Porsche Macan Electric Review

The Porsche Macan Electric isn’t the first electric Porsche. You’re probably aware of that, though. After all, just think about the number of Taycans out there; Porsche’s sold over 100,000 worldwide since it was launched in 2019, which is why you see so many whooshing by silently on British roads. But the Porsche Macan is the first existing model in Porsche’s range to be electrified, which means it’s gotta be good. 

The original Macan arrived in 2014, but let’s be clear: other than arguably its looks, the electric model has nothing in common with the petrol-powered version. In fact, it’s quite different to the Taycan, as well. The Porsche Macan Electric uses a completely new platform called PPE, which stands for Premium Platform Electric. It was developed jointly with Audi, and it’s used in the current Audi Q6 e-tron as well. So that’s the car the Macan Electric is most closely related to, and it’s also one of its chief rivals. 

It has many other rivals as well. You’d have to include the current petrol Macan, bearing in mind Porsche’s left it on sale, and one reason to opt for that over the electric version is cost. It’s a lot cheaper to buy. The petrol Macan starts from around £55,000 and rises up to £75,000 for the top GTS model. Meanwhile, the Porsche Macan Electric range kicks off with the rear-wheel drive (RWD) Macan that’s £68,500. The top-of-the-range, all-wheel-drive (AWD) Turbo isn’t far off £100,000, and most, once people have added a few extras, will breach that ceiling easily. 

Even the basic RWD model has 360hp and can hit 0-62mph in 5.7 seconds. The stats for the top Turbo model are mindboggling: 648PS and 62mph from rest in 3.3 seconds. 

It’s not just quick in straight-line performance, mind. All Porsche Macan Electric come with a 100kWh battery that charges at up to 270kW, which is very fast, providing you find a charger capable of delivering that much energy and that conditions are optimal.  It means a 10-80% boost can be done in as little as 21 minutes. If you’re charging at home from a wall box it’ll take around 12 hours to go from flat to full. And that will give you plenty of range, too. The entry-level Macan is the most efficient and will officially deliver up to 399 miles on a single charge. The least efficient is the Turbo, but officially, even that’ll manage up to 367 miles without stopping. 

The Macan Electric is slightly longer and wider than the petrol model, so it’s a little roomier inside. That said, it’s not exactly limo-like in the rear, and other electric SUVs offer more luggage space, too. It does have a small boot under the bonnet, though, but even so, you’ll be able to cram a lot more luggage into a Tesla Model Y or Lotus Eletre. On the plus side, the interior quality is much higher than the Tesla’s. And it’s very typically a Porsche inside, so it’ll feel familiar to anyone who’s got a petrol Macan, a Taycan or even a modern 911.

All versions of the Porsche Macan Electric use the same 100kWh gross battery, so the real choice is between powertrain grades rather than battery sizes. For most buyers, the Macan 4 is the sweet spot. It has four-wheel drive, 408PS with overboost, 0-62mph in 5.2 seconds and a WLTP range of 359 to 378 miles. That makes it comfortably quick enough to feel like a proper Porsche, but without stepping too far into the expensive or excessively powerful end of the range.

The entry-level rear-drive Macan Electric is the range champion and the value play, with up to 398 miles of official range and enough pace to avoid feeling basic. But the Macan 4 gives you the wider dynamic bandwidth and all-weather traction most buyers in this class will want. At the other end, the 4S, GTS and Turbo versions are all hugely rapid, but they feel more like indulgences than the smart buys in the line-up.

The one option we would strongly recommend is adaptive air suspension. We have driven the Macan Electric with PASM and air suspension, and that is the setup that gives it the breadth of ability this car really deserves. Without it, the ride can be too firm.

The Porsche Macan Electric starts at £68,600 in the UK for the rear-drive Macan Electric. The Macan 4 starts at £71,200, the Macan 4S at £77,100, the Macan GTS at £89,000 and the Macan Turbo at £97,500.

That puts it firmly into premium territory, and the price walk-up is steep enough that it is easy to cross into six-figure territory once you start adding options. The mechanically related Audi Q6 e-tron undercuts it by a useful margin, and a Tesla Model Y is vastly cheaper still. But those cars are not trying to deliver the same mix of steering precision, brand cachet and Porsche-specific feel. The Macan Electric is expensive, but it is also clearly positioned as a premium driver’s EV rather than a value-led family SUV.

The closest alternative is the Audi Q6 e-tron, because it shares the same PPE platform but takes a calmer, less driver-focused approach. It’s cheaper, roomier in the back and easier to justify on value grounds, but it is not as sharp or as special to drive. The Tesla Model Y remains the obvious left-field rival if range, charging access and outright practicality matter more than cabin quality or handling finesse. The Lotus Eletre is faster and roomier again, but it is also much larger and more overt.

If you want a premium electric SUV that leans more towards style and comfort than driver appeal, the BMW iX and Mercedes EQE SUV are also worth a look. But the Porsche Macan Electric makes its strongest case against all of them by being the one that still feels most like a sports car maker built it.

The Porsche Macan Electric is slightly larger than the old petrol Macan, and that helps, but this is not the roomiest electric SUV in the class. Up front, the driving position is one of the car’s great strengths. You sit high enough to get the SUV viewpoint many buyers want, but you still feel cocooned in the cabin rather than perched on top of it. That gives the Macan Electric a more sporting feel than a lot of electric SUVs.

The trade-off is that the high dashboard and relatively slim rear window make the car feel larger than it really is, especially when you are threading it through narrower roads or car parks. Rear visibility is not brilliant, though standard front and rear parking sensors and a reversing camera do help. Rear passenger space is decent rather than generous. Adults will fit, but this is not one of those SUVs where the second row feels especially airy.

Boot space stands at 540 litres in most versions, which is healthy enough and actually a touch better than the Audi Q6 e-tron’s 526 litres. Fold the rear seats and the capacity rises to 1,348 litres. There’s also an 84-litre front boot or ‘frunk’ that is genuinely useful for charging cables. Even so, the Tesla Model Y is still the practicality benchmark here, and the Lotus Eletre is roomier too. The Porsche Macan Electric is practical enough, but space is not the main reason to buy one.

The Porsche Macan Electric measures 4,784mm long, 1,938mm wide and 1,622mm high. That makes it a little larger than the old petrol Macan and puts it right in the heart of the premium electric-SUV class. It is still compact enough to feel manageable, but large enough to offer useful family-car space and proper road presence.

The infotainment system is run from the 10.9-inch touch screen in the middle of the dashboard. The operating system is Android-based, wThe infotainment system is run from the 10.9-inch touch screen in the middle of the dashboard. The operating system is Android-based, which is good. It reacts promptly when you hit an icon, and it’s not laggy when you scroll and zoom on the map. In general, the menu layout is easy to get your head around, too, especially once you’ve had a bit of time to get used to it. 

You can add an optional 10.9-inch passenger screen as well. This allows the passenger to enter a navigation address or use third-party apps, like streaming services, to keep themselves entertained on a trip. In case you’re wondering, no, the driver cannot watch as well. The passenger screen appears blank unless you’re sitting directly in front of it. 

Standard kit includes a 15-watt wireless charging pad, which is cooled to stop your phone from overheating. You also get Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, so you can use your phone’s software rather than the car’s, should you prefer. And the Macan comes with a 10-speaker, 150-watt stereo. You can upgrade that to either a 14-speaker, 710-watt BOSE surround sound system, or an even pricier Burmester system with – wait for it – 21 speakers and 1,470 watts.

As standard, the Macan comes with a mix of ‘RaceTex’ fabric and artificial leather upholstery available in two different colours – black or a two-tone black/beige. There are five full leather options and four extended leather packages, which cover more parts of the interior in leather, including the lower part of the dashboard. The range-topping 'Club Leather' is only available in 'Truffle Brown'.

There are myriad options to personalise the interior, from contrast stitcing to a range of inlays including brushed aluminium and wood.

The current range starts with the rear-drive Macan Electric, which produces up to 360PS with overboost, reaches 0-62mph in 5.7 seconds and delivers the longest WLTP range in the line-up at 341 to 398 miles.

The Macan 4 moves to dual-motor four-wheel drive for up to 408PS. It cuts the 0-62mph time to 5.2 seconds while still offering 328 to 379 miles of range. For many buyers, this is the best all-rounder because it gives you more traction and more pace without sacrificing too much efficiency.

Above that, the Macan 4S delivers up to 516PS, 0-62mph in 4.1 seconds and 326 to 379 miles of range. The GTS goes further still with up to 598PS, a 3.3-second 0-62mph time and 330 to 363 miles of range. Then there’s the Turbo, which tops the line-up with up to 639PS, 0-62mph in 3.3 seconds and 328 to 366 miles. It’s brutally fast, but it’s also very expensive, and the gains over the rest of the range are harder to justify unless you specifically want the most extreme version.

The Porsche Macan Electric is a chip off the old block when it comes to handling. If you enjoy driving a car that’s responsive and agile, you’ll find the Macan hits the spot. It all starts with the steering because the weighting is just right. It gives you a good sense of connection to the front wheels the moment you begin to apply some lock, and builds weight progressively the more you turn. It’s super accurate, too, so you can place the car easily and intuitively. 

You can also add rear-wheel steering as an option. This makes the turning circle tighter in town and aids stability at faster speeds, although we wouldn’t class it as a ‘must-have’ option. There’s also loads of grip, and although the Macan leans a little more in bends compared with the lower-slung Taycan, it’s still one of the best-handling electric cars on the market. 

The Turbo comes as standard with an electronically limited-slip rear differential. It makes the Macan a little more playful. How so? Well, it helps the car turn into corners more keenly, and when you apply the power on the way out of bends you can feel the back end moving around more like a rear-wheel drive car. The Turbo definitely ramps up the fun factor. 

The models below the Turbo come with regular steel springs and passive dampers as standard. We haven’t tried that setup yet, but we have tried the optional system that Porsche calls PASM. It’s basically adaptive dampers, which allow you to adjust the stiffness of the dampers depending on the drive mode you select. 

However, even in the softest setting, the ride is quite firm and aggressive in town or on faster roads. That’s why we’d recommend the air suspension. It’s standard on the Turbo and optional on the other versions, but well worth the money because it transforms the ride. In the softest Normal setting, the ride is plush, smoothing away the worst surface scars. The sportier modes hunker things down by reducing body lean, but do so without making the ride too harsh. 

We should mention the brakes. Because electric cars need to recoup energy to replenish the battery under braking, they effectively have two braking systems: normal and regenerative braking. Combining these two systems can result in the brake pedal feeling binary and grabby, but Porsche has managed to integrate both systems well in the Porsche Macan Electric. The brakes aren’t just effective but also easy to modulate.  

The Porsche Macan received a five-star Euro NCAP rating in December 2024. Euro NCAP’s published results show 90% for adult occupant protection, 90% for child occupant protection, 83% for vulnerable road user protection and 78% for safety assist. That is a strong overall result and a reassuring one for a premium family EV.

In terms of electronic safety aids, adaptive cruise control with steering assistance is also optional, but regular cruise control is included. Other standard features include electronic stability control, ABS, lane assistance, speed limit warning, automatic emergency braking, driver attention monitoring, and blind spot detection. 

Because some of these mandated safety systems can be intrusive, Porsche allows you to deactivate them easily without searching through various on-screen menus. That’s a good thing. For example, you can switch off the lane assist with a button on the cruise control stalk, and there’s a button on the steering wheel that you can program to turn off the speed limit warning.

All current versions use Porsche’s 800-volt system and can charge at up to 270kW. Under ideal conditions, 10 to 80% takes as little as 21 minutes, which is genuinely quick and one of the Macan Electric’s biggest practical advantages. That gives it an edge over many premium rivals for long-distance use.

At home, a full charge from a 7kW wallbox takes roughly 12 hours, so overnight charging is realistic. Cost depends heavily on your tariff, but on an average tariff, a full home charge is around £20 to £25. Public rapid charging is far more expensive. At around 80p/kWh, a full recharge can approach £75.

The standard Porsche vehicle warranty is three years with unlimited mileage. The high-voltage battery is covered for eight years or 100,000 miles. Porsche also guarantees minimum residual battery capacity throughout the warranty period: 80% of original net capacity for up to three years or 38,000 miles, then at least 70% until the end of the battery warranty.

Current UK-spec data also points to 24-month or 20,000-mile service intervals, which is broadly in line with expectations for a premium EV.

The Porsche Macan Electric is at the upper end of the insurance groups. That’s because it’s a fast, expensive electric car, so don’t expect a cheap quote. The entry-level Macan is in insurance group 45, and the group creeps up as you climb the range and power outputs. It culminates in the Turbo sitting in insurance group 50 – the top band.

Like all EVs, the Porsche Macan Electric now pays standard annual VED. But the bigger issue is the expensive-car supplement, because every version sits well above the £50,000 threshold. That means you are looking at the standard annual EV VED rate plus an extra £440 annual from years two to six.