Porsche has announced more technical details about the second-generation Macan, which will be making its debut next year. Electrification is of course the big news with this one, with the new iteration of the compact SUV set to be the automaker’s second fully-electric offering after the Taycan.
It won’t sit on the Taycan’s J1 platform, but instead be underpinned by the Volkswagen Group’s new Premium Platform Electric (PPE) architecture the company co-developed with Audi, with the latter due to utilise it for the Q6 e-tron, essentially a four-ringed twin to the Macan. The PPE will enable a wide range of models with rear- and all-wheel drive and various performance levels to be built on it.
Initially, the automaker says that two variants of the Macan EV will be offered at launch, these being an entry-level model and a top-of-the-range version, which could be the Macan 4 and Turbo, as suggested by door sill monikers noted on the cars seen in these photos. Word is that there will be three specifications, with a base single-motor model coming into play at a later point.
It was previously mentioned that maximum output presented by the electrified powertrain would be around 612 PS (603 hp or 450 kW) and 1,000 Nm, and these numbers were reiterated during a technology workshop briefing the company held for the car in Germany back in October.
Like the Taycan, the Macan utilises permanently excited synchronous electric motors (PSM) and 800 volt technology. However, despite early suggestions that DC fast charging capability could be up from the 270 kW of the Taycan, the rate on the Macan is in the same ballpark, with the mention of the ability to charge at rates of up to 270 kW. As for AC, the Macan EV will feature a 11 kW onboard AC charger at point of launch, but faster AC charging is said to be on the way.
The car’s lithium-ion battery, which sits in the underbody, consists of 12 modules – each with 15 prismatic nickel-manganese cobalt cells, making for 180 in all – connected in series, and has a total gross capacity of around 100 kWh. No nett capacity numbers as of yet, so we’ll have to wait for that. In terms of energy density, the unit is around 30% higher than the previous iteration.
A lightweight but tough glass-fibre composite under-body guard protects the battery from mechanical damage from below, while a cooling plate is integrated into the battery housing. Porsche says the battery is repairable, as the individual modules and other important components can be replaced without sacrificing the entire unit. It has even been water tested for immersion and said to have aced it, although the short cycle quoted hardly constitutes flooding as we know it.
Hooked up to a DC charger capable of dishing out the juice in suitable fashion, the battery can be charged from a 10 to 80% state of charge (SoC) in less than 22 minutes. On the move, up to about 240 kW of recuperation is possible, depending on how much the driver presses the brake pedal as well as the temperature and the battery’s SoC, among other factors. Speaking of charging, two charging ports can be found on both sides. In most markets, these offer the possibility to charge with AC, with DC charging being carried out on the left side port.
New innovations abound, some determined by cost and space considerations. It was pointed out that unlike the Taycan, there’s no high-voltage booster in the Macan. Instead, when presented with 400 volt charging, the car utilises ‘bank charging,’ a setup that uses software and switches to divide the battery pack into two 400 volt units connected in parallel, so they can be charged faster with 400 volts each.
As for the DC fast charging components, these – along with the onboard AC charger, high-voltage heater and DC/DC converter – are packaged into what the company calls the Integrated Power Box (IPB). Tipping the scales at around 19 kgs, the IPB is about three kg lighter than conventional components, and its compactness means it can be positioned under the rear bench seat above the battery to save space. Aside from optimising the weight distribution of the vehicle, the unit also enables a larger luggage compartment to be had.
The power electronics have also taken a big step forward: to optimise the effectiveness, silicon carbide (SiC) is used instead of silicon as the semiconductor material in the pulse inverter (PWR) on the rear axle. This significantly reduces switching losses in the PWR and enables higher switching frequencies.
For maximum power density, the water jacket cooling has also been improved compared to that of the Taycan. An example of the further comprehensive optimisations in the PSMs is what is known as the double V lamination – the arrangement of the magnets within the rotors. The wires of the stators are wound using the hairpin method for the electric motor on the front axle and the I-pin method for the power unit on the rear axle. This U- or I-shaped arrangement increases the copper filling level of the grooves.
Elsewhere, power is transmitted to the wheels on the front and rear axles via a two-stage single-speed transmission. Instead of one large gear wheel, the transmission utilises two smaller wheels, making for the two-stage set-up. This, the automaker says, enables the unit to be made compact.
The company says the Macan EV promises to be the sportiest offering in its segment, thanks to a performance rear axle that places the rear electric motor as far back as possible, shifting the weight balance to a 48:52 split. Meanwhile, certain variants will come with Porsche Torque Vectoring Plus, a fully-variable electronically-controlled rear differential, and for the first time, the packaging with the Performance rear end allows for the introduction of a rear-wheel steering system.
At speeds of up to around 80 km/h, the rear wheels steer in the opposite direction to the front wheels, with a maximum steering angle at the rear axle of up to five degrees when parking, making the process easier thanks to the turning circle being reduced by around one metre.
At speeds above 80 km/h, the rear wheels steer in the same direction as the front axle, virtually lengthening the wheelbase to increase driving stability. The rear-wheel steering is accompanied by a 15% more direct steering ratio on the front axle, offering improved rack feel and driving dynamics.
The Macan EV will be available with a standard steel suspension as well as an optional air suspension.The Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) setup features two-valve dampers that can adjust independently. Meanwhile, wheel choices (of which you can see three in the photos) of up to 22-inch units are available for the car, with tyres in staggered widths being standard fit, to better deal with the rearward weight bias.
The technical updates also provides the first official image of the car’s interior, which the company didn’t allow any photos of during the technology workshop outing. We finally get to see the dash, rather similar to that on the new Panamera. Digital screens lead the way in visually, with up to three such units available for the Porsche Driver Experience console.
The first is a 12.6-inch free-standing curved display for the instrument cluster, while the second is a centrally-positioned high-resolution, 10.9-inch touch display in full HD quality. The third is an optional passenger display, also measuring 10.9 inches, and this can be used by the passenger to view content while the car is in motion without impacting the driver, courtesy of a special film covering that prevents any viewing of the panel from the driver’s seat.
The Macan EV will also feature a head-up display with augmented reality technology, presenting key data to the driver in an image that appears at a distance of 10 metres and corresponds to the size of an 87-inch display.
Elsewhere, six new languages/dialects – Turkish, Czech, Hungarian, Portuguese, Taiwanese and Cantonese – have been added to the voice assistant compared to the current Porsche models, bringing the total to 23, and improvements have come about to the voice assistant.
The biggest news regarding interior electronics, however, is the switch to Android Automotive OS as the operating system for the Porsche Communication Management (PCM), which brings along with it a new hub for connectivity services in the form of the Porsche App Centre. Besides providing faster access times, the automaker says that going the Android route opens up digital content options significantly for users, allowing them to directly install and use their favourite third-party apps just like on their mobile devices.
At point of the new Macan’s launch, a variety of apps of different categories will be available, including the likes of Spotify, Amazon Music and TuneIn Radio for European markets as well as YouTube streaming. Additionally, smartphone integration of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto has also been improved as a result of the new OS – when using Apple CarPlay, the Apple map is displayed in the instrument cluster, as is Google Maps when Android Auto is called into action.
Porsche says the App Centre will be continuously updated and will keep the vehicle up to date throughout its life cycle, with the entire Connect portfolio being made available to Macan customers over a 10-year period.
While the presentation, held at the brand’s experience centre in Leipzig, was very much a quick, intense dive into the new tech elements of the car, there was the chance to sample the vehicle itself briefly, athough not from the driver’s seat. Taxi rides on both the centre’s impressive track and off-road courses at the facility were offered in demonstrators, which still had their exteriors masked, albeit lightly.
The track run was, in a word, heady, the Macan EV serving up speed processes unimaginable in the old car, especially out of corners, the lack of lag or absence of dipped gear response highlighting what electrification brings to the table when allied to handling prowess, complete with power slides. As the sampling showed, it is quite agile for what is effectively a two plus tonne thing.
As for the off-road coursework, it went about the business in methodical fashion, and while 99.9% of owners aren’t likely to subject it to such exercises, knowing that it can be done is good enough. We’ll have to wait for the new Macan’s debut to get the final specification of the EV, which, if all goes according to plan, should be pretty soon
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It look so weird without rear spoiler. Why Porsche?
Because it already has a hidden one just below the wiper, it will auto-raise when the speed is fast enough.
What’s the Taiwanese language/dialect? Mandarin, Hokkien or ..? @@
beautiful but super expensive