Full-electric sports car gets comprehensively tested in 30 countries in temperatures that range from minus 35 to plus 50deg Celsius.
02 Apr 2019 | 4179 Views | By Autocar Professional Bureau
Porsche’s first purely electrically driven sports car, the Taycan, is currently completing its final test drives before it enters series production. In Scandinavia, just a few kilometres away from the Arctic Circle, it is proving its potential in terms of driving dynamics on snow and ice.
Porsche engineers are ...
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Porsche’s first purely electrically driven sports car, the Taycan, is currently completing its final test drives before it enters series production. In Scandinavia, just a few kilometres away from the Arctic Circle, it is proving its potential in terms of driving dynamics on snow and ice.
Porsche engineers are also taking advantage of the summer in the Southern Hemisphere. In South Africa, they are conducting performance tests, as well as final adjustments in terms of continuous performance and reproducibility. In Dubai they are carrying out hot-climate endurance runs and testing battery charging under extreme conditions. The 30 countries across the globe in which these comprehensive tests are being carried out have temperatures that range from minus 35 to plus 50deg Celsius.
“After carrying out computer simulations and comprehensive bench tests early on, we have now reached the final phase of this demanding testing programme,” underlines Stefan Weckbach, vice- president of the model line. “Before the Taycan is launched on the market at the end of the year, we will have covered approximately six million kilometres across the globe. We are already very happy with the current status of the vehicles. The Taycan is going to be a true Porsche.”
Porsche says its electric cars have to undergo the same rigorous testing programme as sports cars with combustion engines. In addition to displaying superior performance, this includes proving unrestricted suitability for everyday use in all climate conditions. Particularly demanding features such as charging the battery or temperature control of the drive train and the interior under extreme conditions are additional aspects in the battery-powered models. Other typical Porsche development targets include circuit performance, multiple accelerations, as well as a range suitable for everyday use.
Virtual prototypes complete over 10m digital kilometres
Porsche’s test experts were able to build upon the comprehensive findings from the digital testing stage using digital prototypes. At present, computers are used to design the body, drive, chassis, electronics and overall vehicle of a new model and to simulate their functions including how they work together. In total, the virtual prototypes of the Taycan have completed more than 10 million digital kilometres.
This meant that development engineers started driving a Taycan around the Nürburgring Nordschleife in a driving simulator at an early stage, so that they could test and evaluate its circuit performance. During this process, they focused on the electrical energy management, which plays an important role in achieving a sub-eight-minute lap time on the 20.6-kilometre (timed distance) Nordschleife.
With more than 20,000 prospective buyers worldwide, the Porsche Taycan will be introduced in September and will be launched at the end of the year.
The Taycan accelerates from zero to 100kph in significantly less than 3.5 seconds. It has a range of more than 500 kilometres. And the 800-V architecture in the vehicle guarantees that the lithium-ion battery can be recharged in just four minutes, providing enough energy to drive 100 kilometres.