Sports Chrono or Rear Axle Steering?

Vim Schrotnock

Well-Known Member
First Name
Vim
Joined
Oct 20, 2018
Threads
23
Messages
1,005
Reaction score
1,459
Location
Cincinnati
Vehicles
GTB1 Race Cayman, Taycan Turbo S
Country flag
I'm with the 'give up something else and get both' camp. RAS is incredible - I'm still amazed at how maneuverable this car is at low speeds in parking lots. This is not a 'high quality' drivers feature of course, and 'purists' will say you don't need it, but I do find it is one of the most useful features of the car in terms of driving dynamics - albeit at 0-5mph.;)

Sport Chrono is also absolutely necessary if you want to experience the true performance of this car as a Porsche. The driving dynamics at higher speeds seem to defy physics, and even at lower and more sedate speeds, the chassis is tuned to give you more feel and engagement.

I would never give up caffeine in any form, but I'm sure you can figure something out to justify the additional cost. You need both.
Sponsored

 

GlasgowTaycanCT

Well-Known Member
First Name
Michael
Joined
Mar 4, 2021
Threads
4
Messages
121
Reaction score
138
Location
Glasgow, UK
Vehicles
Cross Turismo 4S ordered, LR Discovery, i8, Macan
Country flag
As the saying goes :
"Money is an issue, but it isn't THE issue" ???

I'd get both.
Otherwise, you will regret it ?
 

GlasgowTaycanCT

Well-Known Member
First Name
Michael
Joined
Mar 4, 2021
Threads
4
Messages
121
Reaction score
138
Location
Glasgow, UK
Vehicles
Cross Turismo 4S ordered, LR Discovery, i8, Macan
Country flag
on the topic of turning circle. It depends what you are used to.
My recent daily drivers have been Land Rover Discovery and BMW i8. Both have a turning circle of 12.3 metres. I frequently drive in the city and multi storey car parks. Whilst it isn't super easy to manoeuvre in those scenarios, it has been OK.

So the Taycan with Rear Axle Steer and a turning circle of 10.4 metres will feel much much easier to handle!
 

CJE

Well-Known Member
First Name
Cliff
Joined
Sep 25, 2020
Threads
1
Messages
65
Reaction score
121
Location
Los Angeles
Vehicles
Porsche 911 Turbo S, Porsche Taycan Turbo S, Ford GT (part owner)
Country flag
I am specing up my Taycan CT. While keep the cost within the budget I am indecisive between Sports Chrono and Rear Axle Steering.

The Taycan is meant to be for daily use within city and not for track day. This probably means RAS will be more useful. But, I have no idea how much better will it be with RAS?

Alternatively, Sports Chrono gives easy access to different modes and set up an individual one, which seems handy to me.

It is my first Porsche and therefore seeking for your suggestions. Thanks.
You will use both features every day you drive your car. If you can't afford both these very basic Porsche advantages you might reconsider the Taycan.

Stretch and get both. They make the car special and without them you are drving something incomplete.
 


andrewket

Well-Known Member
First Name
Andrew
Joined
Jan 31, 2021
Threads
13
Messages
571
Reaction score
428
Location
Vienna, VA
Vehicles
21 Taycan Turbo, Tesla Y*2; Prev S,X,3,996TT
Country flag
I specced Sports chrono and the ugly wart on the dash irritates me. No doubt I will get used to it but it would be better if you could have SC without it. I don’t need an analogue chronometer thanks.
I agree, although the CT has a compass option which I would get if I was ordering a CT.
 

PT Addiction

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2021
Threads
1
Messages
68
Reaction score
58
Location
California
Vehicles
2020 Taycan 4S
Country flag
I opted out of the RAS for a couple of reasons: (1) Didn't want to spend the extra money for a feature I think would be more beneficial for the track and (2) one would be adding more complexity to the vehicle and perhaps adding more things that could go wrong. I don't have a point of reference for comparison for (1) but I guess, mainly didn't want to spend the extra money for something that would possibly return low dividends. That said, I think the RAS would prolong tread life on the rear tires. Anyway, my 2 cents.

I do have the Sport Chrono and I enjoy the convenience and ease of switching between the drive modes when needed.
 
Last edited:

Tim_G

Member
First Name
Tim
Joined
Mar 5, 2021
Threads
0
Messages
24
Reaction score
8
Location
Belgium
Vehicles
Macan S Diesel
Country flag
I think the desirability of RAS is also very dependant on which region you are located. Of the 19 available 4S cars here in Belgium, only 2 are equipped with RAS and almost all have SC.

I myself didn’t spec RAS because my Macan had a bigger turning circle and I never ran into problems where I would have liked the car to be more nimble.

Having driven my dad’s Audi A6 a lot, which is comparable in length to the Taycan, but has a bigger turning circle. I feel exactly the same as with my Macan.
 


chrisk

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 3, 2020
Threads
17
Messages
980
Reaction score
1,021
Location
California
Vehicles
2020 Taycan 4S
Country flag
Sport Chrono is also absolutely necessary if you want to experience the true performance of this car as a Porsche. The driving dynamics at higher speeds seem to defy physics, and even at lower and more sedate speeds, the chassis is tuned to give you more feel and engagement.
I don't have SC but I can still set the chasis in S+ mode by hitting the suspension button on the instrument cluster. If you have air suspension then it comes with the Sport+ chasis option.
So the only thing you really get with SC is the wheel shortcut to rotate drive modes and the Individual drive mode.
 

PT Addiction

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2021
Threads
1
Messages
68
Reaction score
58
Location
California
Vehicles
2020 Taycan 4S
Country flag
I don't have SC but I can still set the chasis in S+ mode by hitting the suspension button on the instrument cluster. If you have air suspension then it comes with the Sport+ chasis option.
So the only thing you really get with SC is the wheel shortcut to rotate drive modes and the Individual drive mode.
Yep, and even though I have SC, I hardly use it. The car performs just fine and is plenty quick in normal mode for my driving habits, but every now and then I switch to Sport.
 

Tay Tay

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 9, 2020
Threads
38
Messages
418
Reaction score
346
Location
State of Confusion
Vehicles
Loving him is like driving a new Maserati down a dead-end street
Country flag
I understand the responses so far, but am not in agreement with the RWS over Sport Chrono, I have RWS in my GT3, it is great on the track but cannot say I can even feel it on the road under normal or quasi - spirited driving conditions. I don't park my cars on the street in a parallel park situation, so maybe I would feel differently if I did. I originally spec'd my Taycan w/o Sport Chrono until I test drove a care and realized what was needed to change driving mode via the PCM. After the test drive, I change the build to include it. There are three must options:
Adaptive Air Suspension
Performance + Battery
Sport Chrono.
GT3 only comes with RAS right? So what are you comparing it against? Since GT3 has a shorter wheelbase I would guess that the street benefit would be in lane changes at high speed. Porsche probably wouldn't be able to make the steering as direct without RAS or it would be too twitchy at high speed.

In terms of changing driving modes, I stuck a small round bumper stop under the SPORT button so that I can easily find it without looking at the touchscreen. Solves that problem for me for 5 cents vs. a thousand dollars.

For those of you espousing the benefits of Sport Plus, can you really tell a difference between Sport with Sport Plus suspension (which everyone has) and Sport Plus? The only reason I can even tell a difference between Normal and Sport is the latter uses first gear. I know the stuff about battery warming and stuff for Sport Plus but can you really feel that difference?
 

Jhenson29

Well-Known Member
First Name
Jeremy
Joined
Feb 9, 2021
Threads
35
Messages
2,771
Reaction score
4,125
Location
St. Louis, MO
Vehicles
2016 Macan S; 2021 Taycan 4S; 2023 911 GTS Cab
Country flag
The only reason I can even tell a difference between Normal and Sport is the latter uses first gear.
Doesn’t normal mode use first gear also, just less often?
 

feye

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 16, 2019
Threads
16
Messages
2,194
Reaction score
1,657
Location
Shenzhen
Vehicles
Porsche Taycan 4S+ 2020
Country flag
Without Chrono you don't have a true Porsche. "Sport Plus" should be called "Porsche mode" and the mode you should be using for daily driving. Period. End of story.

If you don't get Chrono, just know that every Taycan with it has much better performance than your car. There is no way to fake or add the performance that Sport Plus mode gives you. It adjusts the entire car to a sportier extent than Sport mode. Individual mode & the dial selector are just frosting, "Sport Plus" is the delicious cake.

Now, I'd also 100% get RAS and make cuts elsewhere. RAS is great. But RAS is (mostly) a quality of life improvement.

Every other option is just an option but speccing a Porsche without Chrono is silly and wrong. It 100% should be included on every car.

IMO if you can't afford a Taycan with Bose, Chrono, RAS, LCA.. you can't afford a Taycan. Those are just the "must have" 4 to truly experience the Taycan.
As true as it may be, RAS will make you happy on every single drive. Chrono is a toy and I found the clock too ugly to spend money on it.
 
Last edited:

loysha

Member
Joined
Mar 14, 2021
Threads
3
Messages
22
Reaction score
27
Location
Moscow
Vehicles
Audi RS E-tron GT
Country flag
I am specing up my Taycan CT. While keep the cost within the budget I am indecisive between Sports Chrono and Rear Axle Steering.

The Taycan is meant to be for daily use within city and not for track day. This probably means RAS will be more useful. But, I have no idea how much better will it be with RAS?

Alternatively, Sports Chrono gives easy access to different modes and set up an individual one, which seems handy to me.

It is my first Porsche and therefore seeking for your suggestions. Thanks.
Like you, I was faced with a choice. I chose RAS and abandoned the Sport Chrono.
The Sport Chrono is just a mode switch and a stopwatch. The presence of the Sport Chroro has no effect on power or speed.
Everyone has Sport mode and launch control, while Sport PLUS mode is just a low level of body.

The Sport Chrono is a must-have for a petrol Porsche.
Sponsored

 
 




Top