A Taycan GTS owner drives a Taycan base model loaner - comparison observations

[Irish Guy]

Ultimately, I ended up with a GTS and don’t have any regrets because it drives magnificently, has seemingly endless power, and I got an attractive deal on it. But I loved the RWD Taycan. I’d have been very happy with one.

https://www.taycanforum.com/forum/t...n-is-a-gem-drove-it-and-was-blown-away.14461/

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[f1eng]

I also think that on narrow UK roads, with all the size and weight of the Taycan and the cr@p weather, I wouldn't want more performance.
I would far sooner have less size / weight tbh.

Quite.
The only fault I find with mine is it is too big and heavy.
Lighter is always better and smaller almost always is.

 

[mystermykee]

Currently in a base model loaner as well, equipped with air suspension and RWS. Although it is noticeably slower than a 4S, for 90% of daily commuting and without driving like an ass a base model gets to speed just like all the other models. I think there's a 20k price difference in price between base and 4S. If I had a hard budget cap at 4S pricing, I'd take a base model with 20k in options.

Premium, full leather (cabin feels pretty cheap without leather or with plastic A/B pillars), air, RWS, PDCC for starters...

 

[freeforall]

I am happy owner of a RWD ST and I love how fun it drives. The steering feels better than the 4S and feels lighter (I can only compare with the 4S since I had it for a week as a loaner). The RWD power is more than enough, it does feel extremely fast (even surprisingly fast when accelerating in very high speeds). But what is much more important to me is the handeling. It is just amazing.
In my case I well equipped mine, air suspension, rear wheel steering, full leather, 21 in, etc so it feels worth the money. And I am also happy to know that RWD ST depreciates a lot less than other models even though I am not seeing myself selling it anytime soon.

One thing I really hate though: when I accelerate hard from a stopped position, and the tires are still cold (this happens often to me since I am on summer tires and I do a lot of small trips), I quickly loose grip. In those occasions I hope I had a AWD (but it also removes some of the fun of a RWD when traction control disabled). Maybe the solution is to put winter tires but not sure whether it is enough to address this.

 

[cityhpper]

The RW ST is absolutely one of the coolest Taycan iterations. Don't see many of them around, though. Would be happy to see a picture of your car, @freeforall!

 

[Electra Glide In Blue]

I took delivery of a lightly-optioned RWD in July '23, about $30K in extras. I was trying to keep the weight down so opted for handling performance over speed and driver comfort. It is a blast to drive, and similar to @freeforall the 60-100 mph acceleration is such that I can't take my eyes off of the road to look down at the speedo (no HUD of course, and no torque steer like my old Saabs!) With AWS and PASM the car handles extremely well. I'm sure I'll be scolded that PASM adds poundage, but now I don't think I'd consider another ride without it.

I'm fortunate that I don't care about depreciation; I suspect this car has lost 30-40% of its value in 7 months, but I drive them for the pure enjoyment of what I believe is the unique Porsche experience and the knowledge that (at least in my case) this is a well-built, engineered, and designed auto.

 

[4thPcar]

They say that a car is an extension of its owner's personality, and "you are what you drive." Well my reflexes are not what they used to be since I reached middle age, so its fitting that my RWD's reflexes are the same.

 

[violuma]

P.S. I was just saying to hubby the other day how nice it is to be on a forum with people who have the higher performance models and not have them create posts explaining why their model is better than the “base” model. Oh well, that honeymoon is over. ?

There is no objective "better" here, IMHO. What's important is how happy you are with your car. We've all got budgets to some degree, and (at least for me) the hours and hours spent reading threads here and reviews there and playing with the configurator and thinking really hard about what I I would get the most utility out of were both (a) really fun, and (b) essential to the finished product.

I have, by any objective standard, a really weird car. I skimped on the trim power and the battery size, took zero of the option "packages", eschewed all of the self-driving stuff, threw that money into a rare PTS color with all the chrome painted violet except for the model badge, a two-tone RaceTex interior with very little standard vinyl anywhere, RAS and night vision because I live in an area with crazily narrow and twisty roads with wildlife everywhere.

It turned out just the way I wanted it, I wouldn't trade it for anybody else's, and I hope you feel the same way about yours.

 

[24Neptune]

There is no objective "better" here, IMHO.

My point exactly, thank you ?

 

[Pinballplanet]

My point exactly, thank you ?

Ditto - my entire point was to provide my impressions comparing the base to 4S.

 

[Ross]

Good discussion.

I love Electra Glide in Blue describing a a car with 30k of options (the price of another car) as lightly optioned!?

I like my GTS but genuinely can’t tell the difference dynamically between it and my 4S except the 21 inch wheels that look great are a pain in the arse at slow speed. Much heavier steering and tiresome Ackermans.

I have driven several base models 2WD and CT4. They are all quite quick enough. They all leap of the line like scalded cats. Just not quite as quick.

The base models definitely run out of puff in acceleration but at around the legal speed limit.

So no real problem.

I like the base trim. Keep it in a base car. Just need 14 or 18 seats.
Its just a lovely a place to be as a Turbo S for half the price.

Don’t like leather.

The best interior in a Taycan by a mile is the GTS Alcantara. It would be even better without leather bits.

 

[watson]

I have been following threads here for a couple of years and have enjoyed learning about others experiences with the various Taycan models. There are several threads on which version of Taycan should I get and it seems the RWD has a little less love than I think it deserves.

I am an automotive engineer and have focused the last 25 years of my career on electrification. Due to my work, I have spent a fair amount of time in the 4S, Turbo, and Turbo S and have accumulated 75k miles on a RWD which is my work car (has air suspension and RWS). The RWD is almost like another platform from the others. The power and ultimate performance goes up as you go from a 4S to Turbo and a Turbo to Turbo S, but they all drive similarly except for ultimate power maneuvers (provided they are equipped similarly). The RWD is about subtly – its missing the big torque/power but on light/medium tip-ins it is responsive and quick. The RWD seems like it is more than 500lbs lighter than a 4S even though the numbers don’t reflect that. The steering and road connection continues to impress me – Porsche engineers have done an excellent job with the accelerator pedal mapping, the suspension (only have experienced air suspension), steering including rear steer, and shift control. The 1-2 shifts are excellent and you get to enjoy them in all types of driving unlike the AWD models. The 2-1 can be a bit harsh depending on the manuever but it is difficult to maximize regen in the rear and not have some discontinuities on the shift scheduler. And Porsche really maximizes the regen on the rear unit – as your coming down to a stop you can feel the wheel slip at its limits on many decels.

I will add that after driving the Taycan RWD for 2 years I decided I had to own a Taycan – not just a work car. I spent several months trying to decide whether to buy a 4S or stick with what I knew and loved. I finally decided to order a 4S so it would have everything I wanted and none of what I didn’t. But the allocations were a problem at the time and while I was waiting a low mileage 2022 4S became available that had everything I wanted with only a few extras and so I purchased it. It is a great vehicle – but if I had to choose only one it would be the RWD.

From my perspective all of the Porsche Taycans are one of the best vehicles on the road regardless of which one you have. They are all extremely well balanced and highly tuned for performance that defies their size and mass. For this to be Porsche’s first electric vehicle platform is a tribute to their engineering approach. I’m not going to say no one else could have done it – but no one else did.

 

[f1eng]

I’m not going to say no one else could have done it – but no one else did.

Quite so.
In my investigations there was no car I liked enough as a car to buy except the Taycan.

 

[watson]

Quite so.
In my investigations there was no car I liked enough as a car to buy except the Taycan.

Exactly. I'm always critical of what the manufacture did'nt do right - part of being an engineer. And that has allowed me to not spend large amounts of money on vehicles over the years. Got to experience them for work but did'nt have a desire to pay for a premium car. The Taycan is the first after 40 years of doing this.

 

[kempez]

I spent 5-10 mins trying to explain to my neighbour why I switched from a V8 C63 to the Taycan and after talking about how the chassis is so connected and the ride is almost magical, it came down to basically saying you needed to drive it to understand. It’s a Porsche electric car and it drives like a Porsche, steers like a Porsche and connects you to the road and I couldn’t find another electric car that came close (at the time).

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