porsche taycan turbo gt in purple on a race track

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The Porsche Taycan Turbo GT Revealed: Porsche’s Most Extreme Electric Car

Even by today’s wild standards, 1,092 hp is nothing to sneeze at.

Published March 11, 2024

Updated March 12, 2024

If there’s one carmaker that’s proven it can build electric vehicles that still possess the personality and traits it’s long been known for, it’s Porsche.

Granted, that might have seemed like a long shot a decade ago, but the arrival of the Taycan in 2019 — complete with 911-like performance and a design literally almost unchanged from the concept car stage — proved that, much as the first Cayenne had shown 15 years earlier, the crew from Zuffenhausen had exactly what it took to rise to the challenge of entering a whole new category and delivering a product that stays true to the spirit of Porsche.

Nevertheless, Porsche has still found plenty of competition in the speedy EV market. Tesla’s Performance and Ludicrous / Plaid models have captured hearts and minds across the globe, while other upstart carmakers like Lucid Motors are building electric sedans and SUVs that deliver heart-stopping performance on both street and track. On the established automaker side, Mercedes-AMG, Audi Sport and BMW’s M division are already dabbling in electric vehicles, with cutting-edge models expected from each in the next year or two.

Suffice it to say, Porsche can’t rest on its laurels if it wants to remain a leading force in the performance EV space. And with the new 2025 Porsche Taycan Turbo GT, it’s proven that it doesn’t intend to.

The new Taycan Turbo GT is made for the track, packing more than 1,000 horsepower

As expected, the newly christened Taycan Turbo GT follows in the footsteps of the Cayenne Turbo GT SUV by taking a four-door street-oriented car as far in the direction of on-track performance as Porsche is willing to go — or at least as far as it thinks customers are willing to go.

side view of the porsche taycan turbo gt parked on a race track with green hills behind

To that end, the new Taycan Turbo GT packs a maximum figure of a stunning 1,092 horsepower when its electric motors are wound up to full attack. Mind you, that’s for a maximum of two seconds — regular launch control power is “just” 1,019 horses, and full sustainable power is 777 horsepower. Still, two seconds is just about enough to sling this Taycan from 0 to 60 miles per hour; Porsche claims it can do that dash in 2.2 seconds, and the company’s acceleration figures are always conservative. We full expect it may crack the two-second barrier from naught to one-mile-a-minute, which is truly an insane thought.

Maximum torque, meanwhile, comes in at a Peterbuilt-like 988 pound-feet. Top speed lands at 180 miles per hour, which sounds low, until you’ve actually driven 180 miles per hour.

Speaking of full attack, there’s also a new “Attack Mode.” Press a button on the steering wheel, and it unlocks an extra 160 horsepower for a 10-second afterburner-like effect. (This presumably is on top of the 777-hp figure, not either of the four-digit outputs only accessible during brief stints of launching fury.)

Of course, Porsche didn’t neglect the new Taycan’s handling when it was doling out upgrades. The Turbo GT comes standard with Porsche’s active suspension system, tuned specifically for this model, and with special high-performance rubber wrapped around 21-inch wheels designed to provide extra airflow to the standard carbon ceramic brakes.

porsche taycan turbo gt in purple as seen from the rear three quarter angle while lapping a race track — The Taycan Turbo GT, seen setting a production electric car record at Laguna Seca.

For buyers who are actually planning on aiming to embarrass Vipers and ‘Vettes on track-day weekends, Porsche also offers a “Weissach Package” for the Taycan Turbo GT. The biggest news here is the fact that going Weissach strips away the second row of seating in favor of a carbon fiber-clad storage compartment for the front occupants. In addition, broader use of other carbon fiber parts and extra attention to removing extraneous features (for example, it only has a single manually-operated charge port, instead of the regular car’s dual ones with power covers) help shave 157 pounds versus the Taycan Turbo S.

That helps shave a tenth of a second off the car’s 0-60 mph time, bringing it down to 2.1 seconds. The 0-124 mph time, meanwhile, goes from 6.6 seconds for the regular Taycan Turbo GT to just 6.2, so opt for the Weissach pack if your self-esteem entirely depends on getting to that speed before a Honda Civic Si coupe can reach 60. (If it also helps, the Weissach pack is also the only way to get that menacing fixed rear wing; regular Turbo GTs use a smaller lip spoiler.)

rear of a purple porsche taycan turbo gt and a green gray porsche taycan turbo gt parked next to each other on a race track with green hills in the back ground — In this picture, the Sky Purple Metallic car in back has the Weissach Package, while the Shade Green car in front doesn’t.

It’s the Taycan Turbo GT with Weissach Package that Porsche has used to set not one but two lap records for production electric cars: one at California’s Weathertech Raceway Laguna Seca and another at the fabled Nurburgring Nordschleife in Germany. In the hands of the carmaker’s development driver, Lars Kern, the new Turbo GT lapped the Cali track in 1:27.87 and the Teutonic one in 7:07.55. That latter figure, as it so happens, not only makes the new Porsche quicker than anything from Tesla, it means the Taycan Turbo GT can lap the ‘Ring faster than the previous 911 GT3.

The new Porsche Taycan Turbo GT is, not surprisingly, not cheap

Not that we expected it to be, of course. The base price of $231,995 for both the regular Taycan Turbo S and the Weissach Package version is a hefty outlay, comparable to buying a 911 Turbo S or Aston Martin Vantage. (At least they don’t charge you extra to take out the rear seats.)

porsche taycan turbo gt front seats and dashboard — Not seen: rear seats. Not present: rear seats.

Still, with pricing for the regular Taycan Turbo S kicking off at $196,895, the new car isn’t asking that much more as a matter of percentage. And assuming Porsche has worked the same magic they did with the Cayenne, the Turbo GT should be even more engaging to drive, with a verve and engagement not usually found in two-and-a-half-ton four-door bolides. We can’t wait to find out in person when the car reaches the streets this summer…

Porsche Taycan

The Porsche Taycan is the brand’s first electric car, a four-door sedan that slots between the 911 and Panamera in size and performance. It also comes in five-door station wagon form, although most wagons are marketed as soft-road oriented “Cross Turismo” variants. A variety of power levels are on offer at various prices, ranging from the rear-wheel-drive base sedan to the all-wheel-drive, supercar-quick Turbo S. All variants offer excellent handling and great range, however.