Review of the 2025 Porsche Taycan 4S, Details That Blow Your Mind
2025 Porsche Taycan 4S: As a finalist, this electric vehicle’s outstanding performance is further enhanced by evolutionary upgrades and charging advancements.
Pros
- The ability to charge quickly
- Impressive handling
- Vicious acceleration
Cons
- The ability to charge quickly
- Impressive handling
- Vicious acceleration
While it’s unusual for automobile companies to fix every single problem, Porsche is an exception. The 2025 Porsche Taycan 4S is a giant leap forward in electric vehicle technology, thanks to improved motors, batteries, and charging. The German brand “fixed” things we didn’t even know were broken, turning this sport sedan into a more comprehensive (but still entertaining) technical marvel.
This is the J1-II Taycan version, according to Porsche, and it has a far better electrical architecture. Larger and lighter battery options, as well as lightning-fast charging, are the most noticeable changes. The most basic model now has 89.0 kWh of useable energy, while the most advanced one has 105.0 kWh of usable energy and is 97.0 kWh in size. Notably, the larger pack now has a peak charging capacity of 320 kW, which is higher than the 270 kW achieved by the J1-I model. This works out to charges that are lightning fast in practice. Our record-breaking time of 18 minutes to go from 5% to 80% charge and 15 minutes to add 168 miles of range is easily surpassed. That leaves more time to crush the miles or hit the track and less time to charge.
Also, you should go behind the wheel of this Porsche. A maximum of 536 horsepower and 512 lb-ft of torque are generated by two motors, allowing for a 3.2-second acceleration from 0 to 60 miles per hour. Excellent handling balance is achieved with a weight distribution of 50/50. Mike Floyd, director of editorial operations, described the device as a stealth electric torpedo. It’s a top-notch luxury electric sports car, plain and simple. It was excellent before, and now it’s on the verge of being fantastic. During finalist loop testing on a winding canyon road, our judges were pleasantly surprised to see that the 252 miles of range isn’t drained as fast as one would expect, even when driving vigorously.
Ideal for a potent sport sedan like this, the standard air suspension offers a pleasant yet firm ride. Actually, the Sport Chrono package and the optional Active Ride height adjustment system aren’t included on this 4S Taycan, which is unusual for Porsche in terms of performance modifications. But the Taycan’s agility is enhanced by the availability of rear steering, which makes an appearance. Despite this, the majority of the assessors couldn’t help but smile mischievously as they gushed over the Frozen Blue Metallic test car’s scorching performance.
Even now, it looks fantastic, and of the cars up for Car of the Year, it may be the most aesthetically pleasing. Nevertheless, judges aren’t quite satisfied with the Taycan’s performance in this category—advancement in design—that is a criterion for our award. Modernized headlamps and a massaged front fascia are the only noticeable outward alterations, which will likely go unnoticed by everyone but die-hard auto fans. Inside, things remain mostly unchanged. Visually, there hasn’t been much of a change, but it’s nice that Porsche now includes heated steering wheel and ambient lighting as standard equipment. While the Taycan’s cabin is roomy and practical for adults, using a touchscreen to adjust the air vents is a lot more finicky than using traditional knobs and toggles. Also, Apple CarPlay’s deeper integration may have been more impactful. The Porsche 911 is hidden away in its own app under the CarPlay interface, in contrast.
With features like blind-spot monitoring and standard lane change assistance, active safety technology has never been better. Still available as an add-on, adaptive cruise control and the other functions can be controlled via a stalk located on the left side of the steering wheel. While other manufacturers have relocated adaptive cruise control to the steering wheel, the 2025 Taycan’s out-of-sight controller remains one of its few truly annoying features. Regarding Porsche’s performance in these areas, guest judge Chris Theodore was critical. He advised people to “forget about steering assist” because it is difficult to activate and hardly works. It was the Taycan’s sole big shortcoming, and it was clear that Porsche didn’t put any effort into fixing it.
This Porsche is definitely not a worker’s vehicle, and the six-figure price tag is the first thing that needs to be addressed. The base price of a 2025 Taycan 4S is $120,495; the price of the demo vehicle you’re looking at now is $154,595. Yes, you could save a ton of money by removing items like the leather upholstery, 21-inch RS Spyder Design wheels, and Premium package. Even at that point, the price is high, and it’s not easy to locate direct electric vehicle rivals that provide the same level of complete (i.e., performance beyond acceleration) functionality. Although the value isn’t a problem because Porsche certainly knows how to execute an electric sports car, and you feel like the car is worth every penny, the Taycan is significantly more expensive now than it was when it was initially introduced, so the improvements weren’t cheap.
With few design modifications and badly implemented ADAS systems, it’s hard for a facelifted or midcycle updated vehicle to earn our Car of the Year title. The 2025 Taycan 4S, with its more advanced technology and fewer sacrifices, is still one of the most thrilling and emotionally engaging electric vehicles on the market.
| 2025 Porsche Taycan 4S | Specifications |
| Base Price/As Tested | $120,495/$154,595 |
| Power (SAE net) | 536 hp (comb) |
| Torque (SAE net) | 512 lb-ft (comb) |
| Accel, 0-60 mph | 3.2 sec |
| Quarter-mile | 11.4 sec @ 121.8 mph |
| Braking, 60-0 mph | 105 ft |
| Lateral Acceleration | 0.98 g (avg) |
| MT Figure Eight | 23.9 sec @ 0.85 g (avg) |
| EPA City/Hwy/Comb | 90/85/88 mpg-e |
| EPA RANGE, COMB | 252 miles |
| VEHICLE LAYOUT | Front- and rear-motor, AWD, 5-pass, 4-door sedan |
| MOTORS, TRANSMISSIONS | Permanent-magnet electric, 1-speed automatic (front), 2-speed automatic (rear) |
| CURB WEIGHT (F/R DIST) | 4,947 lb (50/50%) |
| WHEELBASE | 114.2 in |
| LENGTH x WIDTH x HEIGHT | 195.4 x 77.4 x 54.2 in |
| ON SALE | Now |
