Porsche’s cheapest electric car now on sale in Australia

The Porsche Taycan RWD (rear-wheel drive) sedan is now on sale in Australia as the brand's most affordable electric car.

Priced from $156,300 before on-road costs, it joins the higher-performance (and all-wheel drive) 4S, Turbo, and Turbo S variants in the Taycan range.

A high-riding off-road version – known as the Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo – is also now available locally; the first examples arrived in Australian showrooms last month.

A spokesperson for Porsche Cars Australia told Drive: “Customers can order [the Taycan RWD] … deliveries are expected to commence early next year.”

Two lithium-ion battery packs – rated at 79.2kWh and 93.4kWh – are available, offering 431km and 484km of range on the WLTP (real-world driving) cycle, respectively. You can read about the specifications in more detail here.

With the smaller battery, a peak output of 300kW/345Nm during launch control ‘boost’ periods is claimed. Cars fitted with the larger battery produce a maximum of 350kW/357Nm.

The single electric motor fitted to both variants sends drive to the rear wheels via a two-speed automatic transmission. This allows the 0-100km/h sprint to be completed in a claimed 5.4 seconds, on the way to an electronically capped top speed of 230km/h.

An all-electric variant of Porsche's Macan medium SUV will likely arrive in Australian showroom in 2023 or 2024.

Assuming Porsche can maintain its price parity between petrol and electric equivalents, it is expected to undercut the cost of the Taycan.