
Jason Grunsell

With great electric power comes equally impressive technology that ensures the Taycan Turbo is a smooth ride. The smooth ride is courtesy of an adaptive air suspension and Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM). The Adaptive air suspension comes with a self-leveling function and height adjustable suspensions in four levels (lift, middle, lowered, and deep). Accompanying the suspension wizardry are comfort seats in the front with a 14-way electric memory package. This memory package also includes the steering wheel with electric height and fore/aft adjustment. Porsche makes several driving range claims depending on the type of driving. The official figure is 212 miles of range. Porsche have also thought about how to make charging your Taycan Turbo as convenient as possible. To this end, the Taycan Turbo has a charge port on the driver and front passenger side.

Porsche Taycan Interior

2021 Porsche Taycan Turbo Dash
Jason Grunsell

Getting into the Taycan, one notices how uncluttered the interior is. This includes the layout of the steering wheel. The Taycan steering wheel is a perfect fit for my hands, not too big or too thick. You still start a Porsche, even an electric one, on the left-hand side of the dash. Only now, you push a small button instead of turning a key. Then, you use a small toggle on the right side of the dash to engage drive, reverse, or park. I was reminded of the switchology Porsche used on the Porsche 918 which is no bad thing.

My test Taycan Turbo came with an optional Bordeaux fine leather interior. The rear seats are comfortable, but rear passengers of a taller disposition will not have a great deal of headroom. Rear passenger entry is rather narrow thanks to the sloping roofline of the Taycan Turbo.

Entertainment is courtesy of a BOSE surround sound system with 14 loudspeakers including subwoofer, 14 amplifier channels and a total output of 710 watts. A handy feature of the BOSE system is an audiopilot noise compensation technology that ensures a consistent and well-balanced sound in all driving conditions.

Related: Porsche Has Ruled Out a 918 Successor, Will Focus on Electrification

Porsche Mission E

2021 Porsche Taycan Turbo passenger side charging port
Jason Grunsell

The last element of the Porsche Taycan Turbo is the design. I still recall seeing Porsche’s Mission E concept car when it debuted at the 2014 Frankfurt International Motor show and being instantly infatuated with the design. It was very futurist, though still recognizable as a Porsche design with an aggressive interpretation of what an electric car from Porsche could look like. Forward eight years and the Mission E is now the Porsche Taycan. How faithful are the production models to the Mission E concept? Am I still infatuated with the design?

2021 Taycan Turbo: The Verdict

2021 Porsche Taycan Turbo LED Matrix lights
Jason Grunsell

No vehicle survives wholeheartedly from concept car to production car when the company must obey compulsory safety protocols and realistic production components. I still prefer the name Mission E over the name Taycan. I was not as captivated by the lines of the production model. The bold design of the Mission E has departed in favor of softer more gentle contours.

One feature of the Mission E concept car that has carried over into the production cars has been the black 5 spoke wheel design with matching car color rims. I must admit that the white (not usually a fan of white cars) Mission E concept vehicle with its black 5 spoke design and white rims is still my favorite color combination. If I were to order a Taycan Turbo, I would order mine in white with the Mission E wheels. This would help restore of some Mission E styling that won my heart. My least favorite aspect of the Taycan is the rear quarter. It is hard to find a good angle to get an attractive image of the rear quarter of the Taycan. The nose of Taycan is very much dominated by the unique LED Matrix headlights in glacier blue. This light arrangement made it over from the Mission E concept.

Porsche has fully embraced the electric car, and in typical Porsche style, has adapted this new type of vehicle to embrace the Porsche driving philosophy. The Porsche Mission E styling was bold and futuristic, however, the Taycan has lost some of that vitality. Build quality for the Porsche Taycan Turbo is outstanding. If you are going to get a Taycan, definitely go with the Turbo or Turbo S model as they are more exhilarating to drive than the Taycan 4S. The Porsche Taycan Turbo I drove will set you back $220,000. The exciting thing is that electric Porsches will only continue to get better and better, as Porsche’s electronic future is bright.