Getting very close to ordering a CT 4S…

[Bigben]

Hi guys

First post here after reading plenty of threads on the CT as I’m getting closer and closer to ordering a CT 4S. That’d be my first Porsche, first EV and first Estate body shape, so lots for me to get my head around at the moment.

Quick recap of the cars I’ve had (incl. main / commute / wife ones) since I settled in the UK about 8 years ago: BMW X5 E70 35d 10 year edition, Range Vogue L322 4.4 V8, Q7 4.2 TDI Exclusive, BMW 320d F30, BMW 730Ld F02, Merc A180 CDI, Mini Countryman S, Mini Countryman SD, Merc GL63 AMG and at the moment Vogue 4.4 SDV8 and T-ROC R.

After over 2.5yrs with the Range, I am looking for the next one. I miss the raw experience of the AMG, so the natural choice would be a GLS63 (X166, not latest). But with big tax efficiencies at play, I am drawn into the EV world. Only 2 options for me (car lover) and my family (3 kids) - Model X and CT. Model X is roomy enough and offers 7 seats with excellent perf, just doesn’t look great and I can‘t even order one at the moment, so not an option.

CT it is if I go EV then - looks amazing, drives beautifully and surprisingly big. It just isn’t as big as all the SUVs I’ve had recently and will mean roofbox whenever we’re on a long family trip (whenever that‘ll happen again…). I’ve test driven at my local dealership and have returned for a detailed spec session, ready to order now.

Spec below - comments welcome as I’m on the fence on a couple of items. I’ve gone light touch as I want to be reasonable on cost, having already gone over the “10% of base price” rule I tried to set myself… so putting first exterior styling and a few other bits

- Crayon paint (I was initially going for White - not only it’s free but I just think it suits the futuristic EV theme - but my wife isn’t keen)
- Standard interior - Slate grey (would love the crayon dual tone but it’s not worth £3k when standard benefits from the same wrapped panels as leather-free)
- Neodyme accents package (CC disagrees - I couldn’t see it in person but I like it in an otherwise relatively plain interior, any pics welcome)
- Off-road design pack in black
- Roof rails in black Aluminium
- Pan roof
- Electric folding mirrors (what a stupid thing to charge for seriously)
- Side window trims in black
- Model designation on doors in black
- Model designation painted in black high gloss
- Electric sport sound
- Sport chrono including compass
- 21 CT wheels (stock Colour - love satin black but vetoed from my wife)
- Windscreen top tint
- Privacy glass
- 4+1 seating
- Ambient lighting (recommended by SA but I’m unsure I want to pay for that given I don’t drive much at night)
- 8 way seat - can’t justify paying £1,200 for electric steering rack / memory (I’m the only driver) / lumbar…
- Heated wheel
- Electric charging cover (the one thing an EV driver will use a lot - and I’d hate fingerprints on the paint)
- 150kW on-board booster should Tesla open up their SC (but I don’t care much, SA almost forced it - I’d rather plan trips and use DC + free work chargers + home charging….)

And a couple of pics!

 

[Swissbob]

Hi guys

First post here after reading plenty of threads on the CT as I’m getting closer and closer to ordering a CT 4S. That’d be my first Porsche, first EV and first Estate body shape, so lots for me to get my head around at the moment.

Quick recap of the cars I’ve had (incl. main / commute / wife ones) since I settled in the UK about 8 years ago: BMW X5 E70 35d 10 year edition, Range Vogue L322 4.4 V8, Q7 4.2 TDI Exclusive, BMW 320d F30, BMW 730Ld F02, Merc A180 CDI, Mini Countryman S, Mini Countryman SD, Merc GL63 AMG and at the moment Vogue 4.4 SDV8 and T-ROC R.

After over 2.5yrs with the Range, I am looking for the next one. I miss the raw experience of the AMG, so the natural choice would be a GLS63 (X166, not latest). But with big tax efficiencies at play, I am drawn into the EV world. Only 2 options for me (car lover) and my family (3 kids) - Model X and CT. Model X is roomy enough and offers 7 seats with excellent perf, just doesn’t look great and I can‘t even order one at the moment, so not an option.

CT it is if I go EV then - looks amazing, drives beautifully and surprisingly big. It just isn’t as big as all the SUVs I’ve had recently and will mean roofbox whenever we’re on a long family trip (whenever that‘ll happen again…). I’ve test driven at my local dealership and have returned for a detailed spec session, ready to order now.

Spec below - comments welcome as I’m on the fence on a couple of items. I’ve gone light touch as I want to be reasonable on cost, having already gone over the “10% of base price” rule I tried to set myself… so putting first exterior styling and a few other bits

- Crayon paint (I was initially going for White - not only it’s free but I just think it suits the futuristic EV theme - but my wife isn’t keen)
- Standard interior - Slate grey (would love the crayon dual tone but it’s not worth £3k when standard benefits from the same wrapped panels as leather-free)
- Neodyme accents package (CC disagrees - I couldn’t see it in person but I like it in an otherwise relatively plain interior, any pics welcome)
- Off-road design pack in black
- Roof rails in black Aluminium
- Pan roof
- Electric folding mirrors (what a stupid thing to charge for seriously)
- Side window trims in black
- Model designation on doors in black
- Model designation painted in black high gloss
- Electric sport sound
- Sport chrono including compass
- 21 CT wheels (stock Colour - love satin black but vetoed from my wife)
- Windscreen top tint
- Privacy glass
- 4+1 seating
- Ambient lighting (recommended by SA but I’m unsure I want to pay for that given I don’t drive much at night)
- 8 way seat - can’t justify paying £1,200 for electric steering rack / memory (I’m the only driver) / lumbar…
- Heated wheel
- Electric charging cover (the one thing an EV driver will use a lot - and I’d hate fingerprints on the paint)
- 150kW on-board booster should Tesla open up their SC (but I don’t care much, SA almost forced it - I’d rather plan trips and use DC + free work chargers + home charging….)

And a couple of pics!

Good spec. Personally wouldn’t bother with the off road pack or sport chrono but if they float your boat go for it. Get the Bose if you listen to music.

I went from an X to a CT4. With kids, dog, bikes/skis I do miss the space for impromptu trips but the roof box works perfectly for a road trip. And even if I really liked the Tesla and it was quick, the CT4 is way more fun to drive

 

[Bigben]

Cheers - so on off-road I liked the added styling and the default “normal” ride height +10mm (lots of badly surfaced A-B roads around where I live)… but it’s very pricey for bits of plastic I agree. I was thinking maybe swapping front for SportDesign turbo look but if I lease it makes no sense… with a light paint I think it looks alright in person!

On chrono it’s only because I do believe I’ll switch driving modes frequently - I do in the T-Roc and probably will even more with an EV to manage range in-between fast driving moments… + I love the thicker GT wheel!

The X is a cool car, probably better at ferrying my family (middle rear seat isn’t great for a long trip in the CT), but you’re right when I tested it as I had the GL I found it very dull to drive despite proper straight line performance.

One thing which is making me go bananas googling pics is the paint choice - love crayon on the 992 / Macan, unsure on a large CT… lots of black bits should be OK to contrast though!

 

[Needsdecaf]

Man, how big are your kids? The rear seat on a CT is not exactly full-sized SUV spacious, and the center tunnel is quite large.

I don't want to steer you out of one, but I would make sure you sit in one before hand with the family.

 

[W1NGE]

Cheers - so on off-road I liked the added styling and the default “normal” ride height +10mm (lots of badly surfaced A-B roads around where I live)… but it’s very pricey for bits of plastic I agree. I was thinking maybe swapping front for SportDesign turbo look but if I lease it makes no sense… with a light paint I think it looks alright in person!

On chrono it’s only because I do believe I’ll switch driving modes frequently - I do in the T-Roc and probably will even more with an EV to manage range in-between fast driving moments… + I love the thicker GT wheel!

The X is a cool car, probably better at ferrying my family (middle rear seat isn’t great for a long trip in the CT), but you’re right when I tested it as I had the GL I found it very dull to drive despite proper straight line performance.

One thing which is making me go bananas googling pics is the paint choice - love crayon on the 992 / Macan, unsure on a large CT… lots of black bits should be OK to contrast though!

Wait a bit and see if the Sport Turismo body is extended beyond the GTS. Saves on plastic and I'm not sure you'll really notice 20mm additional ride height.

Skip Sport Sound - it is tedious and it will be off more often than on, add Power Steering Plus (RAS is also worth it), extended leather - rethink as well as the 14-way seats, Bose (must have), public charge cable (just in case), neodyme (personal choice but I would skip it).

Is resale a worry or not?

 

[Bigben]

Man, how big are your kids? The rear seat on a CT is not exactly full-sized SUV spacious, and the center tunnel is quite large.

I don't want to steer you out of one, but I would make sure you sit in one before hand with the family.

So I have a 14yo (she’d be in one of the full size rear seats), an 8yo (he’d be the one sitting in the middle maybe with a memory foam cushion for extra padding) and a 6yo who’d be on a booster on one side. I did take the 3 of them for my first test drive (about 30min following my SA on back roads in a 992 S) and it was manageable, just need some extra comfort for the middle seat really…

While I often have 2 with me, it’s only maybe once or twice on weekends that we’re 5 people. The main reason why I initially fell into full fat SUVs was the boot, as I had x2 pushchairs, cots and a lot of useless gear every time we stepped out of the house! Still have my BMW 500L roof box in the garage so that’ll come handy.

Also ride height as my wife likes sitting up high. When I took my wife to the spec appointment last week we went around the lot to look at paints / see a CT with off-road pack. It was parked next to a Cayenne. She went “ah I quite like it” - then the SA opened the CT next to it and she looked at me saying “are you joking? No way. It’s a toy for you not a family car.”
We were off to a brilliant start ?

Wait a bit and see if the Sport Turismo body is extended beyond the GTS. Saves on plastic and I'm not sure you'll really notice 20mm additional ride height.

Skip Sport Sound - it is tedious and it will be off more often than on, add Power Steering Plus (RAS is also worth it), extended leather - rethink as well as the 14-way seats, Bose (must have), public charge cable (just in case), neodyme (personal choice but I would skip it).

Is resale a worry or not?

The slightly “rugged” plastic look is actually important to us as my wife doesn’t like estates and prefers the off-roady look & feel… so CT probably better suited, even if I would have liked the slight GTS power increase. I tried to sell her the RS6 Avant for 10 years without success!

A neighbor had a Taycan Turbo sedan and was scraping the underbody all the time… sold it very quickly ??‍ So I need to be aware of ride height I guess

Sport sound made me smile a lot - I’m probably a bit young and stupid but definitely need that to steer me away from a 5.5 V8 AMG soundtrack! And not silly expensive.
I am unsure what power steering plus can bring, had the active steering on the X5 and I didn’t miss it on subsequent cars… can’t you enable it as a software add-on post delivery?

I will try and sit in 14 way vs 8 way before lock-in, but I consider the on-cost unjustified for now… again the X5 had loads of adjustments while the GL was basic and I didn’t miss it that much. If I went full leather it’d mean back to free paint and down from 21 CT wheels to 20 Turbo S to make up for the difference. Possible but I might give more importance to exterior look rather than added luxury inside for now!

SA said Q3 22’ so it does leave room for spec adjustment over the coming weeks I believe..!

And resale not a worry (my SA kept talking about how easier it’d be for him to sell as used car if I went for this or that, like I cared!). Leased in the first place, then if I buy it back the crayon / 21in wheels and few other bits should be fine not to sink the value too low…

And yes I like my music but Bose sounds expensive again… I had the proper 1000W B&O with pop out tweeters in the Q7 which was tremendous, then on to the basic Merc system in the GL. Not great at all but I realised that most of the times it’s on low vol due to kids or just off, and I have a 3 miles commute so limited use! I’d like to hear the base audio in the CT to make sure it’s alright though

 

[Needsdecaf]

So I have a 14yo (she’d be in one of the full size rear seats), an 8yo (he’d be the one sitting in the middle maybe with a memory foam cushion for extra padding) and a 6yo who’d be on a booster on one side. I did take the 3 of them for my first test drive (about 30min following my SA on back roads in a 992 S) and it was manageable, just need some extra comfort for the middle seat really…

While I often have 2 with me, it’s only maybe once or twice on weekends that we’re 5 people. The main reason why I initially fell into full fat SUVs was the boot, as I had x2 pushchairs, cots and a lot of useless gear every time we stepped out of the house! Still have my BMW 500L roof box in the garage so that’ll come handy.

Also ride height as my wife likes sitting up high. When I took my wife to the spec appointment last week we went around the lot to look at paints / see a CT with off-road pack. It was parked next to a Cayenne. She went “ah I quite like it” - then the SA opened the CT next to it and she looked at me saying “are you joking? No way. It’s a toy for you not a family car.”
We were off to a brilliant start ?

Yeah, my wife has a Cayenne now and I wouldn't try to sell her on a Taycan CT as a replacement. She has grown accustomed to the height, we regularly fill the boot with child detritus or shopping, and for multi-day road trips, it's just too cramped. Even the CT, with it's expanded boot and more rear headroom is just too tight to be truly comfortable in those situations.

keep in mind I now live where an F-150 crew cab is considered a "family vehicle", and it has more rear seat room than most limos from when I was growing up.

 

[Swissbob]

So I have a 14yo (she’d be in one of the full size rear seats), an 8yo (he’d be the one sitting in the middle maybe with a memory foam cushion for extra padding) and a 6yo who’d be on a booster on one side. I did take the 3 of them for my first test drive (about 30min following my SA on back roads in a 992 S) and it was manageable, just need some extra comfort for the middle seat really…

While I often have 2 with me, it’s only maybe once or twice on weekends that we’re 5 people. The main reason why I initially fell into full fat SUVs was the boot, as I had x2 pushchairs, cots and a lot of useless gear every time we stepped out of the house! Still have my BMW 500L roof box in the garage so that’ll come handy.

Also ride height as my wife likes sitting up high. When I took my wife to the spec appointment last week we went around the lot to look at paints / see a CT with off-road pack. It was parked next to a Cayenne. She went “ah I quite like it” - then the SA opened the CT next to it and she looked at me saying “are you joking? No way. It’s a toy for you not a family car.”
We were off to a brilliant start ?



The slightly “rugged” plastic look is actually important to us as my wife doesn’t like estates and prefers the off-roady look & feel… so CT probably better suited, even if I would have liked the slight GTS power increase. I tried to sell her the RS6 Avant for 10 years without success!

A neighbor had a Taycan Turbo sedan and was scraping the underbody all the time… sold it very quickly ??‍ So I need to be aware of ride height I guess

Sport sound made me smile a lot - I’m probably a bit young and stupid but definitely need that to steer me away from a 5.5 V8 AMG soundtrack! And not silly expensive.
I am unsure what power steering plus can bring, had the active steering on the X5 and I didn’t miss it on subsequent cars… can’t you enable it as a software add-on post delivery?

I will try and sit in 14 way vs 8 way before lock-in, but I consider the on-cost unjustified for now… again the X5 had loads of adjustments while the GL was basic and I didn’t miss it that much. If I went full leather it’d mean back to free paint and down from 21 CT wheels to 20 Turbo S to make up for the difference. Possible but I might give more importance to exterior look rather than added luxury inside for now!

SA said Q3 22’ so it does leave room for spec adjustment over the coming weeks I believe..!

And resale not a worry (my SA kept talking about how easier it’d be for him to sell as used car if I went for this or that, like I cared!). Leased in the first place, then if I buy it back the crayon / 21in wheels and few other bits should be fine not to sink the value too low…

And yes I like my music but Bose sounds expensive again… I had the proper 1000W B&O with pop out tweeters in the Q7 which was tremendous, then on to the basic Merc system in the GL. Not great at all but I realised that most of the times it’s on low vol due to kids or just off, and I have a 3 miles commute so limited use! I’d like to hear the base audio in the CT to make sure it’s alright though

you’re happy to pay for a silly sport switch and plastic panels but not for Bose system? Weird!

 

[Bigben]

Yeah, my wife has a Cayenne now and I wouldn't try to sell her on a Taycan CT as a replacement. She has grown accustomed to the height, we regularly fill the boot with child detritus or shopping, and for multi-day road trips, it's just too cramped. Even the CT, with it's expanded boot and more rear headroom is just too tight to be truly comfortable in those situations.

keep in mind I now live where an F-150 crew cab is considered a "family vehicle", and it has more rear seat room than most limos from when I was growing up.

And I come from Paris where cars are mostly tiny and dented ? I spent my childhood at the back of things like Peugeot 607s / E class etc. and loved it anyway so hopefully the CT can deliver happy memories! The thing with those massive SUVs (from a European POV) is that you get used to the cabin and practicality, whereas I don’t use the full extent of that 90% of the time… question being how will I cope with the remaining 10% ?

 

[Bigben]

you’re happy to pay for a silly sport switch and plastic panels but not for Bose system? Weird!

True, I think Bose is up next on my “extras waiting list” should I decide to push the enveloppe further tbh.
I had a bad system in my A5 cab as well as in the GL and it didn’t prevent me from enjoying the cars, although I did have pretty amazing listening sessions with the Q7’s B&O (and those pop out dash speakers…!) and the current Range’s Meridian.
My source is just Spotify at 320kbps via CarPlay so while it’d be overkill to go Burmester, I am considering the Bose (was great in my A4 can B7).

I’m thinking about un-ticking ambient lighting and maybe 150kW converter to dampen the incremental cost… sounds stupid or not?

 

[whitex]

you’re happy to pay for a silly sport switch and plastic panels but not for Bose system? Weird!

I respectfully disagree. The mechanical switch on the steering wheel is very functional, switches the suspension height and driving mode quickly without having to navigate a touch screen, which takes away from the attention on the road. My build includes both the Bose and Chrono package, but if I had to choose only one, I'd go for the Chrono package every time. I currently drive a Model S and one of the things which irks me almost every time is when I have to raise or want to lower the suspension and have to do it via a touch screen. I would so much more prefer to have a physical switch which I can use without taking my eyes off the road. Full disclosure, I drive with stereo off more than half the time - part of the fun of having an EV - silence is golden. I added extra noise insulation to my Model S to enjoy the silence.

 

[Jhenson29]

I respectfully disagree. The mechanical switch on the steering wheel is very functional, switches the suspension height and driving mode quickly without having to navigate a touch screen, which takes away from the attention on the road.

Sport chrono dial has more functionality for sure…but…it’s not all touch screen navigation fumbling for the non-sport chrono folks.

Suspension settings are on a dedicated button on the instrument cluster. And really, I don’t find a need to change it generally anyway. Just sport plus all of the time. And the car remembers this so I really never change it. The one and only time I changed it involved a casserole.

And the only height setting I change is using smart lift, which you would use the dedicated instrument cluster button for anyway.

And sport mode on/off is a dedicated button on the center console screen. There is no sport plus.

So, really just range mode in the touch screen navigation and I would never really use that anyway.

Full disclosure, I drive with stereo off more than half the time

Me too! At least lately. And more than half the time. I don’t know why. I kind of space out in my own thoughts instead of listening to music and podcasts. I drove 1000 miles to Corpus Christi the other week in total silence and then again back (well, it was in a Silverado 3500…so not total silence…). When I told the people there what I had done they’re response was “that’s some serial killer sh*t right there”. ????‍

 

[Bigben]

I think it depends on how varied will your driving be.
Personally, weekdays are likely to be in Individual, with quite high comfy ride setting / sport sound / whatever else in sport-ish mode.

Then if going to London or in general if on the motorway with the family, Range or Normal I guess. If alone on smaller windy roads probably Sport Plus… I just do believe I’ll switch at least 4-5 times in a week if not more during a holiday trip (e.g. usually driving back to Paris every now and then in normal times…) and with Neodyme package I like the compass dial matching the light gold theme. Might look old fashion but it’s the idea I have of what a Porsche dashboard looks like ??‍

Latest spec update - took off the Ambient lighting (I’d only set it to one colour anyway, likely white-blueish) and added crests on headrests + Bose and shared with my SA.
Will see if I do want to bring the price back down a notch in the new year or leave as is ?

 

[Swissbob]

I respectfully disagree. The mechanical switch on the steering wheel is very functional, switches the suspension height and driving mode quickly without having to navigate a touch screen, which takes away from the attention on the road. My build includes both the Bose and Chrono package, but if I had to choose only one, I'd go for the Chrono package every time. I currently drive a Model S and one of the things which irks me almost every time is when I have to raise or want to lower the suspension and have to do it via a touch screen. I would so much more prefer to have a physical switch which I can use without taking my eyes off the road. Full disclosure, I drive with stereo off more than half the time - part of the fun of having an EV - silence is golden. I added extra noise insulation to my Model S to enjoy the silence.

I never use the touchscreen for driving mode changes except when using gravel mode which I’ve done a handful of times in 6 months driving. Range mode is useless. Sport plus only changes a suspension setting in the CT4 which is not noticeable and is doable via the dedicated suspension button if you really want to. There’s also a smart lift button. There’s a dedicated button for sport mode which is the one I use regularly.

Honestly that switch plus daft clock/compass (really?!?!) is the biggest option con in the car IMHO.

 

[DrT]

I never use the touchscreen for driving mode changes except when using gravel mode which I’ve done a handful of times in 6 months driving. Range mode is useless. Sport plus only changes a suspension setting in the CT4 which is not noticeable and is doable via the dedicated suspension button if you really want to. There’s also a smart lift button. There’s a dedicated button for sport mode which is the one I use regularly.

Honestly that switch plus daft clock/compass (really?!?!) is the biggest option con in the car IMHO.

The sport plus changes the ride height to lowest setting, stiffens the suspension and alters the throttle response, and changes the traction management settings to allow more sporty driving. More fun on twisty roads, power is more than enough on the icy roads this time of the year in CT4. I find the change from normal mode quite noticeable.

Usually normal mode is enough,you can just lower the suspension for looks. I press gravel mode if there are some bumps or uneven road. Range mode uses only front motor and sets AC to eco mod, practical if you want to preserve battery on a longer stint.

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