Porsche Macan GTS Electric Review: The £89,000 Silent Assassin Of The School Run

Porsche’s baby SUV has gone electric, but it doesn’t come cheap. Jeremy Taylor and Jessica Talbot-Ponsonby take the electric Macan GTS for a spin.

Green Lane: Porsche Macan GTS Electric

Jeremy: The Macan GTS Electric is an £89,000 silent assassin. It’s built to conquer the school run, demolish B-roads and now and then terrify the local wildlife, even if the battery pack means it weighs more than a terraced house.

If you’ve spent the last decade convinced that a proper Porsche needs to drink premium unleaded and sound like a thunderstorm trapped in a metal dustbin, the GTS Electric is here to gently re-educate you.

For years, a petrol-powered Macan GTS was the official uniform of the well-to-do British suburb. It was the perfect tool for tackling potholed high streets, squeezing into tiny spaces in a Waitrose car park and wowing fellow parents at the school gates.

This summer Porsche ripped out the delightful, raspy V6 and replaced it with a 95kWh battery pack and two electric motors, and the Macan has become even better.

The result is a car with huge reserves of overtaking power. Engage Launch Control and it will rocket from 0-62mph in 3.8 seconds, which is fast enough to make your passenger’s morning latte detach itself from the cup holder.

Country back roads are notoriously dreadful: a catastrophic mix of off-camber crests, sudden subsidence and unexpected tractors. Hustling a 2,395kg EV down a narrow Cotswolds lane would normally end in deep frustration.

Yet the wizardry inside the GTS is staggering. Porsche has lowered the air suspension by 10mm, fitted a clever electronic rear differential and retuned the anti-roll bars.

If you aren’t interested in the technical stuff, here’s what it adds up to: a family SUV that attacks roundabouts with a flat, unbothered composure that defies its weight. It takes corners with a subtle, rear-biased wiggle that feels playful and hides its bulk.

The interior is a lovely high-tech sanctuary, dominated by a huge 12.6-inch curved driver’s display and a central touchscreen. Specify the phenomenal 18-way adaptive sports seats and you’re held snugly in place.

The only minor grievance is the centre console. It’s finished in fingerprint-magnet gloss black plastic that shows every speck of dust and every crumb from a Daylesford sausage roll.

Porsche claims a 362-mile range. On a standard British October day, though, with the windscreen demister blasting, the heated steering wheel on max and plenty of creeping through traffic, expect something closer to 250 miles in the real world.

Fortunately, the Macan supports rapid 270kW DC charging and can go from 10 to 80 per cent in just 21 minutes. That’s wonderful news, assuming you can find a public charger that hasn’t been vandalised or blocked by a parked delivery van.

At 480 litres, the boot is perfectly adequate for a weekly shop. However, the Porsche is noticeably smaller than a BMW X3 or Mercedes GLC, so a family holiday to Cornwall will call for some highly disciplined packing.

Jessica: The Macan is a triumph of engineering over mass. It’s blindingly quick, remarkably sharp to drive and carries that all-important badge prestige.

It is undoubtedly the sweet spot of the new electric Macan line-up. Just be prepared to watch the £89,000 starting price sail into six figures once you start ticking the options list for nicer leather and paint.

Finally, well done to Porsche for using physical buttons for the climate control. You don’t have to dive three menus deep into a touchscreen just to defrost your windscreen. I also love the sports seats, which hug you tighter than an over-affectionate aunt at Christmas.

Discover more about the Porsche Macan GTS Electric at porsche.com

Dr Jessica Talbot-Ponsonby is Director of Programmes at London College of Fashion, with a PhD in sustainable e-textiles.