Falling out with my Taycan already…

[TrisHarris]

Yes fingers crossed it improves a bit as it accumulates more miles.

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[TaycanHero]

So I took delivery of my Taycan 5 weeks ago and I’m already getting extremely frustrated with it and our charging infrastructure here in the UK.

The car is fantastic to drive and feels like a quality bit of engineering but the range is proving to be an issue. I went for the larger battery but I am only seeing 210 miles range at the moment which is well below the claimed range even minus the 20% allowance for the cold weather at the moment. I’ve also had a few error messages thrown up although they have generally cleared if I leave it for 30mins and come back to it - not that this should be required or acceptable for a car of this value.

The next issue is around our charging infrastructure here in the UK. I have a charge point at home (Hypervolt) which works brilliantly and delivers what it says but out in the wild charging has been an issue. Some of the issues so far with this:

1) chargers which are situated at the side of a parking bay - can be on the wrong side of the car to connect to the CCS port - why didn’t Porsche put this on both sides?!

2) broken chargers - getting somewhere and the charger is out of service meaning you have to waste time trying to find another nearby. Anxiety inducing when you’re somewhere you don’t know well and the range is low.

3) other EV drivers who leave their cars plugged in for hours with no consideration for others. It seems to be those silly Tesla MPV looking things normally.

Writing this as I’m extremely frustrated waiting to be recovered by the AA as my car has refused to charge at 4 different chargers at 3 different services and I’ve completely run out of charge…

Sorry for the moan / vent. Anyone else had issues like this or have I had an unlucky 5 weeks?

Sounds like you're an EV noob who needs to chill.

200+ miles in winter for a performance EV is excellent. The cold decimates range and the quoted 300 miles for the Taycan is a best case in optimal conditions, driving as economically as possible. Error messages: expect it. All EVs are new tech.

To your points about the charging infrastructure:

1. Practise reversing.

2. Use ABRP, and for BP use their online live map (not the app) for accurate charger status. Sign up for membership of Shell and InstaVolt, plus POD and you're well covered. Then plan your trips more carefully. It's not an ICE car. I've done long trips in EVs with a range of 170 miles (realistically 130) with no drama.

3. It's annoying but not much you can do. Tell the moron to not do it again when they return to their car or otherwise repeat point 2 and find a charger that's free.

That is annoying that AA have had to recover you and it may just be bad luck. But don't get frustrated if you're somewhat guilty of point 2 + need to plan your trips like an EV with these problems you've encountered factored in.

You can't drive trips similar to an ICE car where if you've only got 20 miles of range remaining there's always a working petrol station nearby.

 

[Jhenson29]

porsche claims 305 miles on their Website for a rwd taycan sport turismo.

@Archimedes

 

[BMonte13]

I’m very pro EV and live in the EV capital of the world Northern California which may have the best charging infrastructure in the world. That being said I do not think that anyone in 2022, whether in Northern Cal or the UK, should believe that public EV charging is anywhere close to the convenience, speed, or reliability of ICE refills. I own a RWD, commute about 40-50 miles total a day, get a real world range with a PB+ of 250-300 miles, and charge 95% of the time at home twice a week with the assist of solar panels. As in life, expectations make all the difference.

 

[Archimedes]

I haven’t come here to get argumentative. I know the vast majority will love everything about their Taycan I’m only sharing my experience.

it was an InstaVolt charger and the cable wouldn’t reach (not even close) - what else do you want me to say? Are you questioning my parking skills?

porsche claims 305 miles on their Website for a rwd taycan sport turismo.

No trying to be argumentative, just trying to understand why you’re having problems that others don’t have, and where you got your information. Here’s the range estimates from the Porsche website.

That last sentence is key.

 

[Archimedes]

@Archimedes

Please provide link where you found that.

 

[Jhenson29]

Please provide link where you found that.

https://www.porsche.com/uk/models/taycan/taycan-models/taycan-sport-turismo/

 

[Sand dancer]

Having lived abroad for a number of years in countries of varying degrees of what could be described as backwardness, I am always perplexed at peoples’ surprise at how crummy the basic UK infrastructure is.

We are a country of great ideals, beliefs and values but unfortunately decades of mis-management, poor investment and lack of foresight mean we are behind “comparable” countries and will likely never catch up.

So be it, live with it, and enjoy life.

 

[Archimedes]

https://www.porsche.com/uk/models/taycan/taycan-models/taycan-sport-turismo/

That’s WLTP and is calculated based on 100% of the battery kWh. It’s a max of 300 miles at the absolute upper end of the WLTP range and 243 at the low end. Knock 10 percent off for kWH that aren’t available, and that range becomes 220 to 270. Then adjust for specs and the cold. Anyone who buys a Taycan that really thinks they’re gonna get 300 miles of range simply didn’t do their research.

 

[Jhenson29]

That’s WLTP and is calculated based on…

Just showing you were it was claimed as you requested below.

Also, where do you see Porsche claiming 305 miles for any Taycan?

 

[Jono]

Sorry the majority of your issues are with external factors not the car itself? Why dont you simply just charge it at home in your own garage rather than roll the dice on public chargers? I wouldn't have ever bought mine if I had to mainly rely on public chargers in their current state.

Use the plugshare app and ask the owner of the Model Y blob to please move their car once its charged. I see many plugshare checks-in here where people leave a message on the app saying 'message me if you need the car moved'.

 

[minstril]

Sympathies to OP, the charging stuff sounds frustrating. I’ve gotten the impression from this and other threads that public charging in the UK is hilariously bad. I’ve been driving EVs for a decade, almost entirely in California where we are very spoiled by mild weather and large investment in EV charging. Still, I almost always charge at home.

Sounds like OP should just keep the car and move!

 

[Fish Fingers]

I think it's very dependant on where you are in the UK for public charging - stating the obv.

Around where I live, there are a large number of public fast chargers. I have a few all within 10 miles.
But if I drive less than 100 miles to North Wales, which I do every so often, fast public chargers are very few and far between.

I went last month, and had two potential charges earmarked. One was out of order and the other (Shell) had bollards up and hadn't yet opened.

I knew I had enough range to get home, so it wasn't an issue.
I very rarely charge away from home.

 

[Fish Fingers]

Sympathies to OP, the charging stuff sounds frustrating. I’ve gotten the impression from this and other threads that public charging in the UK is hilariously bad. I’ve been driving EVs for a decade, almost entirely in California where we are very spoiled by mild weather and large investment in EV charging. Still, I almost always charge at home.

Sounds like OP should just keep the car and move!

Sorry, off topic....

Is charging in Californua much better than in the rest of the US?

The forum is littered with complaints about poor charging at EA sites, so just interested if it's much different depending on location?

https://www.taycanforum.com/forum/threads/ea-electrify-america-sucks-that-is-all.13716/

 

[whan]

Sorry, off topic....

Is charging in Californua much better than in the rest of the US?

The forum is littered with complaints about poor charging at EA sites, so just interested if it's much different depending on location?

https://www.taycanforum.com/forum/threads/ea-electrify-america-sucks-that-is-all.13716/

It is from an availability point - the density of charging is far higher in CA than most of the US. That said there are still many bugs to work out, but that’s across all non Tesla charger networks in the US

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