Porsche, for lack of a better term, is on a roll. They are one of the few companies that make EVs that are seeing consistent or increased sales as well as being diversified across at least three different segments of cars. They are pretty much the most dominant company in the performance sports car market, have their fingers in every pot from luxury executive saloons to entry-level sports cars, and have also produced some very historically significant models, even in the past decade.
It is because of this roll that 2024 will see the release of the most models, variants, and trims they have ever done in their entire history. They are expanding in every direction, even some that a few people don’t agree with, but to us here at Stuttcars, we are honestly excited to see where Porsche goes next!
The Recent Past (2010 to 2023)
The fact that 2024 is a super busy one isn’t to say that Porsche hasn’t been very active over the past decade. Consider that in just the last decade, we’ve seen the 918 Spyder hypercar, the 718 models of the Boxster and Cayman in both 981 and 982 Types, the Type 991 and 992 911, the introduction of the Macan… we could go on. The point being made here is that a new trim, variant, or vehicle has been introduced and/or produced almost every year since 2010.
The most significant of those, signaling the future to come, was the 918 Spyder. One of the Holy Trinity of Hypercars (the Ferrari LaFerrari and the McLaren P1 being the other two), it was a technical tour de force, marrying electric power with a screaming V8. While there have been hybrids in the Panamera and Cayenne lineups, stemming from the development work that went into the 918, it will be in 2024 when the next proper performance hybrid will be released.
The past decade also saw two of the most significant models in Porsche’s lineup introduced, the Macan and the Taycan.
The Macan was significant in that it was the first true crossover that Porsche had made. Smaller than a Cayenne but just a little bigger than a Panamera, it was designed primarily for what the European market calls the “D-segment,” which is filled with larger luxury cars such as BMW’s 7-series, Mercedes-Benz’s S-class, and smaller luxury CUVs, such as the Macan.
It was an immediate sales hit, and apart from a slight hiccup during the global pandemic when all vehicle sales dropped, it has consistently grown in sales year over year, finishing 2023 with 27,400 units sold in the US market alone, and 87,355 units globally, surpassing the 911 in total sales for the third year in a row.
The Taycan, on the other hand, was Stuttgart’s sledgehammer that shook the world. While it was expected to keep the Porsche spirit alive in the EV world, no one expected it to be quite as good as it was. After many companies tried to make EVs on par with the Big T (Tesla), the Taycan was the first legitimate threat to their Model S performance car dominance.
It has proved to be such a groundbreaking car that with the sales of EV’s globally stalling in 2024 as people look more towards hybrids, the Taycan’s sales are growing. They are so strong that in just four years, from 2019 to Q4 2023, Porsche sold a cumulative 136,000+ units of all trims of the EV.
2024: The Biggest Year Ever
All of that history brings us to this year. Porsche is releasing no less than four new models, and a new trim of a long established one.
Perhaps the most controversial new model in the grand scheme of things is the Type 992 911 hybrid. Much like with the 918, this is not going to be a fuel-saving hybrid, but, in Stuttgart’s own words, a “high performance hybrid drive.” Porsche has just recently announced that it will premiere the car on May 28, 2024. The 911 hybrid also did a stunning Nürburgring Nordschleife lap of 7:16.934, which is 8.7 seconds faster than a non-hybrid 911, and although they haven’t revealed which trim it is on, all the pictures look like a Carrera 4S or GTS with the sport exhaust package, sometimes with an aerokit (educated guess!).
It all lines up with what Chairman of the Executive Board Oliver Blume has recently stated: “Once again we are deploying technology in series-production models that we have derived from the world of motorsport,” and “we are committed to a combination of three types of powertrains: efficient ICEs, exciting plug-in hybrids, and innovative all-electric models.”
While information about the 911 hybrid is very scarce, we will find out more in just under a month’s time!
Speaking about GTS models, the mid-third-generation Cayenne GTS facelift will also be released in either the Summer or the Fall, and it will be a monster of a Super-SUV. While the current Cayenne Turbo E-Hybrid has the most power overall, the GTS will be the most powerful non-hybrid model with the 4.0L twin-turbo V8 from the non-facelift GTS having spent a year at Zuffenhausen. The result is an increase in power to 493 HP (from 454 HP) and 487 lbs-ft of torque (from 457 lbs-ft).
Going back to hybrids, the third-generation Panamera, announced in November 2023, now has all five of the announced trim levels available: The base Panamera at 348 HP, the 4 with AWD, the 4 E-Hybrid with a combined 463 HP, the 4S E-Hybrid with 536 HP, and the ridiculously powerful Turbo E-Hybrid with 670 HP and a 0 to 60 time of 3.0 seconds.
That last model, the Turbo E-Hybrid, gets that power from a 512 HP twin-turbo V8 and a 187 HP E-Hybrid motor, which both combined also give it 686 lbs-ft of torque. It will be the second most powerful Panamera ever produced, lagging only 20 HP behind the second generation Turbo E-Hybrid (facelift) model, but with 44 more lbs-ft of torque.
While all of that is enthralling for the common Porsche enthusiast, perhaps the most exciting and impressive 2024 release is the Taycan Turbo GT, which is damned near a hypercar. 777 nominal HP, an overboost function called “Attack Mode” that pumps that up to a hypercar level 1,019 HP, and it has 915 lbs-ft of torque from the moment your foot grazes the accelerator.
It is already a record setting car, being the fastest road-legal EV to ever lap the Nurburgring Nordschleife, as well as smashing the overall production car lap record at Laguna Seca. It is also the most expensive Taycan ever, at an eye-watering $213,995 price tag.
Keeping with the theme of EV’s, the second generation Macan is also due to be released any day now, with orders already piling up. The biggest thing with the new Macan is that it is Porsche’s second full EV, while production of the facelifted version of the first generation Macan, petrol powered, will continue into 2025 to make a smoother crossover to the EV model.
The Macan EV is no slouch either, with the base model having a 5.2 second 0 to 60 time and 382 HP nominal power rating. That can be overboosted, again with a button push, to 402, and the overall torque is at 479 lbs-ft. Much like the Taycan, the Macan Turbo EV turns the dial up to 11, with 576 HP nominal, 630 HP on overboost, and a meaty 833 lbs-ft of torque. It will clear 60 MPH in 3.3 seconds, faster than many of 911 models.
Lastly, the new 718 models are expected to be announced later on in the year, with possible sales starting in Q3 or Q4 for 2025 delivery. These will be the third full EV models from Porsche, as current Boxster and Cayman sales are expected to continue through 2025. This is, much like with the Macan, to ease the crossover to the EV model in case there are some customers that absolutely must have a petrol powered version before they are discontinued.
Why This Is So Important
2024 is the biggest year for model and trim releases for Porsche in its entire history, for sure. What makes it the most important is that this is the year when they place their bets on electrification, and they are not being shy about it. Many companies are dipping their toes into the deep end of the pool to get a feel for the EV market as well as the hybrid market, but Stuttgart is, in the metaphorical sense, doing a cannonball off the 10 meter platform while screaming their head off.
This boldness has worked well for them in the past. The early 1990s saw the reinvention of the 911 into a much more focused series-production model, and the result was the Type 964, which sold enough to prompt the release of what many to consider the best generation of 911’s, the Type 993. They also bet the entire company on one single model in the early 2000s, during their financial struggles. They not only released the Cayenne, which is now their best selling model of all, but they also created an entirely new market segment with it, the super-SUV.
As much as many would like to see Porsche spread out their model releases in case there are any stall-outs or lack of enthusiasm for the electrification of their models, sometimes being brash and bold is the only way to assert market dominance. In the grand scheme of things, it must be mentioned that Porsche is still a very small manufacturer when compared to others such as their parent company, VW, or the powerhouse manufacturers like Honda and Toyota out of Japan. Stuttgart is walking tall, walking loudly, and carrying a big stick, and for all intents and purposes, they have a damned good reason to.
We just hope that their big gamble this time pays off, as it could be the catalyst to reinvigorate interest in EV models around the world.
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