Porsche might not be sure where it stands on diesels, but it's marching firmly forward toward electrification. The automaker is working on bringing its Mission E concept to production, and working to get electric Porsche models into production. One Porsche executive also seized an opportunity to take an easy jab at Tesla along the way.
According to a report from Autoblog, Porsche's head of electric vehicles, Stefan Wekbach, spoke about the attributes and goals of the Mission E. When asked a question about the Tesla Model S's ability to accelerate from 0-62 in less than 3.0 seconds, Wekbach said, "But only twice—the third attempt will fail. The system is throttled." This is in reference to the fact that Tesla used to restrict the amount of consecutive times and total times a driver could utilize Launch Control. As of late last year, Tesla no longer restricts the use of Launch Control or how often a driver uses "full-pedal acceleration."
Wekbach continued, saying, "Porsche drivers won't need to worry about that," and the Mission E will offer "reproducible performance and a top speed which can be maintained for long periods."
With those comments, Wekbach recognized that the Model S is certainly quick from 0-62 mph but those runs can only be done twice before the car can't perform in the same manner. He also made the point that, like other Porsches, the production Mission E will be able to be driven in a spirited manner, and it'll be able to handle as much abuse as the owner wishes to throw at it.
Despite the jab, Porsche is also clearly aware and focused what Tesla is doing. In fact, Porsche would like to sway the hearts, minds, and wallets of those who've already plunked down cash for a Model S.
If Porsche can truly deliver a 400-plus horsepower electric sedan with a 300-mile range, then the German sports car builder will certainly be well on its way to that goal. You're not likely to find serious panel gap and finish issues on a modern Porsche product, after all.
