Porsche's Cheapest Model to Go All-electric

So, perhaps not cheapest for long. Tuesday, the German automaker announced its next-generation Macan crossover will divest itself of internal combustion for its next generation.

By adopting new architecture and dropping its gas powerplant, the Macan, refreshed for 2019 and currently starting at just a tick below $50k U.S., will become the company’s third electric vehicle. It’s unlikely the S and GTS variants will survive, but perhaps the Macan will retain TURBO badging of a non-turbo nature?

Porsche claims the new Macan — an “all-electric series” — will emerge from its Leipzig assembly complex at the beginning of the coming decade with a quick-juicing 800-volt charging system. That system, as well as the model’s new PPE architecture (Premium Platform Electric), is borrowed from the upcoming Taycan sedan, which bows late this year as a 2020 model.

Joining the Taycan soon after its launch is a Cross Turismo wagon variant. Porsche didn’t get specific about the new Macan’s launch date, preferring to talk up its investments in

The brand plans to sink $6 billion into the technology by 2022, with the possibility that, by 2025, half of all Porsches rolling out of Germany might be electric. That’s a statement you can attribute to Porsche AG Chairman Oliver Blume.

“Nevertheless, over the next ten years we will focus on a drive mix consisting of even further optimised petrol engines, plug-in hybrid models, and purely electrically operated sports cars,” Blume said. “Our aim is to take a pioneering role in technology, and for this reason we will continue to consistently align the company with the mobility of the future.”

Until its green makeover, the Macan carries on with a standard 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four, good for 248 horsepower and 273 lb-ft of torque. That mill mates to a seven-speed PDK dual-clutch automatic. For 2019, the upgrade engine is a turbo 3.0-liter V6 generating 348 hp and 352 lb-ft.

[Image: Porsche AG]