Porsche doesn’t hang around polishing its past when building its future cars. Sure, the 911 has looked familiar for 62 years, but the company always pushes tech forward. So it’s a surprise to hear the upcoming Cayenne EV will use fake V8 noises.
Autocar confirmed the sounds will be pumped through the speakers, sourced from a genuine Porsche V8, during a ride-along at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. It’s a departure from Porsche’s current EVs, the Taycan and Macan, which use their own developed sounds that steer clear of mimicking internal combustion.
Missing from Autocar’s notes was any mention of a fake transmission like you get in the Hyundai Ioniq 6 N or Kia EV6 GT. So while the speakers blast V8 noises, it likely doesn’t include fake gears to make it feel more mechanical.
Porsche isn’t ready to spill all the engineering details of the new Cayenne EV just yet. What we do know is that it’s taller and longer than the petrol version, with a longer wheelbase, and it apparently feels a bit bigger from behind the wheel. There’s also a large frunk up front.
Every version of the new electric SUV from Weissach, expected to come in Cayenne, Cayenne S and Cayenne Turbo, will use a two-motor, four-wheel-drive setup with Porsche’s own motors front and rear. The rear motor is a new design, developed after Porsche realised the Cayenne EV needed more shove at the back.
Power figures aren’t official yet, but expect around 395 hp (295 kW) for the entry model, 590 hp (440 kW) for the S and over 986 hp (735 kW) for the Turbo.
Sascha Niesen, verification and validation manager for the Cayenne EV, said there are “no surprises” in the new model’s basic layout compared with that of the Macan EV, but the torque distribution system has been improved over the Macan system, to cope with the extra power, bulk and weight and because Porsche’s policy is to carry out very detailed development programmes for every model.