In the last few days, Porsche has been more than eager to talk about its EV agenda heralded by the Mission E. Slated to arrive at some point in 2019, the all-electric sedan is only a part of the company’s eco-friendly future portfolio, which besides full EVs, will also include an assortment of plug-in hybrid models. To make it all happen, the high-ranked officials from Stuttgart have given their green light on doubling the initial investment in electrification to no less than €6 billion, which works out to almost $7.5B at current exchange rates.
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The decision was taken at the most recent get-together of the Porsche AG Supervisory Board where the head honchos decided to put aside approximately €500 million ($623M) for two very specific purposes: developing additional versions of the Mission E (such as a rear-wheel-drive model), as well future derivatives based on the zero-emissions sedan.
Roughly €1B ($1.24B) will be going into hybridizing and electrifying the company’s current models, while around €700M ($872M) will be put to good use in new technologies, hybrid & EV charging, along with smart mobility. “Several hundred million” have been reserved to expand Porsche’s facilities as the marque is getting ready to fully embrace electrification.
The massive investment involves setting up a new paint shop in Zuffenhausen, along with the already teased dedicated assembly area (pictured above) for the Mission E. Porsche will also need a conveyor bridge to move the painted bodies and the powertrains to the assembly area where the electric sedans will come to life. Porsche has already announced it plans to make 20,000 units annually, with room for extra production available should it be forced to match the extra customer demand.
Not only that, but the current engine plant is going through some major changes in order to accommodate the manufacturing of electric drivetrains, and the body shop together with the Weissach Development Centre are also getting some of the funds.
The ambitious Mission E project alone has generated roughly 1,200 new jobs and it’s a known fact other electrified cars will follow in the next decade, with the plug-in hybrid 911 estimated to arrive in 2023. In at least 10 years from now, the Nine Eleven will lose the combustion engine altogether.
In related news, Porsche wishes to remind us the production-spec Mission E will have 600 horsepower on tap and it will run to 62 mph (100 kph) from a standstill in “significantly less” than three and a half seconds. The company goes on to say “it will also be able to accelerate and brake repeatedly without any loss of performance.”
With the battery pack fully charged, the EV is going to have enough juice for a maximum range of 500 kilometers (311 miles) in the New European Driving Cycle. Since the lab-based NEDC is known for not being the most precise test cycle, we would rather wait for the results of the forthcoming Worldwide harmonized Light-duty vehicles Test Procedure (WLTP) since it should paint a more accurate picture of what the actual mileage will be in the real world.
In a hurry? Don’t worry. Recharging for 400 km (249 miles) of range through an 800-volt system voltage will take just 15 minutes.
Source: Porsche
Gallery: 2015 Porsche Mission E concept
Porsche plans to invest more than six billion euro in electromobility by 2022
Stuttgart. Porsche has been putting together an unprecedented future development plan: By 2022, the sports car manufacturer will invest more than six billion euro in electromobility, focusing on both plug-in hybrids and purely electric vehicles. The decision was made by the Porsche AG Supervisory Board at its most recent meeting. “We are doubling our expenditure on electromobility from around three billion euro to more than six billion euro”, explains Oliver Blume, Chairman of the Executive Board of Porsche AG. “Alongside development of our models with combustion engines, we are setting an important course for the future with this decision.” The plans have been bolstered significantly to include around three billion euro of investment in material assets, and slightly more than three billion euro in development costs.
From the additional sum of three billion euro, some 500 million euro will be used for the development of Mission E variants and derivatives, around one billion euro for electrification and hybridisation of the existing product range, several hundred million for the expansion of sites, plus around 700 million euro in new technologies, charging infrastructure and smart mobility.
In Zuffenhausen, a new paint shop, dedicated assembly area and a conveyor bridge for transporting the painted bodies and drive units to the final assembly area are currently being constructed. The existing engine plant is being expanded to manufacture electric drives and the body shop will also be developed. Investment is also planned for the Weissach Development Centre. The Mission E project has created approximately 1200 new jobs.
The purely electric Mission E sports car has a system power of 600 hp, meaning that it will require significantly less than 3.5 seconds to sprint from 0 to 100 km/h; it will also be able to accelerate and brake repeatedly without any loss of performance, and it will offer a range of 500 kilometres in the NEDC. The charging time will be very short: Thanks to the 800-V system voltage, it will take just 15 minutes for 400 kilometres.
Comprehensive rapid charging infrastructure
Porsche, along with Audi, is representing the Volkswagen Group in Ionity, a joint venture with the BMW Group, Daimler AG and Ford Motor Company. The goal of this venture is to construct and operate 400 powerful rapid charging stations along the major European traffic routes by 2020. Construction began back in 2017. To complement the work of Ionity, the Porsche dealer network is becoming part of a nationwide rapid charging infrastructure.
Plug-in hybrid fast becoming a success story at Porsche
The release of the new Panamera sees the third generation of the Porsche plug-in hybrid drive on the road in two different variants. Both variants offer a purely electric range of up to 50 kilometres. The Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid is the flagship model in the model line – it offers the perfect combination of exceptional performance and maximum efficiency, with a four-litre V8 engine and an electric motor generating a system power of 680 hp. The model is the sportiest car in the luxury segment – and not in spite of, but because of its hybrid drive system.
And customers seem to be very pleased with the hybrid models available: Since the market launch, around 60 per cent of all vehicles in this model line delivered in Europe were equipped with these state-of-the-art drives. This figure was significantly higher on incoming orders in some countries and even reached around 90 per cent in Scandinavia.