German automaker Porsche unveiled two new high-performance versions of its popular Taycan all-electric sports sedan Monday at its North American headquarters in Atlanta, and the company says the EVs have already clocked record-breaking times on the track.
The two new variants — the Taycan Turbo GT and another model equipped with Porsche’s track-focused Weissach package — each can produce more than 1,000 horsepower, making them the most powerful production Porsches of all-time.
The Taycan Turbo GT can rocket to 60 miles per hour (mph) in just 2.3 seconds. With the Weissach package, which forgoes back seats to boost the power-to-weight ratio and includes other performance upgrades, the vehicle can reach 60 mph in 2.2 seconds.
The Weissach version of the Taycan Turbo GT also recently completed a lap at the Weathertech Raceway Laguna Seca in California in 1:27.87, the fastest time ever on the track with a production electric vehicle. A few weeks prior, a pre-production version of the car clocked a record lap time for an EV at Germany’s iconic Nürburgring track, Porsche said.
The two new versions of the Taycan are expected to be available this summer in the U.S. and will retail for around $230,000. Their price and the fact that they will be produced at Porsche’s Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen factory in Germany means the vehicles will not be eligible for federal EV tax credits.
Credit: Porsche AG
Credit: Porsche AG
First introduced in 2019, the Taycan was Porsche’s first all-electric model. In early February, Porsche announced new model year 2025 updates to the Taycan line, including new styling, increased battery range and faster charging times.
Porsche’s Taycan model line vice president Kevin Giek said in a statement that the Taycan Turbo GT variants “clearly raise the bar even higher in terms of driving dynamics and enjoyment.”
The company estimates both versions of the Taycan Turbo GT will boast battery ranges of 344 miles.
Though 2023 was a record year for EV sales, buyers in the U.S. are not going electric as fast as some in the industry had hoped. Still, Porsche and many other automakers have been adding to their EV lineups. In January, the company announced that in 2024 it will offer electrified versions of its Macan sport utility vehicle, the brand’s best-selling model in North America.
The new Taycans are geared more toward high-performance enthusiasts, but they enter an increasingly crowded luxury EV marketplace packed with older entrants, like the Tesla Model S, and newer ones, like the Mercedes-Benz EQE and EQS sedans, BMW’s i4 and i5 sedans, and Audi’s e-Tron GT and RS e-Tron GT.
Georgia has a long history as an automotive hub. The state was once home to General Motors and Ford plants and now boasts a Kia factory in West Point. Hyundai is building its Metaplant EV factory near Savannah, while the EV factory Rivian had planned to build near Social Circle now faces an uncertain future, after the company announced last week it would pause development of the plant.
In addition to Porsche, which has a campus and test track near the Atlanta airport, Georgia is home to the North American headquarters of Mercedes-Benz.
