HigherLevel
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- May 18, 2020
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- Location
- USA
- Vehicles
- Tesla M3P, Porsche Macan S, 2021 Taycan Turbo S (Jan 21)
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- #1
I got to spend a weekend with the Taycan Turbo demo car from the local dealership while I wait for my build. My daily driver is a Tesla Model 3 Performance, and my other occasional driver is the Macan S. Before these cars, various BMWs, Audis, and the like.
I have to say, the Taycan is an amazing drivers car. If you like driving, this is the one for you. Tons of reviews out there confirm this, so I won't go into detail on all of that. What I did want to highlight is just how close the Model 3 P is to the overall experience, and how many things it actually does better, for 1/3 the price. I know tons of comparisons have been made with the Model S, but to me that's last-gen tech that Tesla hasn't put much effort into in years. The model 3 is current. I thought this might be helpful information for those who are just researching and assuming the Taycan is superior in all regards, because it's not.
What the Model 3 P does better:
Launch control: It's cool on the Taycan, but having 100% of the power available with nothing needed to "activate it" is better. I can stomp the 3P and it goes without any hesitation.
2nd Gear: I heavily dislike the use of 2nd gear in anything under 60 mph. Driving around town, I actually felt a "thunk" as though I was back in an ICE car downshifting to go. It's not a constant thing, but it's noticeable. If we need 2nd gear to achieve better high-speed fuel economy and power band, keep it for those things. In all other situations, it sucks compared to how the 3P feels at low speed. I never want to start in 2nd gear on an EV, ever.
Interior dims make the 3P feel bigger, especially more trunk space, yet the overall exterior dims are smaller. I'm trying to figure out how this happens that a larger car actually has less interior storage space, but there it is.
Infotainment: The tech looks fancy, but functions like grandma's ipad that she hasn't updated in a decade. Control response is slow, dials on the steering wheel for volume sometimes lag terribly, and overall intuitiveness is way behind Tesla. Navigation in particular just needs to take a page from Tesla and Google and copy them. Just make it the same, it's better and there's no point trying to do your own thing. Everyone just excuses this with, "well I just use Apple carplay." Cool, I have Android. And I never use it on the Tesla because the Tesla works as well as my phone. There's no excuse that a $160,000 car has infotainment function worse than a $300 ipad.
The haptic feedback buttons are cool, but why did I feel like I had to double-tap them every time, or hold the button down, to get them to do anything? The Tesla has no haptic feedback, but a generous target touch area that just works every time you press it.
Interior: Yes, the Taycan feels much more premium, but the racetex is not it. If you get racetex, the microfiber steering wheel actually feels cheap and looks cheap. I'd even argue it's slippery. I much prefer Tesla's interior to the racetex, but this is just an opinion compared to other areas where the 3P is more objectively better.
Additional functionality: Dog mode, Sentry mode, etc...all things that were added after I bought the car, and all very useful. I basically have a built-in fancy security system, and I can bring my dog places and leave him in the car as needed.
Single-pedal driving: This is a superior way to drive, and the Taycan should make it an option.
What the Taycan does better:
The electric sport sound: Just an opinion, but I think it's incredibly cool. I love engine noise though, so missing that on the Tesla, this brings back that feeling of power.
Ride: The air suspension on the Taycan is lightyears better than what comes with the 3P. The huge difference from one setting to the next is really cool and much more dramatic than any other air suspension I've used.
Handling: There is no comparison here. Taycan is it.
Looks: I might not even be here if the 3P looked cooler. The fact that it looks like your basic grocery-getter is what pushed me to seek other options. The Taycan looks like a sports car, yet has the functionality of a 4-door.
Stability at speed: With the 3P, you know when you're doing 90 mph. With the Taycan, it feels like you're still holding it back. It wants to do 100+mph while you're still sipping your morning coffee, and seems like you need to be doing 120+ before you even need to pay attention. It's tied up with the ride/suspension, but you have ultimate confidence at speed with this car, way beyond the "go kart on steroids" feeling with the 3P.
Buttons. It has dedicated buttons for climate control and other things that shouldn't have to be accessed via a menu like the Tesla requires from you.
Old arguments that don't matter:
Repeatability of launches. The 3P can repeatedly launch just like the Taycan. It has better cooling than the S and doesn't have those problems.
Charging speed: They charge around the same speed or close enough it doesn't matter. Network might matter to some who do road trips. It doesn't matter for me though because they have chargers everywhere in the state I drive in.
Service. Either one will come to your house to handle a fix. I've had 1 issue in 1 year of ownership with the Tesla and never had to take it in. Service just doesn't matter as much with EVs.
Build Quality: My Model 3 had no noticeable issues. It's had 1 minor item that needed fixed. The demo Taycan with 2k miles on it had two issues that the dealership hadn't fixed in the 3 weeks between initial test drive and weekend loan. Part of this is unfair because the 3P was a year or two into production, and the Taycan is still on its initial run. But still, the reputation of early model or first run production Tesla's seems to be something people just assume affects the entire brand, but it doesn't.
Tesla is an "appliance" for people who don't like driving. This is the dumbest argument I hear, because it completely discounts all of the glowing reviews from auto mags for the 3P. I like driving and bought the Model 3 without any of the "self-driving" options.
Overall
I'm still really happy with the decision to purchase the Taycan, but can't help but feel it's not an upgrade in some small but annoying areas. Hopefully Porsche puts some priority on software development the same way Tesla has, and can shake free of the (seemingly long-running) stigma of great cars with sub-par tech.
I have to say, the Taycan is an amazing drivers car. If you like driving, this is the one for you. Tons of reviews out there confirm this, so I won't go into detail on all of that. What I did want to highlight is just how close the Model 3 P is to the overall experience, and how many things it actually does better, for 1/3 the price. I know tons of comparisons have been made with the Model S, but to me that's last-gen tech that Tesla hasn't put much effort into in years. The model 3 is current. I thought this might be helpful information for those who are just researching and assuming the Taycan is superior in all regards, because it's not.
What the Model 3 P does better:
Launch control: It's cool on the Taycan, but having 100% of the power available with nothing needed to "activate it" is better. I can stomp the 3P and it goes without any hesitation.
2nd Gear: I heavily dislike the use of 2nd gear in anything under 60 mph. Driving around town, I actually felt a "thunk" as though I was back in an ICE car downshifting to go. It's not a constant thing, but it's noticeable. If we need 2nd gear to achieve better high-speed fuel economy and power band, keep it for those things. In all other situations, it sucks compared to how the 3P feels at low speed. I never want to start in 2nd gear on an EV, ever.
Interior dims make the 3P feel bigger, especially more trunk space, yet the overall exterior dims are smaller. I'm trying to figure out how this happens that a larger car actually has less interior storage space, but there it is.
Infotainment: The tech looks fancy, but functions like grandma's ipad that she hasn't updated in a decade. Control response is slow, dials on the steering wheel for volume sometimes lag terribly, and overall intuitiveness is way behind Tesla. Navigation in particular just needs to take a page from Tesla and Google and copy them. Just make it the same, it's better and there's no point trying to do your own thing. Everyone just excuses this with, "well I just use Apple carplay." Cool, I have Android. And I never use it on the Tesla because the Tesla works as well as my phone. There's no excuse that a $160,000 car has infotainment function worse than a $300 ipad.
The haptic feedback buttons are cool, but why did I feel like I had to double-tap them every time, or hold the button down, to get them to do anything? The Tesla has no haptic feedback, but a generous target touch area that just works every time you press it.
Interior: Yes, the Taycan feels much more premium, but the racetex is not it. If you get racetex, the microfiber steering wheel actually feels cheap and looks cheap. I'd even argue it's slippery. I much prefer Tesla's interior to the racetex, but this is just an opinion compared to other areas where the 3P is more objectively better.
Additional functionality: Dog mode, Sentry mode, etc...all things that were added after I bought the car, and all very useful. I basically have a built-in fancy security system, and I can bring my dog places and leave him in the car as needed.
Single-pedal driving: This is a superior way to drive, and the Taycan should make it an option.
What the Taycan does better:
The electric sport sound: Just an opinion, but I think it's incredibly cool. I love engine noise though, so missing that on the Tesla, this brings back that feeling of power.
Ride: The air suspension on the Taycan is lightyears better than what comes with the 3P. The huge difference from one setting to the next is really cool and much more dramatic than any other air suspension I've used.
Handling: There is no comparison here. Taycan is it.
Looks: I might not even be here if the 3P looked cooler. The fact that it looks like your basic grocery-getter is what pushed me to seek other options. The Taycan looks like a sports car, yet has the functionality of a 4-door.
Stability at speed: With the 3P, you know when you're doing 90 mph. With the Taycan, it feels like you're still holding it back. It wants to do 100+mph while you're still sipping your morning coffee, and seems like you need to be doing 120+ before you even need to pay attention. It's tied up with the ride/suspension, but you have ultimate confidence at speed with this car, way beyond the "go kart on steroids" feeling with the 3P.
Buttons. It has dedicated buttons for climate control and other things that shouldn't have to be accessed via a menu like the Tesla requires from you.
Old arguments that don't matter:
Repeatability of launches. The 3P can repeatedly launch just like the Taycan. It has better cooling than the S and doesn't have those problems.
Charging speed: They charge around the same speed or close enough it doesn't matter. Network might matter to some who do road trips. It doesn't matter for me though because they have chargers everywhere in the state I drive in.
Service. Either one will come to your house to handle a fix. I've had 1 issue in 1 year of ownership with the Tesla and never had to take it in. Service just doesn't matter as much with EVs.
Build Quality: My Model 3 had no noticeable issues. It's had 1 minor item that needed fixed. The demo Taycan with 2k miles on it had two issues that the dealership hadn't fixed in the 3 weeks between initial test drive and weekend loan. Part of this is unfair because the 3P was a year or two into production, and the Taycan is still on its initial run. But still, the reputation of early model or first run production Tesla's seems to be something people just assume affects the entire brand, but it doesn't.
Tesla is an "appliance" for people who don't like driving. This is the dumbest argument I hear, because it completely discounts all of the glowing reviews from auto mags for the 3P. I like driving and bought the Model 3 without any of the "self-driving" options.
Overall
I'm still really happy with the decision to purchase the Taycan, but can't help but feel it's not an upgrade in some small but annoying areas. Hopefully Porsche puts some priority on software development the same way Tesla has, and can shake free of the (seemingly long-running) stigma of great cars with sub-par tech.
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