A version of this article originally appeared in the April 2022 issue of Allegheny Region’s Rundschau magazine.
Photos by Dave Palmer
Those club members who know me probably do so because of my work with the HPDE team and my well-traveled 2011 997.2 GT3 with many thousands of track miles on its odometer. My background makes for what I think may be an interesting perspective on the ownership of a 2021 Taycan 4S, Porsche’s first modern Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV).
Wikipedia defines Yin and Yang as: “how obviously opposite or contrary forces may actually be complementary and interconnected.” This is how I’ve come to think of owning a Taycan in addition to the two 911s that we have had for many years (I also own a 1997 993). I somehow sensed early on when reading about the Taycan that it would be an opposite yet, in some cosmic way, a complementary vehicle to our 911s.
Can there be such a thing as a true BEV “Sports Car”? I thought, no. As remarkable as the performance of a Porsche BEV sports car will certainly be, those of us with many decades of high-performance driving under our belts know that how a car performs is far more than just the numbers. The interaction of the driver and the machine is, in my opinion, more significant over the long term. The sounds, smells, vibrations, and presence of a clutch ped-al in a manual transmission, Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) car can’t be genuinely replicated by a BEV.
Why can’t it be possible to enjoy both the old and the new? Why can’t the 911s be the “Yin” and a Taycan the “Yang?”
We took delivery of our Taycan last May and are approaching 10K miles on it. I must tell you that it is a remarkable machine in so many ways; ways that make travel in it rewarding and enjoyable.
Let me address the elephant in the room straight away (the first inquiry ALWAYS is “what kind of range does it have?”). Ask yourself the following questions:
- Is your commute to work 100 miles one-way?
- Do you drive to your annual skiing holiday in Park City, Utah?
If you answered “yes” to either of these, a Taycan, unfortunately, probably isn’t for you. I would suggest, however, that if you answered “no,” a Taycan could be a wonderful addition to your personal transportation options.
The Taycan can probably meet the needs of 95% of the driving that you do. You can get to and from just about any destination in southwestern Pennsylvania with no concern about range or the need to charge. Typically, you’ll charge overnight at home when needed, and never have to think about skeevy gas stations again.
Having said that, with a little planning and flexibility, the Taycan can go well beyond Allegheny County in style and hushed ambiance. We’ve driven it to Columbus three times, and I took it to the Porsche Sportscar Together Fest in Indianapolis last fall (doing 25 minutes of spirited parade laps on the IMS Grand Prix course with it). A half-hour stop in Columbus for free electrons (courtesy of Volkswagen AG/Electrify America), and another outside of downtown Indy, and I was at the Speedway only marginally behind when I would have arrived driving an ICE car.
For Porsche to come up with a true “clean sheet of paper” design, and have it been so competent and engaging, really does speak to the level of engineering expertise that is found in Zuffenhausen. Although my 993 has been my three-season “daily” for years, I found myself taking the Taycan when I could have taken the 993; that’s how fascinating and enjoyable I find this car.
In the winter, with proper winter tires installed, I will continue to drive it regularly in all types of weather, limited only by the chassis’ clearance above the snow.
I can say with great confidence that everyone reading this has enjoyed the experience of the “Yin” half of the personal transportation equation. Perhaps my enjoyment of the Taycan will get you to consider the “Yang”!
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