[St00k]

Porsche's push towards electrifying half their fleet by 2025 will make another step forward in 2022 with the launch of hybrid and electric versions of the 718 Boxster and 718 Cayman.

“We have prototypes of the 718 running in electric now, and a hybrid prototype is being built,” said Porsche Cars CEO Oliver Blume. “If you look to the next generation of those cars it is possible, although it is not yet clear whether it would be plug-in hybrid or hybrid.”

Reportedly, the reason for the hybrid and fully-electric options are that Porsche just can't get enough range out of a car as compact as Boxster - and that will deliver solid performance.

Apparently Porsche things the range of the Boxster EV would be around 186 miles.

Before these models get to market, Porsche will already have launched the Taycan and Taycan Cross Turismo, as well as a fully-electric version of the next-generation Macan.

Reportedly, the hybrid versions of the two cars will be based on the technology developed for the electrifified version of the 911. Both a mild-hybrid and plug-in hybrid version is planned for all of Porsche's sports cars.

Porsche has been prepping for this moment since 2011 with the launch fo the Boxster E, which by today's standards has laughably low performance stats with just 121 hp and a range of 106 miles.

 

[worldgarages]

If EV's are less expensive to power than conventional vehicles, and you can afford this car, then how does this promotion influence buyers? I don't think there's a single Porsche owner who brags about saving money on their car, particularly an insignificant amount, relatively speaking. This is really odd.

 

[TEV31]

Can't wait for the Cayman electric.
How should we expect its performance to compare to the 992?
Often developments like this levels up vehicle quite a bit.

 

[James8955!]

Car Magazine shared a couple of cool renderings for what the electric Cayman/Boxster could look like. They also took a shot at predicting what some of the specs will be.

The replacements for the entry-level 718 Boxster and Cayman twins will be all-electric, underlining how serious Zuffenhausen is about jumping onboard the electric battlebus. Our intel suggests the following specs:

• Powertrain Twin electric motors, rear- or all-wheel drive
• Output System total 400bhp
• Chassis Aluminium monocoque
• Due on sale 2023

 

[St00k]

This COULD be amazing. I still feel like it's a long way off though. Porsche has higher volume cars to worry about.

 

[Smitty11]

This COULD be amazing. I still feel like it's a long way off though. Porsche has higher volume cars to worry about.

Yeah I think Porsche is going to take their time with Taycan production before branching out to other vehicles. But once they find everything is set with the Taycan,I think we'll see other EVs like the Boxster & Cayman.

 

[139]

Yeah I think Porsche is going to take their time with Taycan production before branching out to other vehicles. But once they find everything is set with the Taycan,I think we'll see other EVs like the Boxster & Cayman.

We already know the Cross Turismo will hit next year and the Taycan "Macan" after that

 

[TEV31]

I wonder if that rumored Pajun will ever happen. The name sure would be fitting for a Tesla Model 3 rivaling sedan.

 

[Axiom]

I wonder if that rumored Pajun will ever happen. The name sure would be fitting for a Tesla Model 3 rivaling sedan.

Being part of VW group, I doubt that's going to happen.
Audi can easily fill that void and do it better.

 

[Smitty11]

Being part of VW group, I doubt that's going to happen.
Audi can easily fill that void and do it better.

Agreed, Audi or VW will fill that spot for a Model 3 competitor.

 

[James8955!]

Car Magazine shared a couple of cool renderings for what the electric Cayman/Boxster could look like. They also took a shot at predicting what some of the specs will be.

Dual electric motors in a car the size of the Boxster/Cayman has the potential to deliver so much power it's scary. I can't wait to see what Porsche does.

 

[porscheholic]

On the flip side, the current Cayman will go out with some surprises that might have me go for it instead of this electric Cayman. At least for now.

 

[Smitty11]

Porsche is still weighing their options on whether or not to make an electric 718 Cayman and Boxster. Particularly because of heavy batteries.

From Car Magazine:

Heavy batteries are hindering plans to electrify Porsche's smallest sports cars - and the project has not yet been given the green light, the R&D chief has admitted.

Talking to CAR magazine during the virtual Geneva motor show, Dr Michael Steiner said: 'We are running several electrified Boxsters to gain expertise and knowledge to see how an electric car performs as a two-door. But there is no final decision yet.'

He said that the electric Taycan felt true to the brand, but that transferring that 'Porscheness' to sports cars was a tougher ask. 'The acoustic sound doesn’t really play that huge a role with a GT like the Taycan and adding weight is ok,' he added. 'But the additional weight for a sports car, we are not satisfied with today. This is one of the reasons why our next electric car will be a small SUV not a two-door sports car.'

Next year's new Macan crossover will be a full EV in some territories, while other markets will stick with internal combustion engines. It's a complex engineering cocktail, showing just how tricky it is for manufacturers to satisfy demand in all markets.

But surely battery tech will improve - and Porsche will eventually launch electric sports cars?

Steiner said that the sports car EV project was still active, but that it was still some way off. 'In principle if there was a breakthrough in battery technology, something like solid-state batteries - this direction would trigger a two-door sports car fully electrified. But I do not see in the first half of this decade a good chance of a breakthrough in battery technology. We will see step-by-step incremental benefit with lithium-ion batteries.

'We predict a 2-3% improvement year-by-year in lithium-ion battery improvement. I am still not happy with the weight, though. But that does not mean there won’t be a sports car.'

The secret electric 718 replacement plans
Porsche isn't hanging around with its electrification strategy and has been quietly looking to electrify its entire range, in time. While the world's attention is firmly upon the Taycan, Stuttgart's first full production electric vehicle (EV), its engineers are busily working on more affordable battery-powered models, even if they haven't yet been given the green light.

The replacements for the entry-level 718 Boxster and Cayman twins could be all-electric if the engineers can get the weight of the e-powertrain down, underlining how serious Zuffenhausen is about jumping onboard the electric battlebus. Our intel suggests the following specs:

• Powertrain Twin electric motors, rear- or all-wheel drive
• Output System total 400bhp
• Chassis Aluminium monocoque
• Due on sale 2023

The current, mostly four-cylinder 718 twins will have to soldier on until 2023 in their current, perhaps facelifted forms.

Porsche and Rimac: how future sports cars will be developed

Porsche’s investment in Rimac is a big deal for its future electrified cars.

While the start-up has had little to do with the Taycan, the first project to come from Stuttgart’s Croatian venture will be the electric Macan then further development with the small sports car project.

The plan is still in its early stages, but engineers only have a few months left to present something to Porsche’s execs. Chief executive officer Oliver Blume has told CAR that the brand has 12 months to either ‘go right or go left’ with regards to the future of the sub-911 sports car.

Will the 911 also go electric?

Porsche execs understand that the time may come for a fully-electric 911, but they don’t want to go messing with a 70-year old icon just yet. Instead, the 992.2 mid-life facelift will include a hybrid option like the Panamera and Cayenne; the platform has been engineered to take an electrified powertrain ahead of time.

But the job of pioneering a fully electric Porsche sports car will fall to the 718 successor.

Lutz Meschke, deputy chairman of Porsche AG, said: ‘In the sports car segment we have to think about the pure electric car. With the 911 it will be a bit difficult, but for the 718 I think it could be a very good step for the future, on a completely new platform we can then discuss to share with other brands.’