Driving review - Taycan GTS versus RS e-tron GT

[Archimedes]

I find the discussion about Audi RS E-tRon understeer to be interesting. I cant imagine a road scenario where this could be tested. My 4S CT (albeit with the full performance package) cant easily be tested at that limit on the road. Candidly there is just too much grip. In a track test, these things can be fairly easily uncovered with a little skill but not on the road.

Personally, I haven’t driven the Audi but I have a hard time believing that it can easily be pushed into understeer without driving it at 10 out of 10….that’s a high bar in a road situation. By definition, the folks on this forum prefer Porsche but the Audi is no slouch.

A preference for the Taycan is understandable given the “Porsche tuning” but the rationale is a little head scratching.

You can feel a car under steering without pushing it at 10/10ths or to the limit of traction. It’s fairly easy to feel when a car is trying to understeer on turn in and is being fought with mechanical grip and/or geometry that changes with steering angle.

Sponsored

 

[RAHRCR]

You can feel a car under steering without pushing it at 10/10ths or to the limit of traction. It’s fairly easy to feel when a car is trying to understeer on turn in and is being fought with mechanical grip and/or geometry that changes with steering angle.

Low speed understeer. Interesting…

 

[kempez]

Low speed understeer. Interesting…

You have driven an Audi, I take it? Take a corner in a mildly spirited manner and you have buckets of understeer

 

[Raphie]

I feel I’m beyond ICE noise. Where I used to associate it with sheer power, I now think if it as unnecessary ricers, a lot of drama, less performance. let alone the fumes that come out of the exhaust. Really bad.
The Taycan sound is not trying to mimic a cat removed ricer exhaust, It’s aural feedback in a new way. Which either enhances your experience, or annoys the heck out of you and both are fine.

 

[or1]

You can feel a car under steering without pushing it at 10/10ths or to the limit of traction. It’s fairly easy to feel when a car is trying to understeer on turn in and is being fought with mechanical grip and/or geometry that changes with steering angle.

This is exactly what I feel driving "normally": the RS would rather go (more) straight ahead when I turn the wheel, the Taycan is ready and eager to turn immediately.

 

[Bao1303]

I find the discussion about Audi RS E-tRon understeer to be interesting. I cant imagine a road scenario where this could be tested. My 4S CT (albeit with the full performance package) cant easily be tested at that limit on the road. Candidly there is just too much grip. In a track test, these things can be fairly easily uncovered with a little skill but not on the road.

Personally, I haven’t driven the Audi but I have a hard time believing that it can easily be pushed into understeer without driving it at 10 out of 10….that’s a high bar in a road situation. By definition, the folks on this forum prefer Porsche but the Audi is no slouch.

A preference for the Taycan is understandable given the “Porsche tuning” but the rationale is a little head scratching.

Agree with your comment for summer, but come winter driving on snow and ice or gravel for that matter, balance and tuning of different cars is very noticable, and the limits are easily reached even when driving cautiously due to unexpected shifts in road and traction conditions. Tuning for slippery surface is not the same as for perfect tarmac and a fantastic asphalt racer doesnt necessarily behave too well on snow, but in principle oversteer, understeer weight balance, 2WD VS 4WD All very much relevant in winter time. The analogy with the RWD vs 4 pops to mind. Pretty sure my old subaru impreza 97 model with 90hp would run rings around the RWD on some of our roads unless driving on ice racing tires.

 

[Genyosai]

You can feel a car under steering without pushing it at 10/10ths or to the limit of traction. It’s fairly easy to feel when a car is trying to understeer on turn in and is being fought with mechanical grip and/or geometry that changes with steering angle.

This is true.

I own an e-tron GT and it does, in fact, want to understeer. When owning a sports car that has the characteristic, you learn how to compensate. Some manufacturers purposely tune the geometry for understeer because it tends to be safer vs oversteer. My Giulia QV and my 4C both had understeering characteristics, especially noticeable when I'd run them at Road Atlanta. That was until I increased the frontal cambers on each and added ~14⁰ total frontal toe-out.

My GT will see track days soon, but it's clearly visible that it needs more camber up front. The front wheels when just looking almost seem to have a positive camber, where the rear camber is obviously negative. This in itself will contribute to understeer (negative rear and positive frontal increases understeer).

See the attached pic of my car. You can see what I mean by the negative rear vs what seems to be slightly positive frontal camber.



Once I add some camber up front AND go to a square setup.... Bye bye understeer.

 

[RAHRCR]

You have driven an Audi, I take it? Take a corner in a mildly spirited manner and you have buckets of understeer

I have owned a couple. Had to push them to reveal their driving characteristics…..

 

[Valen]

Real electric noise can be very special.

I got a race oriented EV motorbike (same motor as 2022 E-GP) that i use daily. Under hard acceleration it makes a lot (for an EV) noise. As it's the same tech as formula E it's more or less the same noise.

I really like it on a sports bike but to be honest it's a bit too high pitched/aggressive to suits a Taycan.

So far i think the actual sport sound is nice. It doesn't try to mimick ICE sound and is distinctive enough to have it's own "beauty"

 

[kempez]

I have owned a couple. Had to push them to reveal their driving characteristics…..

Maybe we just have more corners and B roads in the UK, certainly where I live. But it really only needs a slightly quick drive on a British b-road to get an Audi to understeer, certainly their S variants. The RS ones have a slightly higher entry point, but slower, sharp corners easily push them to understeer imo just my experience.

 

[j.w.s]

I used to love the sound of a great engine at speed - Jaguar XKR, many Ferraris, etc.

But after owning a Taycan (my first EV) for one month, I am over it. I look forward to a time - not long from now - when a noisy car is an anachronism as much as the smell of a catalytic converter-free car is now.

 

[Mookow]

I traded in my RS e-tron GT a few weeks back for a Taycan GTS. The RS e-tron GT is faster in a straight line, it has more HP/torque. That said, the overall package on the Taycan is better. The car is more confident, it handles better, and the interior is nicer.

 

[ardevd]

Just an FYI, the reason neither car will remember your previous mode has to do with emission/consumption testing. The Taycan gets its WLPT/EPA ratings based on the default mode, and due to regulatory nonesense the car cannot therefore start in a non-default mode.

 

[or1]

Just an FYI, the reason neither car will remember your previous mode has to do with emission/consumption testing. The Taycan gets its WLPT/EPA ratings based on the default mode, and due to regulatory nonesense the car cannot therefore start in a non-default mode.

Truly nonsense. If I select another mode, I accept a different consumption. But regulations are regulations, alas.

A choice in Setup, where I confirm that I understand the consumption will be different, is also off the table then?

 

[or1]

I traded in my RS e-tron GT a few weeks back for a Taycan GTS. The RS e-tron GT is faster in a straight line, it has more HP/torque. That said, the overall package on the Taycan is better. The car is more confident, it handles better, and the interior is nicer.

Although I am not sure about torque. A GTS has the big motors as far as I know.

Sponsored