NC_Taycan

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TL;DR - Taycan is good for 2 20 minute hard driving sessions on this 3.27 mile track. Driving easier (braking earlier in turns so regen recovers more kinetic energy) and charging between sessions can enable a third and possibly fourth 20 minute session before acceleration becomes limited due to battery capacity. Given a warm day and more aggressive braking and driving, the battery will likely overheat near the end of a 20 minute session which would also limit acceleration. It's an extremely heavy car (5200 lbs) and managing that weight through turns means earlier braking and turn-in. Power application at track-out though is nothing short of awesome and the precision with which you can control drift to the outside of the track is special. You will leave smiling. A lot. The stock continental all-seasons leave a lot to be desired on a dry track, but aren't too bad on a damp or wet track.

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Upon learning that VIR has a CCS charger just outside the track, I joined a two-day HPDE event last weekend with the Tarheel Sports Car Club (good group!). This is the second time I've had the Taycan at VIR. I wanted to try the charger, and to capture some data on consumption, battery temps, tire pressures, etc. The Taycan is way more fun on a track than it should be considering 5200 lbs and all-season rubber, but there are real constraints to being able to fully track an EV. There was also a Tesla Model 3 Performance at the track, basically doing the same thing - charging in between sessions. And a Lambo Super Trofeo race car turning 1:50 lap times!

The VIR full course is 3.27 miles with lots of goodness - three long straights and 18 turns, several of which represent complex and interesting combinations. The Taycan's acceleration can allow for sphincter-tightening top speeds in those straights (I wimped out at about 140 MPH) followed by some equally sphincter-tightening braking zones where thoughts about what could go wrong sitting atop 5200 lbs of highly reactive lithium hurtling at 140 MPH towards a tire wall. I am by no means an expert track driver and my braking was conservative, which allowed me to complete 20 minute sessions without overheating the battery. Air temperatures in the 60s and 70s helped. Over the two days we had 8 sessions including dry track, damp track, and full-on rain with standing water. At least for the damp / wet runs, the energy consumption was even lower and the all-season Conti's were less of an impediment.

The CCS charger was functional, but only delivered 13.2 KW so in reality it was of no use, except to recharge before the 66 mile drive home. I charged as much as possible from 240/50 in the paddock between runs (limited to 37A or would throw grounding errors). I estimate each day I charged enough in between sessions to survive an additional session. Without charging, two 20 minute sessions would likely leave you with reduced acceleration in the third session.

Here are my notes. All driving in Sport Plus with PSM in sport mode (not disabled).

Day 1
Session 1: Air temp 79 deg, starting tire pressures (21" Mission E with Conti all-season) - 38 PSI on all four tires. Starting SOC 95%, battery temp 83 deg F. This was intentionally a slow session.
After 20 minutes, ending tire pressures 41 on all four tires. Ending SOC 75%, ending battery temp still 83 deg.

Session 2: Air temp 79 deg, starting tire pressures 36 on all four tires. Starting SOC 83%, battery temp 83 deg. Track surface dry.
After 20 minutes, ending tire pressures 39 on all except front passenger which was 40. Ending SOC 57%, ending battery temp 101 deg.

Session 3: Air temp 64 deg, starting tire pressures 36 on all four tires. Starting SOC 66%, battery temp 88 deg. Track surface dry.
After 20 minutes, ending tire pressures 39 on all except front passenger which was 40. Ending SOC 34%, ending battery temp 99 deg.

Session 4: Air temp 64 deg. starting tire pressures 36 on all four tires. Starting SOC 46%, battery temp 87 deg. Track surface damp.
After 15 minutes, ending tire pressures 38 driver front and passenger rear, 39 passenger front, 37 driver rear. Ending SOC 25%, battery temp 100 deg.
25% was not low enough for any loss of acceleration though acceleration would have been limited anyway due to the damp track surface.

Day 2
Session 1: Air temp 56, starting tire pressures 36 on all four tires. Starting SOC 97%, battery temp 73 deg. Track surface damp.
After 20 minutes, ending tire pressures 39 on all four tires. Ending SOC 79%, battery temp 87 deg.

Session 2: Air temp low 60s, starting tire pressures 37 on all four tires. Starting SOC 90%, battery temp 82 deg. Track surface wet with standing water (raining).
After a 20 minute swim, ending tire pressures still 37 on all four tires. Ending SOC 77%, battery temp 83 deg.

Session 3: Air temp low 60s, starting tire pressure 37 on all four tires. Starting SOC 79%, battery temp 78 deg. Track surface dry.
After 20 minutes, ending tire pressures 39 on all four tires. Ending SOC 50%, battery temp 97 deg.

Session 4: Air temp low 60s, starting tire pressures 37 driver side, 36 on passenger side. Starting SOC 55%, battery temp 82.
After 20 minutes, ending tire pressures 39 on all four tires. Ending SOC 16%, battery temp 116 deg.
Acceleration was reduced for the last two laps (somewhere below 20%)

Based on chalk applied to tires to get an indication of wear, for this wheel/tire combo next time I'd start with front pressure at 35 and rear pressure at 36, re-evaluate, and consider dropping another PSI.

Porsche Taycan Taycan Turbo vs. VIRginia International Raceway (Full Course) _23A3395.JPG


Porsche Taycan Taycan Turbo vs. VIRginia International Raceway (Full Course) _23A3410.JPG
 

JimBob

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Do you have a calculation for consumption in Wh/m on your runs? Would be interesting to see vs "normal" consumption.
 

LonePalmBJ

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I finally got my Taycan on a track at Road Atlanta during a PCA event. Just parade laps, but even so I took a couple corners at speed and sweepers at 70mph+. I have very little track experience so the nuances are lost on me, but it was lots of fun!

I also finally have evidence that my spoiler actually deploys :)

Brent

Porsche Taycan Taycan Turbo vs. VIRginia International Raceway (Full Course) IMG_8531
 
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NC_Taycan

NC_Taycan

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Lewis
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I thought about trying to track consumption, but was too busy to do things like reset the trip computer or keep track of the number of laps. If I were going to make a best guess I'd say 8 laps for the good sessions x 3.27 miles per lap = 26.16 miles. 39% of the usable battery capacity consumed for my fastest session (big variable here - both in terms of what a session consumed and exactly how much battery capacity that represents) = 32.6 kW. This would be 124 kWh per 100 miles. My trip computer for the day showed 78 kWh per 100 miles for several sessions, but at least one session was slow both days, so the actual number is somewhere between those two extremes.
 
 




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