The new Porsche Macan crossover is presented: electric, powerful, technological

With the release of the new Porsche Macan crossover, the manufacturer tried to answer two questions at once. First, to launch the second generation of a very popular model and prepare a successor. Secondly, to launch an electric vehicle in a popular format, to create a middle-class electric crossover. What did it take to do this? And did you succeed? Let’s try to figure it out together.

New platform, changed design, improved aerodynamics

The first and foremost highlight of the new Porsche Macan electric crossover is that it is built on the PPE (Premium Platform Electric) platform, which has been developed over the past few years. Among the platform’s features is support for 800-volt architecture, which allows for very fast battery charging.

Of course, if you can find a charging station with a capacity of up to 270 kW, in which case the battery can be charged from 10-80% in just 21 minutes. This is all well and good; but what is the capacity of the battery itself? The manufacturer claims a nominal capacity of 100 kWh, of which 95 kWh can actually be used.

It is likely that the rather large battery also influenced the overall proportions of the electric vehicle. For example, the wheelbase of the new Porsche Macan has reached 2.89 meters, or 86 mm more than its predecessor. Other dimensions have also increased, but not so significantly: the length of the new model is 4.78 meters, the width has reached 1.94 meters, and the height is 1.62 meters. By the way, the trunk has also increased – 540 liters in the rear and another 84 liters in the front.

Besides, one of the features of the new Porsche Macan is its optimized aerodynamics – by the way, it is active: the rear anti-wing moves, the holes in the radiator grille open and close. In general, the designers managed to achieve an aerodynamic drag coefficient of Cd=0.25: this, accordingly, affects the driving range.

Two versions at the start: Porsche Macan 4 and Porsche Macan Turbo

Now about the range and other interesting figures of the technical characteristics. The manufacturer is already presenting two versions of the novelty at once: Porsche Macan 4 and Porsche Macan Turbo. In both cases, we are talking about all-wheel drive, realized by two electric motors (to drive the front/rear wheels, respectively) and the aforementioned 100 kilowatt-hour battery. But everything else is different.

The Porsche Macan 4 electric car is ready to offer 300 kW (408 hp) and 650 Nm of torque. Its top speed reaches 220 km/h, and acceleration to “hundred” is claimed to be 5.2 seconds. However, the most important figure, of course, is the range – up to 613 km (combined cycle WLTP).

The Porsche Macan Turbo, on the other hand, offers even more impressive power output at 470 kW (639 hp) and 1130 Nm of torque. This allows it to reach a maximum speed of 260 km/h and accelerate to 60 in 3.3 seconds. However, the predicted range is lower – up to 591 km (combined WLTP cycle).

The Porsche Macan Turbo features not only increased power, but also modified styling: its own wheels, a modified front bumper, recesses on the rear bumper, etc. In addition, the Porsche Macan Turbo electric car receives air suspension as standard equipment. However, while “air” has already been found on the previous Porsche Macan, this is the first time that the optional rear wheel swivel system has been introduced to the Macan model.

And a few words about the salon for “techno” fans…

But if you want to get the maximum impression of techno-gadgets, then just look inside the cabin. The dashboard around the driver is built as a single 12.6-inch curved display, the joystick for selecting the direction of travel (instead of the traditional automatic lever) is moved closer to the steering wheel, and the center console has several switches for climate control.

The front panel has a 10.9-inch display. And there can even be two of them: one mandatory – in the center of the panel, the second (optional) – for the front passenger. Not enough? Then what about the windshield projection system, which works like “augmented reality” and displays a picture at a distance of 10 meters from the driver.

And finally, the launch of the new electric Porsche Macan does not mean stopping the production of the existing gasoline Porsche Macan! Even though the first-generation Porsche Macan crossover has a considerable 10-year history, several updates have significantly “rejuvenated” the car and it is successfully finding buyers: today Porsche Macan is one of the company’s bestsellers, with about 800 thousand vehicles sold since the beginning of the model’s career – and this figure may grow.

Therefore, a Solomonic decision was made: to leave two models for a while. But there are nuances: the Porsche Macan (with gasoline engines) will no longer be supplied and sold in the European Union in the near future. The start of deliveries of the new electric Porsche Macan to customers in the EU is scheduled for the second half of 2024, as well as to customers in Ukraine. However, two versions of the Porsche Macan will be offered simultaneously on the Ukrainian market – gasoline and electric. Production of the Macan with a gasoline engine for Ukraine will continue until 2026. The new Porsche Macan is already available for order in Ukraine. The estimated cost in the Porsche dealer network starts from 3 225 530 UAH for the Macan 4 and from 4 414 970 UAH for the Macan Turbo.

So, we are looking forward to a new electric Porsche Macan in addition to the existing gasoline one.