Porsche expects to raise production of the upcoming Taycan to 40,000 units.
In a recent confirmation to CNBC, Porsche said it’s already doubling production on a car that hasn’t even launched yet.
It’s Porsche’s first all-electric car, and demand is apparently so great that building 20,000 examples a year won’t be enough. Andrew Lennon, product communications manager for Porsche, told the outlet, “We had the ability to increase capacity from the beginning, and executives recently made the decision to go ahead.”
It makes sense, given the expanding range of luxury electric cars hitting the market. Jaguar has rolled out the I-Pace crossover. Audi is coming with the e-tron SUV, and likely a GT model as well. Ford will likely bring out a high-performance electric model soon. Then there’s Tesla, which has dominated the market with its Model 3 and Model S sedans, as well as the Model X SUV over the years.
Now Porsche is gunning for the king of the electric car hill with the new Taycan. It’s expected to go on sale in the U.S. later this year, and Porsche even revealed a new variant based on the Cross Turismo concept. In August 2018, Porsche claimed the Taycan will produce 600 horsepower from its two electric motors, as well as 310 miles of range from its battery pack. Like the higher-end Teslas, Porsche’s all-electric model should be fast. Porsche states it will hit 60 miles per hour in 3.5 seconds.
It still won’t come cheap.
The new Porsche Taycan is clearly in high demand, even after the company announced pricing for the model. Realistically, the base model will ring in around $90,000. Turbo models will each go on sale around $130,000. There will likely be some incentives on offer — it is still electric, after all. But even still, it won’t be an inexpensive proposition.
Porsche has never been that much of a volume manufacturer. They mainly build sports cars like their signature 911 and 718 models. Sure, they build the Panamera sedan as well as the Cayenne and Macan crossovers. Bearing in that in mind, however, the company still sold 57,202 units in North America in 2018.
With that 40,000 unit jump in production, Porsche would expand its market share in the U.S. and other regions. As for that spike in demand, Lennon also said, “We had been ready for it.”
Stay tuned to TFLcar.com for more updates!
