Road test: Porsche’s Macan is zooming into an electric revolution and it’s lightning fast

Is Porsche shooting itself in the foot? The Stuttgart carmaker has just rolled out its all-new, second-generation Macan and, on paper, it comprehensively thumps its predecessor.

However, the big eye-opener is that Porsche is offering the newbie solely in an electrified format. There are no combustion variants whatsoever, so the hallowed marque is putting all its eggs in the battery basket.

It’s a bold strategy – especially as the Macan is Porsche’s biggest seller, along with the larger Cayenne. However, the company is hedging its bets for the time being. The existing petrol-powered Macan models will still be sold alongside the new EV generation until the former is discontinued.

For what it’s worth, the newcomer has class-leading credentials, and the switch to electrification hasn’t dampened the Macan’s comfort, dynamism or spaciousness. If anything, there’s been a major step forward in each of these domains.

The new generation lands in the UAE in October, with two models on offer initially: the Macan 4 will start at Dh318,600 ($86,000), while the flagship Macan Turbo starts at Dh412,500. Further down the track, the range will be broadened via a base-model Macan, as well as a Macan 4S that sits just below the Turbo.

The cabin is cocoon-like thanks to the EV’s lowered NVH (noise, vibration and harshness) levels. Photo: Porsche

Both the Macan 4 and Macan Turbo are equipped with a 95kWh battery pack that provides a potential touring range of over 600km and – if you have access to a suitably fast charging station – a 21-minute zap can bring the state of charge from 10 to 80 per cent.

Macan buyers who live in houses with a three-phase power supply have the option of purchasing and installing an 11kW wall box that can charge the Macan’s battery from empty to full in about 10 hours. However, those who reside in apartments might find the new EV-only Macan impractical to live with as public charging stations typically have a queue of people – many of whom are Uber Tesla drivers – waiting to recharge their vehicles.

After taking the wheel of both the Macan 4 and Turbo at the international launch in Nice, I can confidently say my first impressions are overwhelmingly positive. Setting off first in the Turbo, it’s immediately evident that NVH (noise, vibration and harshness) levels have benefited enormously from the switch to electrification.

With no combustion engine to isolate from the cabin, the ambience inside is cocoon-like, especially when I deactivate the synthetic spaceship soundtrack that can otherwise substitute for the exhaust note of a petrol engine.

With air suspension fitted as standard, the electrified Macan’s ride quality is superbly plush. It glides across even some of the lumpiest sections of the Route Napoleon that winds across the Alpes-Maritimes without jarring the spine.

The car has a 540-litre luggage compartment plus an 84-litre ‘frunk’ where the engine would normally be. Photo: Porsche

Upping the pace, there’s the discovery that grip levels are seemingly inexhaustible, and the Macan Turbo dances from one corner to the next with a level of agility that belies its 2.4 tonnes. Helping in this regard is a clever PTV Plus (Porsche Torque Vectoring Plus) electronic rear differential that enables the Macan Turbo’s gargantuan 639hp and 1,130Nm outputs to be effectively deployed to the tarmac. Optional rear-wheel steering adds to the SUV’s supreme manoeuvrability.

The Macan Turbo is so rapid – it sprints from 0 to 100kph in 3.3 seconds and 0 to 200kph in 11.7 seconds – it feels like I’m the pilot behind the wheel of a fast grand touring coupe, rather than a family-toting SUV.

A subsequent thrash through the mountains in the Macan 4 – which puts out 408hp and 650Nm – reveals that even this less potent model is quick enough to satisfy hard-charging drivers. Few are likely to bemoan a 0 to 100kph split of 5.2 seconds and a top speed of 220kph. More importantly, there’s plenty of mid-range grunt to effortlessly dispatch slower-moving cars on country roads and highways.

There’s good news on the practicality front, too, as the 540-litre rear luggage compartment is supplemented by an 84-litre “frunk” under the bonnet (where the engine would normally be).

All told, there’s little to fault in the new Macan – it’s lightning-fast, superbly cosseting and a doddle to drive. The only sticking point is that the lack of any petrol-powered variants could severely limit its target audience in many markets.

The UAE is potentially one such market as pump fuel is still relatively cheap here, while the EV recharging network – although vastly improved in recent years – is still not sufficient to satisfy demand.