The arrival of the 2020 Porsche Taycan last year proved that the established automakers can develop EVs as compelling as any Tesla, although for now Elon Musk and his crew are still leading the world when it comes to range.
For the 2021 model year, the Taycan is set to receive some updates that fall mostly in the area of tech updates. Some of these are quite useful like a color head-up display which is divided into separate sections so that multiple info points can be presented simultaneously.
A new Smartlift function is also likely to prove popular for anyone with steep driveways. This function is included on models with adaptive air suspension and can be programmed so that it automatically raises the car in certain, recurring locations.
2021 Porsche Taycan
Porsche is also making available some on-demand features that buyers will be able to add after the purchase of the vehicle, via over-the-air updates. These features can be added either via a one-time payment or as a subscription. With the latter, buyers will have a three-month trial period before the subscription starts.
The first of these on-demand features include Porsche Intelligent Range Manager, Active Lane Keep Assist, and Porsche InnoDrive (available for cars equipped with adaptive cruise control).
Buyers of the 2021 Taycan will also have seven new exterior colors to choose from and five new interior trim options. One of the exterior colors is called Frozenberry Metallic. In addition, the Carbon Sport Design package which was previously limited to the Taycan Turbo S will be made available across the range.
2021 Porsche Taycan
Finally, the charging system has been updated so that it can throttle back high-speed charging from the maximum 270-kilowatt rate to 200 kw when desired. According to Porsche, this will help extend the battery's service life and reduce the overall power loss while charging, though it will mean longer charging time. Some charging stations, like those from Electrify America, will also be able to detect a particular Taycan and handle the payment process automatically when the vehicle is equipped with a new feature called Plug & Charge.
The 2021 Taycan will be available to order from the fourth quarter of 2020, with the first examples due to reach dealers in the first quarter of 2021. Pricing information will be announced closer to the market launch.
Unfortunately, there hasn't been any mention of whether the new Taycan Cross Turismo due out later this year will be offered in the United States. We also still don't know whether the base Taycan with rear-wheel drive sold in China will be made available here. The entry point here at present is the Taycan 4S which for 2020 is priced from $105,150, including destination.
