My new 2025 Taycan Sport Turismo Turbo with Active Ride -- first impressions & photos

[Boss Hogg]

Picked up my new Taycan this week, ST Turbo, stepping up from a 2021 CT 4S.

First impressions in no particular order:

• Fast, really, really fast
• Leather really good, not quite as soft as Olea but still very nice
• Turbonite accents on inside really nice, badge and key especially. On outside the window trim and door sill trims look/feel plasticky which is poor, only noticeable up close. Previous gloss black was more premium but I decided to stick with the new turbonite theme.
• Really wish I'd ticked surround view option as I had this on the 4S instead of trying to save a few quid. The basic reverse camera is absolutely awful, I can see why everyone on here hates it. As Perry noted, there is a very clear difference in quality between the reverse only camera and the surround view camera. It is like an old 1990s CRT TV vs a 4k OLED screen, it really is that bad. I also miss the front camera, I thought this was standard but it is not so I will be reverse parking a lot more.
• Sport sound is a lot quieter in and out unless you have push-to-pass activated
• Whine from the motors on light power or lift off is much, much less, almost none.
• Road noise from tyres is worse, I have 21" Turbo Aeros (the new ones) on the ST and had 20" on the CT. The tyre width is the same so it must be a combination of the tyre brand (ST is on the Hankooks, had Pirelli on the CT) and reduced rubber sidewall.
• Cabin feels great, everything a little tighter, but this could also be new car bias.
• Not had a chance to check the headlights yet but they look lovely.
• Had Bose sound system in both cars but it does not sounds as good in the ST, it may need to settle in for a few hours.
• Active Ride is fascinating, you feel/hear bumps and poor road a lot less but the biggest difference is that the chassis hardly moves so therefore your head/body hardly moves. It is obvious going from one car to the other. I think this will make long journeys much more relaxing and less tiring. Car feels super sharp on high speed corners, will take a little adjusting. So far I like the active lean, super plush, passengers will like it. Great for our poor roads here in the UK.
• Did I say it's fast, no real need for push-to-pass but it is fun. I think once I get used to the power (you always do) it will be nice to be able to dial in a decent slug of extra power to keep things interesting.
• Enjoyed the mechanical brake feel (PCCBs) for the first 65 miles before regen kicked in. It would be great if there was an option to disable regen when required.
• You can read type pressure deviation upto 35mph rather than having to be stopped!
• Various minor but effective tweaks/slickening of the UI, much faster to use
• Air quality graph included, not sure this was on the previous car or not
• New underbody protection panel looks like an old canoe! Not even painted so appears unfinished. Feels very brittle, hope Porsche know what they are doing. Suspect it will crack quite obviously on impact.
• Carbon leather wheel is nice, the drive mode select wheel is in metal trubonite and feels much better than the plastic version.
• Having to turn off ALK and the speed limit warning (EU cars only) every time is a PITA as others have noted

Options:

• 21" turbo areo wheels (for looks and range)
• Active Ride (I like new tech and value a blend of comfort and responsiveness doing 20k miles PA)
• Rear Steering (needed for active ride and I liked it on the CT)
• PCCBs (comfort, low cleaning and a little extra range, kind of cancels out the range active ride consumes)
• 4+1 seats (for practicality)
• Ioniser (for dog smells)
• Dashcam prep (because it's free)
• Sport sound (it is fun from time to time and helps alert pedestrians in low speed settings)
• Adaptive 18-way seats (super comfy and grip you tight)
• Porshce design clock (it looks nice)
• Thermal and noise insulation glass (I like it quiet for calls)
• Innodrive with active lane keep (great for heavy traffic)
• No glass roof (had glass on them CT but never really got to see it unless looking back, avoids risk of an expensive crack and I think the bump profile looks great with the low, squat ST style)

Range update to follow once I get a few of my regular commutes under my belt.

A few snaps:

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[KenR]

Picked up my new Taycan this week, ST Turbo, stepping up from a 2021 CT 4S.

First impressions in no particular order:

• Fast, really, really fast
• Leather really good, not quite as soft as Olea but still very nice
• Turbonite accents on inside really nice, badge and key especially. On outside the window trim and door sill trims look/feel plasticky which is poor, only noticeable up close. Previous gloss black was more premium but I decided to stick with the new turbonite theme.
• Really wish I'd ticked surround view option as I had this on the 4S instead of trying to save a few quid. The basic reverse camera is absolutely awful, I can see why everyone on here hates it. As Perry noted, there is a very clear difference in quality between the reverse only camera and the surround view camera. It is like an old 1990s CRT TV vs a 4k OLED screen, it really is that bad. I also miss the front camera, I thought this was standard but it is not so I will be reverse parking a lot more.
• Sport sound is a lot quieter in and out unless you have push-to-pass activated
• Whine from the motors on light power or lift off is much, much less, almost none.
• Road noise from tyres is worse, I have 21" Turbo Aeros (the new ones) on the ST and had 20" on the CT. The tyre width is the same so it must be a combination of the tyre brand (ST is on the Hankooks, had Pirelli on the CT) and reduced rubber sidewall.
• Cabin feels great, everything a little tighter, but this could also be new car bias.
• Not had a chance to check the headlights yet but they look lovely.
• Had Bose sound system in both cars but it does not sounds as good in the ST, it may need to settle in for a few hours.
• Active Ride is fascinating, you feel/hear bumps and poor road a lot less but the biggest difference is that the chassis hardly moves so therefore your head/body hardly moves. It is obvious going from one car to the other. I think this will make long journeys much more relaxing and less tiring. Car feels super sharp on high speed corners, will take a little adjusting. So far I like the active lean, super plush, passengers will like it. Great for our poor roads here in the UK.
• Did I say it's fast, no real need for push-to-pass but it is fun. I think once I get used to the power (you always do) it will be nice to be able to dial in a decent slug of extra power to keep things interesting.
• Enjoyed the mechanical brake feel (PCCBs) for the first 65 miles before regen kicked in. It would be great if there was an option to disable regen when required.
• You can read type pressure deviation upto 35mph rather than having to be stopped!
• Various minor but effective tweaks/slickening of the UI, much faster to use
• Air quality graph included, not sure this was on the previous car or not
• New underbody protection panel looks like an old canoe! Not even painted so appears unfinished. Feels very brittle, hope Porsche know what they are doing. Suspect it will crack quite obviously on impact.
• Carbon leather wheel is nice, the drive mode select wheel is in metal trubonite and feels much better than the plastic version.
• Having to turn off ALK and the speed limit warning (EU cars only) every time is a PITA as others have noted

Options:

• 21" turbo areo wheels (for looks and range)
• Active Ride (I like new tech and value a blend of comfort and responsiveness doing 20k miles PA)
• Rear Steering (needed for active ride and I liked it on the CT)
• PCCBs (comfort, low cleaning and a little extra range, kind of cancels out the range active ride consumes)
• 4+1 seats (for practicality)
• Ioniser (for dog smells)
• Dashcam prep (because it's free)
• Sport sound (it is fun from time to time and helps alert pedestrians in low speed settings)
• Adaptive 18-way seats (super comfy and grip you tight)
• Porshce design clock (it looks nice)
• Thermal and noise insulation glass (I like it quiet for calls)
• Innodrive with active lane keep (great for heavy traffic)
• No glass roof (had glass on them CT but never really got to see it unless looking back, avoids risk of an expensive crack and I think the bump profile looks great with the low, squat ST style)

Range update to follow once I get a few of my regular commutes under my belt.

A few snaps:

Looking good! I had a Cayenne loaner while my car was being ARB0’ed and I was annoyed by the always-on ALK and the speed warning and couldn’t see an obvious way to turn them off. I only had the car for a couple of days so didn’t look further. Of course I will read every word of the instruction manual when I get my new car… Or you could save me some reading and share how to do it ?

 

[Boss Hogg]

Looking good! I had a Cayenne loaner while my car was being ARB0’ed and I was annoyed by the always-on ALK and the speed warning and couldn’t see an obvious way to turn them off. I only had the car for a couple of days so didn’t look further. Of course I will read every word of the instruction manual when I get my new car… Or you could save me some reading and share how to do it ?

Long press of the small button on the bottom edge of the cruise control stalk deactivates it. Easy to miss the button!

 

[ithinkmac]

OMG, I never realized the long-press to turn off ALK. Gonna to try this. I hate it being active when I'm doing I turn off all assistance (at least I think I did). Thanks.

-ThinkMac-

 

[MissionE]

Picked up my new Taycan this week, ST Turbo, stepping up from a 2021 CT 4S.

First impressions in no particular order:

• Fast, really, really fast
• Leather really good, not quite as soft as Olea but still very nice
• Turbonite accents on inside really nice, badge and key especially. On outside the window trim and door sill trims look/feel plasticky which is poor, only noticeable up close. Previous gloss black was more premium but I decided to stick with the new turbonite theme.
• Really wish I'd ticked surround view option as I had this on the 4S instead of trying to save a few quid. The basic reverse camera is absolutely awful, I can see why everyone on here hates it. As Perry noted, there is a very clear difference in quality between the reverse only camera and the surround view camera. It is like an old 1990s CRT TV vs a 4k OLED screen, it really is that bad. I also miss the front camera, I thought this was standard but it is not so I will be reverse parking a lot more.
• Sport sound is a lot quieter in and out unless you have push-to-pass activated
• Whine from the motors on light power or lift off is much, much less, almost none.
• Road noise from tyres is worse, I have 21" Turbo Aeros (the new ones) on the ST and had 20" on the CT. The tyre width is the same so it must be a combination of the tyre brand (ST is on the Hankooks, had Pirelli on the CT) and reduced rubber sidewall.
• Cabin feels great, everything a little tighter, but this could also be new car bias.
• Not had a chance to check the headlights yet but they look lovely.
• Had Bose sound system in both cars but it does not sounds as good in the ST, it may need to settle in for a few hours.
• Active Ride is fascinating, you feel/hear bumps and poor road a lot less but the biggest difference is that the chassis hardly moves so therefore your head/body hardly moves. It is obvious going from one car to the other. I think this will make long journeys much more relaxing and less tiring. Car feels super sharp on high speed corners, will take a little adjusting. So far I like the active lean, super plush, passengers will like it. Great for our poor roads here in the UK.
• Did I say it's fast, no real need for push-to-pass but it is fun. I think once I get used to the power (you always do) it will be nice to be able to dial in a decent slug of extra power to keep things interesting.
• Enjoyed the mechanical brake feel (PCCBs) for the first 65 miles before regen kicked in. It would be great if there was an option to disable regen when required.
• You can read type pressure deviation upto 35mph rather than having to be stopped!
• Various minor but effective tweaks/slickening of the UI, much faster to use
• Air quality graph included, not sure this was on the previous car or not
• New underbody protection panel looks like an old canoe! Not even painted so appears unfinished. Feels very brittle, hope Porsche know what they are doing. Suspect it will crack quite obviously on impact.
• Carbon leather wheel is nice, the drive mode select wheel is in metal trubonite and feels much better than the plastic version.
• Having to turn off ALK and the speed limit warning (EU cars only) every time is a PITA as others have noted

Options:

• 21" turbo areo wheels (for looks and range)
• Active Ride (I like new tech and value a blend of comfort and responsiveness doing 20k miles PA)
• Rear Steering (needed for active ride and I liked it on the CT)
• PCCBs (comfort, low cleaning and a little extra range, kind of cancels out the range active ride consumes)
• 4+1 seats (for practicality)
• Ioniser (for dog smells)
• Dashcam prep (because it's free)
• Sport sound (it is fun from time to time and helps alert pedestrians in low speed settings)
• Adaptive 18-way seats (super comfy and grip you tight)
• Porshce design clock (it looks nice)
• Thermal and noise insulation glass (I like it quiet for calls)
• Innodrive with active lane keep (great for heavy traffic)
• No glass roof (had glass on them CT but never really got to see it unless looking back, avoids risk of an expensive crack and I think the bump profile looks great with the low, squat ST style)

Range update to follow once I get a few of my regular commutes under my belt.

A few snaps:

Don’t understand why things like ionizer are options. If it has anything to do with health or safety, it should be standard. Period.

 

[azraeil]

Hankook has NF0 tyres?

 

[Roppe]

Great car, congrats!!

Thanks for sharing, have a CT4S on order with active ride, so cool to hear that you like it.
Road noise is most definitely tyre brand based. Hankook will last you longer but are much harder than the Pirellis. The Pirellis however tend to wear really quickly, not sure this is your experience from the 4S too?

 

[Johan Meert]

My ST turbo with active ride is scheduled for delivery on nov 1.
Can't wait.

 

[Johan Meert]

Hankook has NF0 tyres?

Oh yes. They're mentioned in the Porsche configuration when you click on the tyre icon

 

[Johan Meert]

• Air quality graph included, not sure this was on the previous car or not

The graph is only there because your have the ionisator option. This option includes the ionisator AND an air quality sensor.

 

[chun]

Don’t understand why things like ionizer are options. If it has anything to do with health or safety, it should be standard. Period.

For same reason why airbags in the back are an option money. Porsche values money

 

[tigerbalm]

• Air quality graph included, not sure this was on the previous car or not

I have air ioniser option on a Gen 1 car and the air quality display is not available.

 

[chun]

I have air ioniser option on a Gen 1 car and the air quality display is not available.

Same

 

[tigerbalm]

Don’t understand why things like ionizer are options. If it has anything to do with health or safety, it should be standard. Period.

I'm on my third Porsche and have always ticked the ionizer option because I suffer from asthma and hay fever. But I've always been fairly confident that it makes very little actual real world difference.

I option it mostly out of FOMO. What if it does make a difference and I never realised until I don't have it!

 

[Jasper4S]

Great spec and review! Super weird that front camera is not standard on this car. I bought the 360 for my rims, but didn’t know it added front camera as well

Ionizer is a must at that price. Hay fever has been ok-ish this year for me, previous year were awful. So it really helps.

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