Latest news with #PorscheAG
Edmunds
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Edmunds
Tested: The 2025 Porsche Macan Turbo Electric Does Its Badge Justice
Getting into the aforementioned launch control is relatively easy. As our test driver explains, "Select either Sport or Sport Plus driving mode, hold the brake pedal down, mash the throttle, wait for the launch control message to appear on the dash and let it fly. Doing that shaves about half a second off the already fast time, and the Macan Turbo picks up even more steam." Our tester adds, "Other EVs can go quicker still, but the Macan's compact dimensions and general lack of theater make the speed just a bit more shocking. Even with all this power, all-wheel drive and our test car's super-sticky tires, traction was never an issue; the Macan Turbo simply goes. Power is wonderfully linear and never seems to taper off considerably, even over 100 mph. Unlike the Porsche Taycan, which uses a two-speed gearbox, the Macan Turbo sticks with the more conventional (for an EV) single-speed unit." Tires make a big difference Our test vehicle was equipped with the optional "Performance Summer Tires for 22-inch wheels" option, which in our case were Pirelli P Zero Corsa tires with a ridiculously low treadwear rating of 80. This number refers to the tire's expected durability, or how long it will last. The higher the number, the longer it should last. For context, a common treadwear for an SUV is usually over 500, whereas an ultra-high-performance summer tire, like a Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2, is 200. The Macan's tires are 80, meaning they should last less than half as long as those Michelins, especially if you use them as their manufacturer intended. In short, these tires are sticky and deliver a ton of grip.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Porsche halts sale of EV over battery fire fears
Porsche has ordered dealers to stop selling one of its electric models amid fears that the car will catch fire. The first-generation Taycan – a model blighted by a string of safety malfunctions since its launch six years ago – has been taken off the market. It is understood Porsche fears 'a batch' of the high-end sports cars have a fault within their battery packs. Electric car fires in the UK have increased by 77 per cent between 2022 and 2024, figures from QBE Insurance suggest, with fire brigades called out to 232 incidents last year. The Taycan, which was Porsche's first mass-produced electric vehicle (EV), has been subject to a dozen safety recalls in the past four years, including brake, suspension and welding defects. Orders to halt sales last week are understood to relate to a previous recall issued in November by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA). The gremlin involves a potential short circuit within the Taycan's battery, which 'could lead to thermal events and later to a fire in the vehicle'. Porsche wrote to its official used car dealers ordering them to immediately take a number of the affected Taycan models off sale, according to Car Dealer Magazine. A Porsche spokesman said: 'Enhanced battery monitoring software is anticipated to become available for first generation Taycan models towards the end of June. With its imminent arrival, we've advised our retail partners not to sell a small, specific batch of first generation Taycan models until the software update is live.' In September 2023, a £200,000 Taycan was reported to have burst into flames in the middle of a busy street in the city of Chongqing, south-western China. Global sales of the troublesome model plummeted 49 per cent last year – a slump the German manufacturer blamed on the Taycan's mid-cycle facelift and a slower-than-planned electric uptake. UK owners impacted by the latest fire safety issue have been sent letters detailing the problem. A letter seen by The Telegraph states: 'Cases have come to light in which a short circuit within the high-voltage battery has occurred ... subsequently causing the vehicle to catch fire.' Until a solution is made available, owners must take the cars to a local Porsche garage every 60 days for a three-hour inspection. They have been told they can continue to use their Taycans before they are repaired, but are 'urgently' asked to only charge the battery to a maximum of 80 per cent. They are also advised not to charge under a car cover or next to a building. Such limitations significantly hinder owners from charging the vehicles at home. The letter, signed by Porsche's product and technical compliance manager, states that the manufacturer 'very much regrets the circumstances'. Taycan models are among a string of high-end EVs that struggle to retain their value after rolling off the forecourt. Analysis by car website Parkers shows that a new Taycan S cost £186,300 in January last year, but some used models now can be bought for just £98,360. Across the board, separate research shows a typical EV now retains only 49 per cent of its value after 24 months, compared with 70 per cent for diesel and petrol cars, according to Cox Automotive. Porsche had previously said that EVs would account for 80 per cent of its new vehicle sales by the end of the decade, but watered down that target last summer. Lutz Meschke, the manufacturer's finance chief, said in November that the company would stick with petrol engines for 'much longer' than previously planned. The Telegraph approached Porsche for further comment. A DVSA spokesman said: 'Road safety is our absolute priority, and getting recalled vehicles fixed promptly has a huge benefit for all road users. 'There is an active safety recall on Porsche Taycans produced between 2019 and 2024 for which the manufacturer is in the final stages of developing a remedy. This involves concerns related to the vehicle's electrical propulsion system.' Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Free Malaysia Today
3 days ago
- Automotive
- Free Malaysia Today
Volkswagen flags ‘massive' US investments and says tariff talks constructive
German carmakers, including Volkswagen, were in talks with Washington over a possible import tariff deal. (EPA Images pic) BERLIN : Volkswagen wants to make more big investments in the US, CEO Oliver Blume said in an interview with a German newspaper today, adding that tariff talks with the US government were 'fair' and 'constructive'. Several foreign companies have announced US investments in response to President Donald Trump's import tariffs, but German carmakers have been more cautious about committing more resources to what is their biggest export market. Volkswagen's Audi brand, which has no production in the US, is planning to produce some models there, although the brand has said that the plan pre-dates the Trump administration. 'So far, we have had absolutely fair, constructive discussions,' Blume told Sueddeutsche Zeitung. 'I was in Washington myself and we have been in regular dialogue ever since,' he said. Blume, who also leads Porsche AG as CEO, said Volkswagen's main contact in Washington was US commerce secretary Howard Lutnick, adding he had agreed to keep any details of the discussions confidential. Sources told Reuters earlier this week that German carmakers including Volkswagen were in talks with Washington over a possible import tariff deal, seeking to use their US investments and exports as leverage to soften any blow. Trump's trade war has cost companies more than US$34 billion in lost sales and higher costs, according to a Reuters analysis of corporate disclosures, with companies pursuing various strategies to cope. Most of the tariffs were blocked by a US trade court this week, but a federal appeals court has temporarily reinstated them to consider the Trump administration's appeal against the trade court's ruling. The 25% tariff imposed on auto imports earlier this year has not been affected by the rulings. Uncertainty worse than tariffs In a recent survey by Germany's Machinery and Equipment Manufacturers Association (VDMA), nearly three quarters of participants said uncertainty over US trade policy had a strong impact on companies' competitiveness, while just 43% said the same for the 10% tariffs slapped on goods from most US trading partners. 'The uncertainty surrounding the US tariffs is causing more problems in our sector than the tariffs themselves,' Andrew Adair, VDMA's trade policy adviser for North America, told Reuters. 'Uncertainty causes customers to delay purchasing decisions—including American companies that are motivated to purchase machinery to ramp up their local production,' Adair said. Asked what Blume was offering in the talks, which aim to reduce the 25% autos levy, he said, 'The Volkswagen Group wants to invest further in the US. We have a growth strategy'. Blume said the Volkswagen Group already employed over 20,000 people directly and over 55,000 people indirectly in the US, and highlighted a US$5.8 billion investment in US company Rivian. 'We would build on this with further, massive investments,' Blume said. Such investments should be factored into any decisions regarding tariffs, added Blume, who said he hoped Brussels and Washington would reach a broad deal for all industries. Blume declined to say when a deal with Washington could be struck, when asked about BMW CEO Oliver Zipse's assessment that tariffs would likely fall from July. 'Of course, I also want it to happen quickly. But it depends on many factors and I can't promise anything,' he said.
Top Gear
5 days ago
- Automotive
- Top Gear
Porsche Macan Turbo
Events (or rather, an event) rather overtook whatever initial observations I had about the latest addition to the TG fleet, a Porsche Macan. Because, on the day this orange Turbo was turning up at Top Gear HQ in the UK, at Porsche HQ in Germany the company was holding its annual press conference. Now ordinarily, end-of-year financial results don't do much beyond revealing revenues and returns and sending me to sleep, but slowing sales in China, a slower-than-expected transition phase to electric, and supplier disruptions, have rocked the boat for most premium brands in Europe. Advertisement - Page continues below For Porsche, that meant two board members (in charge of sales and marketing, and finance and IT) were replaced earlier this year, while at the press conference it confirmed it was working on a new SUV with combustion and hybrid powertrains. Which might not seem newsworthy at all, but when's the last time since Dieselgate any manufacturer announced an all-new model that wasn't either totally electric, or able to be electric alongside conventional combustion? Thing is, when Porsche made the decision to make the second-generation Macan electric-only (aka a lifetime ago in R&D terms) everything pointed to mass EV uptake. But in the intervening years, the public hasn't embraced electric like governments and manufacturers had planned, hoped and increasingly prayed. Moreover, while the electric Taycan was a new model that sat alongside the Panamera, the second-generation Macan has replaced a top-selling petrol model (80k+ sales most years, usually neck-and-neck with the Cayenne) with one that's less accessible. Less accessible because it's £10k pricier, and less accessible because all those urban-dwelling owners without off-street parking are going to find getting energy into it more difficult than filling up with petrol. The solution is another SUV, which almost certainly will share its underneath bits with Audi's Q5 – just as the Mk1 Macan did. Why? Because Audi has just launched another generation of combustion Q5 (on a new platform Porsche will have access to) and a new, similar-sized electric Q6 e-tron (which shares a different, electric-only platform with the Mk2 Macan). Advertisement - Page continues below It's what Porsche, in retrospect, should have done – but hindsight is a wonderful thing and a Q5/Q6-type dual strategy would have been costly, so Porsche hedged on an electric future when that's what legislation and public sentiment seemed to be leaning toward. The problem is, reversing the decision will now cost even more. There'll be a drop in annual electric Macan sales, plus a combustion-Macan-sized gap in its sales portfolio until the end of the decade, and the R&D spend of hundreds of millions of pounds to fill said void. And then to top it all off, Porsche probably can't call the new SUV 'Macan' as well, purely to save face. Let's leave all that now though, because the here and now sees this Porsche Macan on the Top Gear fleet. And whatever turmoil exists around it, it's here on merit, as both the winner of our 'Best EV Sports SUV' category in the 2024 Top Gear EV Awards, and as our 'Performance SUV of the Year' in the 2024 Top Gear Awards. You don't get two such gongs without being properly good, so we're expecting to be impressed in the coming months…
The Herald
19-05-2025
- Automotive
- The Herald
Shareholders demand VW reforms its ‘highly problematic' governance
Volkswagen's shareholders renewed their criticism of the carmaker's corporate governance on Friday, demanding greater board independence and expressing growing concern over the dominance of the German company's controlling families. At the carmaker's virtual annual general meeting, several major investors took aim at CEO Oliver Blume's dual role as head of Volkswagen and Porsche AG, a contentious issue since Porsche's listing as a separate company in September 2022. "Mr Blume, again we make the urgent appeal: give up one of your board positions," said Ingo Speich of Deka Investment, stating conflicts of interest across the carmaker's governance structure were "highly problematic" and causing "grave damage to reputation and enormous financial losses.." Volkswagen's share price has dropped by nearly 25% in the past year from €140.40 (R2,842) to €105.6 (R2,138), underperforming the European autos index and Germany's DAX, according to LSEG data. The carmaker, which warned last month it would likely hit the bottom end of its annual profit margin forecast, is battling challenges in all its key markets, from steep tariffs in the US to fierce competition in China and high costs in Europe. 'Blatant deficiencies' The Porsche and Piech families effectively control Volkswagen through their holding firm Porsche SE, which holds most of the voting rights in the Wolfsburg-based carmaker. Wolfgang Porsche, who leads the supervisory boards of Porsche SE and sportscar maker Porsche AG, has previously dismissed the idea that poor governance is to blame for the carmaker's languishing share price, instead blaming weak performance and high costs. However, four investors argued that a lack of expertise on the board in key competencies such as electrification and digitalisation were holding back the carmaker. "The impression is becoming stronger that power, rather than the market, dominates at VW," said Hendrik Schmidt from asset manager DWS. Blume and supervisory board chair Hans Dieter Poetsch defended the CEO's dual role on Friday, saying it benefited cost-cutting efforts underway at the two companies. "It was clear from the beginning that [my dual role] was not intended to last forever," Blume said. "The dual role is a recipe for success." Investors are not so sure. "Instead of shrugging off shareholder criticism year after year, you should finally address and remedy the blatant governance deficiencies before VW slides even deeper into crisis," said Janne Werning of Union Investment.
