The Porsche Taycan And Facelifted Macan Are Here In India

• It is the Macan SUV’s second midlife refresh, and the Taycan’s debut in the Indian market.

• The Taycan is offered in four trims (Taycan, 4S, Turbo and Turbo S), with a synchronous electric powertrain delivering up to 761PS.

• The electric sedan has a WLTP range of 484km.

• The updated Macan gets an overhauled engine lineup and subtle tweaks inside and out.

• The Taycan takes on the Audi e-tron GT, while the facelifted Macan goes up against the Jaguar F-Pace and Mercedes-AMG GLC 43 Coupe.

The folks at Stuttgart have pulled a double car launch bonanza with the launch of Porsche’s first all-electric offering, the Taycan electric sedan, and the facelifted Macan SUV in India at prices starting from Rs 83.21 lakh (Macan), and Rs 1.5 crore (Taycan) (ex-showroom, India). Here’s a look at what makes these two models tick:

Taycan

This being its Indian debut, not to mention it also being Porsche’s first all-electric vehicle, it’s only fair that we talk about the Taycan first. Offered in four trims (Taycan, 4S, Turbo and Turbo S), it boasts a design slick enough to have a drag coefficient of 0.22. It’s also got loads of tech in the form of a dual 10.9-inch touchscreen infotainment system, a 16.8-inch instrument cluster, and an 8.4-inch centre console.

 

But the party trick of the electric sedan is under the hood, with a synchronous electric powertrain delivering 408PS (Taycan), 530PS (4S), 680PS (Turbo) and 761PS (Turbo S), with the option of 79.2kWh and 93.4kWh battery packs. The 0-100kmph sprint is achieved in 5.4 seconds (Taycan), 4 seconds (4S), 3.2 seconds (Turbo) 2.8 seconds (Turbo S). 

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It also gets other performance trickery like an adaptive air suspension with PASM (Porsche Active Suspension Management) electronic damper control, and optional Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control Sport (PDCC Sport).

The Taycan can go up to a WLTP-claimed 484km (Taycan), 463km (4S), 450km (Turbo), and 420km (Turbo S) on a single charge. It uses an 800 volt charging architecture to allow fast charging from 5 to 80 percent in just under 23 minutes. 

While you can start ordering the Taycan now, you’ll have to wait until the first quarter to 2022 to get your hands on it. It takes on the Audi e-tron GT as its sole rival in the country. In fact, at this starting price, the Taycan is the most affordable performance EV you can buy in India. The carmaker is also offering the Taycan in the Cross Turismo body style that not only adds a crossover look, but also a ‘gravel mode’ to have a little off-road fun. It’ll be available in the 4S, Turbo and Turbo S trim. 

Facelifted Macan

Now, onto the next launch, which is the second update to the Macan since the first one in July 2019, priced from Rs 85 lakh (ex-showroom, India). Sure, the India-spec model didn’t get the GTS trim for the first facelift, but the current update made sure this performance trim joined the lineup.  

Speaking of lineups, the Macan’s engine lineup has been heavily revamped with the GTS being the new range-topping Macan, and now using the Turbo’s 440PS 2.9-litre twin-turbo V6 engine. Similarly, the Macan S receives the GTS’ 380PS 2.9-litre twin-turbo V6, with the base Macan retaining the 2-litre turbo engine, but with 20PS more grunt at 265PS. All trims are paired with a 7-speed PDK dual-clutch gearbox with an all-wheel drivetrain. The new range-topping GTS trim also gets updates such as a sport adaptive air suspension, and a reworked Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) system.

Performance aside, the Macan gets subtle tweaks to the front grille, rear diffusers and can be specced with up to seven alloy wheel options. The cabin gets a new steering wheel, a tweaked centre console with touch-sensitive panels in place of physical buttons, and a shorter gear selector. 

These updates should make the Macan should make it an even more potent rival against the likes of the Jaguar F-Pace, and the Mercedes-AMG GLC 43 Coupe..