Porsche Taycan copies Hyundai with fake gears
‘E-Shift’ offers eight virtual gears, a ‘red line’ of 7300rpm and more synthetic sounds, in an effort to make the Taycan more involving
If you’d told us 15 years ago that Porsche would be stealing ideas from Hyundai to make its cars more involving to drive, we’d have laughed you out of the office. Alas, exactly as much is the case with the new 2027 model year Porsche Taycan, which now comes with virtual gears, just in time to meet Mercedes-AMG’s GT 4-door, which only just beat Porsche to the fake gear punch in the ultra-premium electric space. Unless you count Hyundai’s Ioniq 6 N…
Called E-Shift, the system features eight simulated gears that the driver controls using the paddle shifters we’re familiar with from all other combustion, PDK-equipped Porsche models. You’ll also note the extra drive mode toggle, with a blue button marked ‘E-Shift’ you press to activate the system. This brings up a central rev counter, as you’d see on any combustion Porsche, with what looks like a 7300rpm ‘red line’ – 500rpm higher than a Porsche Panamera GTS but 200rpm lower than a 911 Carrera S or GTS.
Though there is a ‘redline’, it’s not detailed exactly what the ‘power band’ is – how the power and torque swells as the ‘revs’ rise. The system does feature gear-specific drag torque, which in plain English means a sense of engine braking. You’ll slow more aggressively with a lift when at higher revs than at lower revs, as you would in a combustion car. What the Taycan with E-Shift does feature is synthetic sounds, with the noise different depending on what trim you have.
E-Shift is a £750 option on all Taycans apart from the Turbo GT, given it cannot be had without the GT sports steering wheel. However, mandatory options in order to tick the E-Shift Box are the Sport Chrono Package (£1838), Porsche Electric Sport Sound (£389) and either the Bose (£1093) or Burmester (£4661). So in actuality, getting the gears will cost you at least £4000 more if you had sights set on a standard, no-boxes-ticked Taycan...
The new Taycan range has received a few other updates along with the option of fake gears. Range is now modestly improved on the rear-driven entry-level model thanks to a new summer tyre option. Said to feature optimised rolling resistance, WLTP range on a saloon so-equipped, when also fitted with Performance Battery Plus, is 434 miles, an increase of 12 miles.
Lastly, Porsche has updated the infotainment system, now called the Porsche Digital Interaction experience. It’s a rationalisation of functionality in-line with the Macan Electric and Cayenne Electric, with the option to use widgets and a more minimalist look. It runs on new hardware that’s five-times more powerful than before, making the UI smoother, swifter and more responsive. Over-the-air updates are now possible for the infotainment too and the wireless phone charger is 1.5-times quicker. Every little helps.
The most important new feature to the driving experience is obviously E-Shift, and we’ll be letting you know exactly what it’s like very soon. The 2027 MY Taycan is available to order now, with no changes to current prices.
