by Since automobiles first appeared on the scene in the late 1800s the world has been consumed with at least three main questions. How fast can it go? How long can it go and how much stuff can I put in it?
As technology has advanced, two of these questions remain positive constants as car enthusiasts boast about the speed and practicality of their new models. But with electric cars the bigger question remains – how far can you go without needing to recharge?
To find out, I took a 2024 Porsche Taycan 4S for a spin from south London to Manchester United’s Old Trafford. The car has a WLTP range (the claimed distance you can travel on a single charge) of 420 miles, making it one of the longest electric cars on the market – the third in fact.
On paper, the trip looked completely doable as the distance I intended to cover was roughly the same as the WLTP range. However, it is important to make it clear that the range of the car on paper – regardless of whether it is petrol, diesel or electric – is most of the time different in reality.
As it was, when I started my trip at 6am on Thursday morning with the car battery at 99% it said I could go around 391 miles. It wasn’t enough to make the trip without loading up, but that wasn’t the point. the point was the £96,313, 143mph, 0-62mph in 4.3 seconds super saloon good to drive for a 10-hour drive?
Would I feel like I have in other electric cars that there is a significant amount of range anxiety? Would I feel uncomfortable after 10 hours in this expensive saddle? Would traffic and wet weather turn this simple drive into a journey from hell?
In short, no. The key to long journeys in electric cars is planning and Porsche helps you with that with a special app and in-car software that allows you to plan your journey. You tell the car how much charge you’d like at the end of your trip and how much you’d like when you top up halfway. It then maintains a plan that allows you to stop at fast chargers along the way to speed up the process. Stick to that plan and do it at the start of your trip and in theory you should be fine.
That said, looking at the map I noticed the further north he traveled the less chargers there were and this is perhaps the biggest problem facing electric vehicles. If another north-south divide has emerged in the UK it is the uneven spread of EV chargers across the UK. This is not an issue if you are going from one big city to another, but it has to be dealt with.
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The £96,000 Porsche sees you sitting reclined next to the floor along with all the other equipment for better weight distribution.
In front of you is a spacious bonnet below which sits a fairly large 84-litre boot which provides 491 liters of luggage space combined with the 407-litre one at the back. The rear seats aren’t too bad either, trimmed as they are in the same leather as the ones up front.
The infotainment is controlled through two small touch screens, one down on your left with shortcuts for the aircon, nav, and Apple CarPlay or Android Auto and the other on the center console for more detailed changes like the ride height of the car.
Once it’s all adjusted to your preferences – including one of four driving modes – you’re off. The car feels like the 4.9m long 2.1m (with mirrors not folded) beast that it is and takes a bit of getting used to if you – like me – usually drive something much smaller.
Once you’ve got your eye in it’s incredibly nimble with linear steering and a twisting circle. Despite the power under your right foot, in normal or range mode it won’t sustain head-snapping acceleration if pushed.
On the motorway and faster roads, its width and length mean it’s a compliant, stable and comfortable cruiser. This is a car that can do long motorway journeys and as most motorway services have charging stations you don’t have to worry about charging even if the price of motorway charging hits you in the wallet as it fills up with petrol and diesel.
Although you won’t be worried about the car then it doesn’t matter to you because with a few minutes to go before the service station breakfast I was told in the car that he had detected signs of fatigue and suggested that I stop for a break. In the world of endless conveniences for drivers, this was one I thought should be taken seriously.
When the weather turned on the way into London the car was equally compliant and I felt a bit sorry for some of the much older vehicles on their way to the Goodwood Revival as parts of the road turned into the Seine .
When I parked up at home after 10 hours on board to complete the mission my overwhelming feeling was that this new Taycan is the successor to the old one, building on a platform that was very already capable.
