Why go for the Performance Battery Plus?

[daveo4EV]

Why go for the Performance Battery Plus?

because no EV owner I've ever met since 2012 has ever said…

My EV has too much range.

Sponsored

 

[f1eng]

With your use case there is no point in the heavier battery, you will just be pointlessly carrying around substantial ballast every time you drive, making braking and cornering worse And almost certainly tyre wear and every efficiency related parameter.

The extra power is all eaten up by the weight at normal road speeds too, but once aero really kicks in at high speed the power benefit will be real if you do that often enough.

I have not used the full range available from my big battery yet but it was standard on my CT4S.

For me the only benefit will be resale because for some reason range seems to be about the only thing EV people talk about It is certainly the only thing anybody asks me and they seem to be surprised I neither know nor care until I ask them the range of their petrol car, which they rarely know or realise varies a lot.

I chose the CT4S despite the heavier battery…

 

[andix]

It's certainly smart not to add more battery weight than you actually need.

Pro Perf Battery reasons are, as stated before:
* resale
* performance (is actually more impactful than the spec suggests as perf is reduced at lower SOC)
* range

 

[Vercingetorix]

Unless you get the 5k back upon resale the resale argument is a red herring.

 

[RingoDingo]

.

For me the only benefit will be resale because for some reason range seems to be about the only thing EV people talk about It is certainly the only thing anybody asks me and they seem to be surprised I neither know nor care until I ask them the range of their petrol car, which they rarely know or realise varies a lot.

I chose the CT4S despite the heavier battery…

Lots of people have convinced themselves (or want to convince themselves) that EVs are not for them - owing to current deficiencies in range or infrastructure. For many of them, I suspect it's a psychological rationalization to address their fear of change and things they don't understand. Others of them are right (especially those in cold climates with long commutes and poor charging infrastructure). Hard to tell the difference sometimes.

 

[Wakesurfer]

Freema Agyeman

I realise this might set people off but serious questions...

If range is not important (I only need a range of 150 miles) and re-sales value is not important (its on a lease deal) why would I pay almost £5k for the Performance Battery Plus especially when the performance numbers are very similar to the smaller standard battery?

Surely to lower weight will help with efficiency / handling as reported for the RWD version.

Keen to know thoughts /practical experiences?

TIA

For any vehicle (ICE or EV), with no equivocation, I cannot say that I purchased a vehicle with TOO much horsepower. Never, ever. Same for EVs - I cannot imagine saying that I purchased a vehicle with TOO much range. Never, ever. For both HP and range I want more, more, more............and then some more!

 

[bob66hall]

Here in the western USA, charging stations can be sparse (especially anywhere off the Interstate systems). Worse, the charging stations are still very much a work-in-progress! All the software plans go out the window when the charging station you need has some or all stations down!

We all hope to see this improve with time, but today's reality is a different matter.

For your situation, urban short-hop trips, you're probably fine [with less capacity]. Just know that if you head into the boondocks, don't assume anything. I'd say "top-off often!"

 

[CarbonTax]

Unless you get the 5k back upon resale the resale argument is a red herring.

Stimmt! My crystal ball tells me if one trades in a taycan after 4 years, what one paid US$5k for prob won't even get $2k- so if you don't need the few km/miles extra range, might be better spent elsewhere

 

[DerekS]

No such thing as too much range. If you don't care, consider resale.

Everyone is going to want the bigger battery.

 

[tchavei]

Since we're all giving reasons why we choose PB or PB+, here's mine (it's weird)

For almost a decade, one of my hobbies was 3D RC Helicopters. Mostly Nitro powered but eventually also started to build and fly electric versions.

Now in this specific scenario, I used 6S 4Ah packs (4.3V X 6 = 25.8V) which have to output up to 300A during 3 or 4 minutes of intense acrobatics.

With time I learned that these packs would last about 80-100 charges / flights before they were ready for recycling/destruction.

So in my mind, the more charge cycles you put into a battery, the more you're killing it. It's like you're on borrowed cycles.

My weekly commute (excluding weekends) are about 200-250km. So the less times I need to charge a battery per month, the longer it will last. Hence why I went with the PB+

Will it make a real difference? No idea
Will it be worth the price difference? Maybe not.

 

[xyeahtony]

Everyone keeps saying just get the bigger battery, you can't go wrong with all the range.

Sure, it can't hurt you. But obviously you're on the fence about it because you want to save money. Like i said, if you want to save money, then tell yourself, am i going to wish i had that extra 30 miles of range?

Sure, it doesn't hurt to just have the extra range. "better to have and not need then to need and not have." But then again, with that cavalier attitude, just spec every single option. Fancy deviated stitching and leather never hurt anyone, or a variable light roof, or a 19kw onboard charger.

 

[Vercingetorix]

10 years from now when fast chargers are on every street corner, people with the big battery are going to ask themselves why did I waste the money?

 

[Fish Fingers]

10 years from now when fast chargers are on every street corner, people with the big battery are going to ask themselves why did waste the money?

Fair point, but I doubt many on here will have their current Taycan in 10 years.
They will have whatever is relevant with the infrastructure and their lifestyle at the time.

On the initial question, I have got the PB+ on my RWD and am glad of the extra range.
But I would like to try the same car with PB to see how the performance and handling compares.

Anyone on here owned both?

I also think the fact the OP is leasing, rather than buying might make the smaller battery preferable.
It's not a long term decision and resale / degradation isn't a concern, so additional monthlies could be spent elsewhere.

 

[f1eng]

Freema Agyeman

For any vehicle (ICE or EV), with no equivocation, I cannot say that I purchased a vehicle with TOO much horsepower. Never, ever. Same for EVs - I cannot imagine saying that I purchased a vehicle with TOO much range. Never, ever. For both HP and range I want more, more, more............and then some more!

What is your understanding of weight and vehicle dynamics?

I understand in these days of sophisticated vehicle stability software having more horsepower (on paper) isn't a problem, even though the engineer writing the stability software rarely lets you have all of it but more horsepower or more range is irrelevant unless you know how much of it is cancelled out by the weight offset.

As a matter of interest in a F1 car the rule of thumb was that 10hp more power gives the same lap time gain as 10lb less weight.

 

[Wakesurfer]

What is your understanding of weight and vehicle dynamics?

I understand in these days of sophisticated vehicle stability software having more horsepower (on paper) isn't a problem, even though the engineer writing the stability software rarely lets you have all of it but more horsepower or more range is irrelevant unless you know how much of it is cancelled out by the weight offset.

As a matter of interest in a F1 car the rule of thumb was that 10hp more power gives the same lap time gain as 10lb less weight.

No understanding of weight and/or relation to vehicle dynamics at all! . Pretty much rely on the articles that I read........................TurboS is definitely faster than the Turbo which is definitely faster than the 4S and the bigger battery pack has more range the the smaller battery back. More, more, more!

Sponsored