Porsche gets ready to shock Chinese market with new and dynamic electric offerings

German sports car manufacturer Porsche has sped ahead with its electrification and digitization by putting reliable technical innovations into production, thus bringing its sports car genes to life with all-electric driving pleasure.

The carmaker announced earlier this year that half of its new car sales would be electric vehicles by 2025. It has the intention of being net carbon-neutral across the entire value chain by 2030, when the share of all new vehicles with an all-electric drive would be more than 80 percent.

The main platform to assist Porsche in achieving the goal is the Premium Platform Electric or PPE. It allows EVs to feature a longer range and a faster charging speed, more advanced driving assistance functions and a modern electronics architecture.

At the same time, the platform can offer ample room in the wheelbase, track width and ground clearance, and be used in a variety of models, covering different segments, rear-and all-wheel drives and various performance levels. With the combined benefits of the PPE, Porsche is emphasizing its uniqueness.

Porsche's first all-electric sports car, the Taycan, based on the J1 platform, was launched in China in 2020 with several variants available in the market now. The latest two derivatives of the Taycan, the GTS and Cross Turismo, hit the Chinese market in April.

The 100,000th Taycan rolled off the production line in November. An executive in charge of the Taycan production line said that with the car, Porsche has made a successful start in the electric age to reach this milestone in production so quickly.

During the January-September period, worldwide deliveries of the Taycan reached 25,073 units, a 12 percent decline year-on-year due to supply chain-related bottlenecks and reduced availability of parts. Both of these factors affected its deliveries but the order book remains large, according to Porsche.

The second model based on the PPE will be the all-electric Macan SUV, which is set to hit the market in 2024.

Thanks to the PPE, the all-electric Macan will feature an 800-volt architecture, a powerful electric motor of the latest generation and state-of-the-art battery and charge management.

The model will have a lithium-ion battery with capacity of around 100 kilowatt-hours featuring high-energy density. It can charge from 5 to 80 percent in less than 25 minutes.

Besides this, Porsche plans to offer its 718 coupe exclusively as all-electric by the middle of the decade.

Porsche now has 21 electric and plug-in hybrids models in China, the world's largest market for such vehicles.

Electric cars and plug-in hybrids accounted for 18 percent of the carmaker's 95,671 vehicles sold in 2021 in China.

Porsche has entered the fast lane to e-mobility and is committed to pushing forward this transformation, accelerating the localization of the digital intelligence sector, as well as leading the new era of exclusive sports mobility with electric models, the carmaker said.

With strong sales, China has remained Porsche's largest single market for seven consecutive years. A total of 68,766 Porsches were handed over to Chinese customers in the first nine months of this year.

China is also one of the most important strategic markets — not only due to the sales volume but thanks to its excellence in digitalization and innovation, the carmaker said.

To better meet the ever-expanding localization needs for the Chinese market — particularly in terms of highly automated driving, connectivity, infotainment and assistance systems — its technology service provider Porsche Engineering established an office in Beijing in August, which is Porsche's second office in China after Shanghai.

"The Chinese market has become a leading source of key technologies and industry transformation thanks to customers' affinity for high-tech development. As a luxury sports car manufacturer, strengthening local investment and R&D is a significant part of Porsche's global innovation strategy," said Michael Kirsch, newly-appointed president and CEO of Porsche China.

"With the expansion of Porsche Engineering in Beijing, I expect a fast growth of the overall R&D and engineering capabilities of the Porsche Group in China, and further contributions to our success in the global market while promoting local innovation," he added.

Porsche China is also building a customer-friendly ecosystem with fast and safe supercharging technology, expanding a reliable and convenient charging network, as well as providing considerate smart services to consumers by relying on local R&D capabilities.

The carmaker has invested in premium charging stations with partners. Further extensive investments are flowing into core technologies, such as battery systems and module production. In the newly-founded Cellforce Group, high-performance battery cells are being developed and produced, which are expected to be ready for series production by 2024.

caoyingying@chinadaily.com.cn