One of the most common questions I get asked as a motoring writer is ‘what’s the fastest car you’ve ever driven?’
I thought I knew the answer, and then I drove the Porsche Taycan Turbo GT, and it re-wrote the very idea of what I think a fast car is.
Driving the Taycan Turbo GT, it punches out of corners like a proper sports car, not a four-door sports sedan, with the kind of ferocity few cars short of a hypercar can match… and then you realise you’re only using half throttle.
It’s shockingly fast, but it shouldn’t be surprising given it’s the most powerful road-going model the German brand has ever produced and is packing a staggering 760kW of power and 1340Nm of torque.
As much as I love the brand’s iconic flat-six engine, there is simply no-way that six-cylinders of internal combustion engine can achieve that kind of performance. And it is performance that few cars can match regardless of price, with a relentless surge of power for as long as you dare put your foot down.
The official stats are mind-blowing, with Porsche claiming the Turbo GT takes just 2.2 seconds to launch 0-100km/h and in 6.4 seconds you can be doing 200km/h. Unfortunately we didn’t get an opportunity to put those claims to the test, but it’s safe to say given our experience with other Porsche models that there is no reason to believe it couldn’t hit those marks.
But sheer power is only part of the story, because Porsche never sets out to build a one-dimensional car. The standard Taycan Turbo GT features a significant amount of weight-saving carbon fibre and other light materials, including carbon fibre reinforced plastic seats, ceramic brakes and forged 21-inch wheels.
However, we drove the Taycan Turbo GT fitted with the Weissach package, typically the brand’s most extreme performance kit and usually reserved for the likes of the 911 GT3 RS. This takes an already extreme car and ratchets everything up a couple of notches.
To save even more weight the Weissach pack completely removes the back seats, sound deadening, rear speakers and even the floor mats. Yes, you read that correctly, this is a four-door sedan with only two seats.
The Weissach pack also adds more aerodynamic aids, including the unmissable fixed rear wing, which adds 220kg of downforce.
More than just the sheer numbers though, is the way the Taycan Turbo GT feels on the road. In true Porsche fashion it has immensely dynamic capabilities. It may be an electric sedan, but it feels every bit as engaging and enjoyable to drive as a 911.
The steering is incredibly fast and precise, while the chassis responds with near-instant eagerness, meaning you can position the Turbo GT with complete confidence. This, in turn, allows you to throw it into corners with more confidence than you should reasonably have in such a big car.
In terms of sheer driving enjoyment it is, quite simply, the best electric car I’ve ever driven – as well as the fastest.
But, to be completely honest, the Taycan Turbo GT is too fast for the road. Which partly explains why Porsche sent it on a tour of the world, where it set new electric car benchmarks at the Nurburgring, Laguna Seca and Interlagos.
However, if you don’t take it to a track you’ll simply never experience it at its best – or at least at its most capable. You can still enjoy it on the road, but the Taycan Turbo GT is such an extreme example of what Porsche can do with both its electric powertrains but also its Weissach packages.
More than anything, though, the Taycan Turbo GT gives me an easy answer to the most common question I get asked, because it will take something special to be faster than this.
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