Porsche Macan

New all-electric Macan matches brutal power with surprising agility. Is this a new performance SUV benchmark?

- YOUSUF ASHRAF

FOUR-WHEEL DRIVE, 600BHP PORSCHES Fare usually called 911 Turbos, but the new, all-electric Macan Turbo packs this kind of heavyweight punch beneath its (slightly awkward looking) fastback body. Following the Taycan as Porsche's second EV, the electric Macan has the unenviable task of replicating the success and popularity of the combustion-engined original, which first launched a decade ago and has set the standard for mid-size performance SUVs ever since. Having driven both the £69,800 Macan 4 and £95,000 Turbo on the Route Napoleon in southern France, we wouldn't bet against it doing so.

Underpinning the new Macan is a brand new Premium Platform Electric architecture, which has been co-developed with Audi and will also underpin the forthcoming A6 e-tron saloon. As with the Taycan, the Macan's platform runs on an 800-volt system to benefit charging speeds (up to 270kW) and temperature management, and there's a 95kWh battery mounted in the floor to deliver a 381-mile WLTP range in the Macan 4 and 367 miles in the Turbo.

Activate Launch Control and the 4 delivers its maximum outputs of 402bhp and 479lb ft, good enough for a 0-62mph time of 5.2sec. The Turbo, meanwhile, gets a beefier rear motor for peaks of 630bhp and 833lb ft, slashing the 62mph sprint down to just 3.3sec - a full 1.2sec faster than the petrol-engined Macan GTS. Porsche is keen to stress that there's substance beyond these numbers, though, and that the Macan's PPE architecture has been designed to deliver the kind of feel and involvement you'd expect from one of its products.