Porsche Taycan’s exterior outlined

The first detailed exterior sketches of Porsche’s electric Taycan series production model have been revealed prior to the sports car’s global premiere in September.

Porsche head designer Michael Mauer, who provided the sketches, says it was “one of the most exciting yet challenging tasks, simply because there was nothing to build on”.

He says the new four-door model had to be recognisable as a Porsche at first glance (brand identity) and that sports cars have a more dramatic width-to-height ratio than other vehicles. “And I would go so far as to say that we have redefined the architecture of purely electric vehicles to a certain extent.”

Mauer says usually EVs are higher than their conventionally powered counterparts because the relatively heavy and large batteries are positioned in the vehicle floor with the occupants seated above them.

“We were not willing to accept this.”

He says the specific challenge was to position the passengers as low as possible without them having to assume a reclined position like in a Formula 1 racing car.

“We solved this with so-called ‘foot garages’. They enable a comfortable sitting position even in conjunction with the sporty vehicle height.”

Not having to fit a large combustion engine provides greater design freedom for the Taycan, based more on the 911 which helps brand identity.

Aerodynamics and air flow quality are especially important for all-electric models because they greatly influence the range, Mauer says.

“For this reason, we did away with traditional headlights here and used a light source located in the air intake instead. The air enters laterally from the front and exits again behind the wheel housings. The air flow at the wheels is therefore calmer, bringing about significant aerodynamic benefits.”

Mauer says his vision is that the Taycan will become the icon of a new EV era.