Porsche has added a fully electric variant to its largest SUV line, and the S Coupé tested here occupies the middle of the new Cayenne Electric range. Between the 300 kW base model and the 630 kW Turbo — 325 kW and 850 kW respectively with Launch Control — the S produces up to 400 kW in normal driving and 490 kW with Launch Control. Porsche claims 3.8 seconds for the standard 0–100 km/h sprint and a 250 km/h top speed, against 4.8 seconds and 230 km/h for the base car and 2.5 seconds and 260 km/h for the Turbo.
A platform pushed beyond the Macan
What matters technically is how far Porsche has taken the Premium Platform Electric (PPE) that also underpins the Macan. Two central components were redeveloped beyond the Macan's capabilities. The battery is now more deeply integrated into the vehicle structure, and the S, like the Turbo, uses an oil-direct-cooled rear-axle motor. The optional Porsche Active Ride adaptive suspension also appears here for the first time in an SUV.
Both axles carry permanently excited synchronous machines. The front motor derives largely from the Macan, while the rear unit is a dedicated oil-direct-cooled design reserved for the S and Turbo; the base model uses water cooling at the rear. Porsche obtains the Turbo's extra output not through a different motor but through a longer version of the same design, with the S taking the shorter one. The electrically non-conductive oil draws heat straight from the copper windings, whereas conventional water-jacket cooling must first move heat to the outer jacket. Porsche puts motor efficiency at up to 98 per cent and cites this more effective cooling as one reason the S achieves slightly more range than the base model despite its higher power.
On the road, the S accelerates smoothly and forcefully even without Launch Control, and repeated full-throttle bursts did not produce an early power cut-off. Acceleration is only part of the story, however: the standard S Coupé carries a kerb weight of 2,560 kilograms, which the suspension must control in corners, under braking and on poor surfaces.
Adaptive air suspension with electronic damper control is standard. The test car added Porsche Active Ride at €8,324, whose active dampers link to a motor-pump unit on each axle and generate targeted forces at each wheel without mechanical stabilisers. The effect depends on the mode: in Comfort the Cayenne absorbs rough unevenness and leans slightly into a curve rather than outward, while Sport and Sport Plus keep the body notably flat without becoming harsh. With precise steering and rear-axle steering, the S feels more agile than its size and weight suggest, although the mass cannot be fully disguised — pushed hard, it understeers out of a corner, and the 22-inch wheels pass short, sharp edges into the cabin. Rear-axle steering costs just under €1,700 and cuts the turning circle from 12.7 to 11.6 metres.
Energy recuperation is folded into the brake pedal, with the friction brake supplementing it almost imperceptibly. The ceramic brake system on the test car, with black callipers, costs €10,100, though it is not a prerequisite for everyday energy recovery.
Battery, chemistry and charging
The drivetrain draws on a battery with 113 kWh gross and roughly 108 kWh usable, arranged in six modules with 192 pouch cells — a change from the Macan's prismatic cells. The chemistry is new as well: a nickel-rich NMCA cathode of about 86 per cent nickel and an anode containing six per cent silicon raise energy density by around seven per cent over the previous NMC-811 chemistry. The pack holds eight kilowatt-hours more than the Taycan's and is about 103 litres more compact. The silicon also aids fast charging. Two cooling plates per module heat or cool the cells from above and below, and Porsche says the pressure fans used here need around 15 per cent less energy than conventional suction fans.
Full charging power is available only within the correct battery temperature window, and pre-conditioning is triggered automatically through the Charging Planner once a charging stop is set as a navigation destination; Porsche offers no manual trigger, so a spontaneous stop without route guidance cannot pre-heat the battery specifically.
Porsche shapes the charging curve to peak early. In the test at an EnBW HyperCharger, the session began at nine per cent state of charge, reached 333 kW at 12 per cent and around 360 kW from 13 per cent, and topped out at 386 kW at 44 per cent. The 390 kW on the data sheet was just missed, which the report attributes to the charger rather than the car: Porsche supplies 390 kW only above 520 amps, while the charger delivers a maximum of 500. For 400 kW, Porsche specifies an even narrower window — more than 850 volts, a battery temperature of 40 to 42 degrees and a state of charge of 45 to 48 per cent. After the first drop the car continues at around 290 kW, holds about 270 kW between roughly 60 and 71 per cent, and still draws 183 kW at 80 per cent. The 10 to 80 per cent charge took about 16 minutes, matching the configuration figure.
One downside surfaced during fast charging: the cooling fans are noticeably loud during and shortly after the session. A second run using Quiet Charging, a mode activated manually via the display once charging has begun, reduced fan speed and therefore cooling. The same 10 to 80 per cent charge still took 16 minutes and peaked at 385 kW, but the high plateau ended earlier, at 42 per cent, so 325 kW was available at 44 per cent against 386 kW in normal mode. The report stresses that this rests on single measurements and cannot be generalised; at outside temperatures around 20 degrees, Quiet Charging mainly reduces noise, with a clear performance penalty appearing only at high starting battery and ambient temperatures. Porsche's own example — a 10 to 80 per cent charge from a 35-degree battery in 45-degree ambient heat — extends the time by roughly a minute.
For longer stops, an optional 22 kW AC charger at €1,666 shortens the stated 0 to 100 per cent time from 11 to 5.8 hours, against 11 kW as standard. Since the September 2026 model-year change, inductive charging can be ordered as well: Porsche Wireless Charging delivers 11 kW at around 90 per cent efficiency for €5,117.
For the tested configuration Porsche quotes a combined WLTP range of 616 kilometres; the S Coupé spans up to 669 kilometres, while the S SUV reaches up to 653. Among the Coupé variants the base model manages up to 661 kilometres and the Turbo 637. On mixed city, country and motorway routes, consumption ranged from about 20 to 27 kWh/100 km depending on speed, with roughly 108 kWh usable translating to about 450 kilometres on a full charge in mixed driving.
Cabin, practicality and the options question
Inside, the curved Flow Display handles infotainment, supported by an optional passenger display and an augmented-reality head-up display, with a separate control strip for volume and climate. Some functions sit in submenus and the navigation map occasionally moves abruptly, though optional surface heating at €934 warms the armrests and door panels. The Coupé's flatter roofline slightly reduces practicality: luggage space is 534 to 1,347 litres plus 90 litres in the front compartment, with the Turbo at 500 litres and rear headroom a little tighter. All three variants tow up to three tonnes braked, rising to 3.5 tonnes with the €2,492 Off-Road Package.
The S Coupé starts at €130,300, and the test car's €69,440 of options brought it to €199,740; Active Ride, the ceramic brakes and the lightweight sport package alone accounted for €34,589. The report observes that a modest entry price paired with a long, expensive options list is the rule at Porsche rather than the exception, and that the active suspension and rear-axle steering cannot be transferred directly to a standard base S — although the large battery and high DC charging power are part of the basic technical package. In competition the S faces the BMW iX5, Mercedes EQS SUV and Audi SQ8 e-tron, with the Audi Q6 e-tron and Porsche's own Macan Electric a class below.