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PorscheGuyFrom AZ
Thiis is such an awesome and super helpful feedback. Thank you for taking the time to dive into my build and provide point by point inputs. I have spent countless hours building my Macan back when and then most recently Cayenne and then advising others on their builds on the Macan forum in particular, so I think I spent more time on the Taycan configurator given additional learning that needs to be taken into account and then driving Base and 4S provided by the dealer on multi day test drives in town and out of town, so I did consider all trims to match my target build to my needs and then balance it with the price, so I ended up with my 4S build that is roughly $105K base price plus $50K in options which makes no sense with GTS and Turbo builds within 10%-20% more. So please stay with me for another round of this if you may for my rationale for this build.
1. General Build Perspective: 4S vs. GTS vs. Turbo
Both of my current Porsche SUVs are Turbos, so I lean toward Turbo bits (lighter like window silver trim) and tuning (higher/softer) vs. GTS dark/in-black bits with lower/stiffer tuning. So, GTS while within price reach is out and the delivery date is minimum of 6 months away best case plus add any delays related to supply of Matrix lights (standard in Black on GTS) that totally bombed Premium Packages a week ago on 4S builds that had $7,400 Premium Package selected with them in it. I really prefer non-Matrix LED in Black that I absolutely love for the look on my Cayenne. So, then I said OK, let's see what a Turbo would be converted from 4S, and I ended up with $183K PNUTD554 and over $200K all in which is now +$40K more than the $160K all in 4S with main value of having Turbo bits and more power that is at an impractical spectrum for my needs, so the value is not there for me for the $40K. However, I asked the dealer to time me one of these and they say 1 year plus wait now for a Turbo, but 4S slot is available now for March build and later April delivery. Therefore, my 4S build to me is a Turbo like with all the cosmetic (
Race-Tex Liner spend that both SUVs have and Fabric liner on my loaners was just a non-starter) and performance bits without really being one and can arrive in time to enjoy most of 2022 later Spring/Summer.
2. Wheel, Tire, and Brakes
Wheels: I appreciate all the points on these items, and I could not agree more with your rationale that I did consider when making these choices. This is why I ended up where I did. I drove Base and 4S models with 20-inch wheels and looked at other wheels at the dealership and just did not like the look to my perspective of what I want it to look for myself, so the only style that I liked is the RS Spyder for symmetry and pop which matches the styles of Turbo wheels on the SUVs that we have having that 2 tone contrast look and symmetry with good exposure of rotors and calipers. I would totally get a 20-inch if there were more choices with the look that I would like.
Tires: So now since I have settled on the 21-inch and want to drive all year around with winter around here 3-5 months a year but super mild this year with Nov/Dec at way above 45F surface temps for Summer tires. Therefore, I am trying to understand if going Summer tires from factory (current choice) is softer/quieter than All-Seasons from factory. I do have the Cayenne with full winter wheel/tire set for winter (and factory 21 inch with Summers from factory) so not concerned driving in very cold and deep snow situations but want to maximize enjoying the Taycan every other time. My Taycan test drives were almost too quiet on 20-inch wheels which I liked a lot and on one I could turn the Sport Sound on for the noise which was a lot of fun.
Brakes: 4S comes with Steel brakes and Red Calipers standard and this is a bonus look and more than enough for performance to your point as I like regenerative feature when I was testing out the Taycans totally realizing that brakes are barely used. I do have similar Steel/Red caliper brakes on the Macan Turbo and of course you use them a lot, but they generate a lot of brake dust and after having them replaced at 60K miles we had lots of squealing issues and the dealer had to redo them several times (no such issues with factory set). However, there is no winning with brakes with Porsche as I have PSCB brakes on the Cayenne and currently under TSB and back order of revised rotors and components for squealing started at 10K miles, but the tech said they see these issues starting at 100 miles. My rationale is that while Red calipers look good on our White Macan, they do not look good to me on the Ice Grey Taycan so I can go color them Black for $900 which is not a value if I still get the brake dust while not much or any. So, for +$3.5K in PSCB I would be getting White Caliper, which is my color of choice on my build, mirror like rotors, and no brake dust which is material to me as my time cleaning wheels is almost zero after I ceramic coated Cayenne wheels with PSCBs. Therefore, there is a lot of value for the $3.5K here for me given all the benefits and first-hand experience with these. However, the squealing of the PSCBs may never be resolved and most likely be under class action so the dealer told me that I cannot lose with this choice as I will be getting new components or brakes as a bonus either way. I am currently squealing like crazy and waiting on the revised rotors/components to fix the Cayenne at no cost.
3. Battery
I was leaning toward the standard PB the whole time thinking I do not need the extra power and range for my needs and rather save the weight and cost, but I never considered the perspective of degradation that you are bringing up so making PB+ battery is
the absolute must as I plan to keep it long time with this level of investment so thank you for that deep perspective that any current ICE (gas) car owner would not think about. I will be adding this as another learning feather to my EV cap.
4. InnoDrive
This must go for the reasons that you mentioned, and when I used ACC on my test drives, as it was already too naggy with driver attention prompts when not having your hands on the wheel and videos I watched are even more annoying when someone was using it. Your point on having not enough data and how it handles it is a definite to skip it. I have not owned a car with ACC yet, but I do need it on this one for the features ACC offers. Also, I was not planning to have the Tech Package as I only need ACC, but on its own ACC is $2K or so and Tech Package is $4,300 and has 3 more features that I do plan to use at least sometimes so I could not forgo getting all of them for just $2,300 more. This is a typical Porsche package trap that got me for sure. I can see my son using Passenger display on daily school rides, then Parking feature I can see using, and the Head-up that by all counts very redundant to the amazing main screen but I can see using it at night, and it would be a major bonus if it does project Night Vision since we have so many animals crossing where I live. One question I do have about ACC is that
does it use Coasting with InnoDrive claiming to do so. I am not familiar how Coasting works on the Taycan in combination with Regenerative braking, but I do use it extensively on the SUVs which is basically having transmission disconnect from engine and having car glide freely using its own momentum resulting in material increase in MPG. Therefore, I assume Taycan coasting will preserve some energy or regen it when gliding.
5. Home Charging
I can totally do what you did with just the basic charger that comes with a car, but I am leaning toward EA charger since I can benefit from incentives on its purchase/install and then using the same EA app for charging needs on the road and then I hope it looks a little better when installed. Then my plan is to take the one that comes with the car with me on long drives for emergency without having it out of the bag so to speak and hopefully never having to use it.
6. Massage Seats
I have 18-ways in the SUVs, and they are perfect for them. However, 14-way is my choice for the Taycan given slimmer look since interior is pretty narrow and more symmetrical. One benefit of 14-way is the Massage function for + $1K or so, therefore, since I am saving about $430 by not getting the 18-way then I had to take advantage of this feature but not without researching its value. Two owners that optioned these absolutely raved about this feature so that is a go for me since 14-ways are little stiff and massage function would be welcome on long drives that I am considering for both front passengers. I am sure my son would love it on his daily school drop off/pickup as we spend 2 hours a day for school rides alone.
I think I covered all points on how I ended up with my build, but
I am looking for further inputs and critique if you could take the time as I am close on deciding to put the order with March build and April delivery a very major deciding factor if true and not expecting much out of the 2023 model year that most likely to be just a rollover year with a special Base addition or so as they typically offer. One main bonus for me with 2022 is Android Auto since I am a Google Pixel phone user and do not get the draw of the iPhone after trying it for a little while and missing a lot of Pixel features. iPhones do not have speedometer feature on Google maps as an example.
I cannot thank you enough for your super helpful insights and taking the time to look into my build.
Happy New Year!
Sergey
