Porsche celebrated the world premiere of the new Cayenne Coupé Electric at Auto China in Beijing. The vehicle is now available for order and comes in all three drivetrain variants already known from the Cayenne Electric E-SUV.
Meanwhile, Porsche has found a buyer for its stake in Croatian Rimac Group and the joint venture Bugatti Rimac, known for its hypercars.
911 inspired
Porsche introduced the electric version of the standard Cayenne in November last year. Initially, the launch included the base model without any additional designation and a Turbo variant, followed by the mid-range Cayenne S Electric in March. Series production of the vehicles began in February in Bratislava, Slovakia, on the same production line as the familiar petrol and hybrid Cayenne models.
As the combustion-engine Cayenne has long been available in a coupé version, it was only a matter of time before Porsche introduced a fully electric Cayenne Coupé. The company has now unveiled this crossover SUV in Beijing. Porsche states that the Cayenne Coupé Electric draws inspiration from the iconic 911. According to the team in Zuffenhausen, the model combines powerful proportions with exceptional electric performance.
“The gently sloping roofline sweeps elegantly over the car’s broad shoulders and gives the Cayenne Coupé a particularly sporty appearance,” says Thomas Stopka, Head of Exterior Design, Style Porsche. “Precisely drawn lines, wide proportions, and high-gloss black side window strips form a design that exudes sportiness in every detail. Extroverted and clearly positioned, the new Cayenne Coupé Electric is a sports car through and through.”
Same size, same drives
At 4.985 meters in length, the battery-electric Cayenne Coupé is the same size as the SUV model and just as wide at 1.98 meters (without mirrors). However, at its highest point, it is 24 millimeters lower, measuring 1.65 meters. The luggage capacity is 534 liters as standard, expanding to 1,347 liters with the rear seats folded down. The front boot (frunk) offers an additional 90 liters of storage. As with the electric SUV, an optional towing device with a capacity of up to 3.5 tonnes is available, along with an off-road package.
Technically, the Cayenne Coupé Electric, like the standard Cayenne Electric and the smaller electric SUV, the Macan, is based on the dedicated electric platform, PPE. Thanks to 800-volt technology, the Cayenne Coupé Electric can charge at compatible DC fast chargers with up to 390 kW.
Charging from 10% to 80% is expected to take just 16 minutes. The standard on-board charger provides an AC charging capacity of 11 kW, with an optional upgrade to 22 kW available. Another similarity to the SUV version of the Cayenne Electric is the three available drivetrain variants: the base model, the S variant, and the Turbo variant. All versions feature all-wheel drive, whereas both the Macan and the Taycan also offer entry-level versions with only a single motor.
Power ranges from 300 kW to 400 kW (S-version) to 635 kW for the Turbo Coupé, and torque sits between 835 Nm and 1,500 Nm. The cars are fast, and all have a 113 kWh battery pack. The 0-100 kph acceleration ranges from 2.5 to 4.8 seconds, and the top speed is 230 to 260 kph.
Thanks to the sloping roofline, the aerodynamic drag is improved compared to the electric SUV. The drag coefficient is 0.23 for the Coupé, compared to 0.25 for the SUV. This improves the combined WLTP range of the Cayenne Coupé Electric by up to 18 kilometers, depending on the model, to a maximum of 669 kilometers. However, Porsche has not yet provided exact range figures for all three versions.
The price of the basic version in Belgium is €112,063, the S version costs €133,721, and the Turbo top version costs €172,563. That’s some €3,900 to €3,100 more than the classic SUV version.
Rimac: the end of a long-standing collaboration
After Volkswagen’s subsidiary Porsche acquired a 10% stake in Rimac in 2018 and later increased it to 21%, the partnership is now coming to an end, despite Porsche having contributed its prestigious Bugatti brand to a joint venture with Rimac in 2021.
However, tensions had been building for some time: rumors emerged a year ago that Rimac sought to push the German sports car manufacturer out of the partnership. Whether this was truly the case or merely a diversion, the fact remains that Porsche now intends to sell its stakes in Bugatti Rimac and in the parent company, Rimac Group, to a consortium led by the New York-based venture capital firm HOF Capital.
The buyer, HOF Capital, is backed by the Egyptian billionaire family, the Sawiris, which built the conglomerate Orascom in the 1950s. While founder Onsi Sawiris passed away five years ago, his sons and grandsons have since expanded into new business sectors and acquired further stakes.
For instance, son Nassef Sawiris holds nearly 6% of the shares in the German sportswear giant Adidas and is a co-owner of the English Premier League club Aston Villa. Meanwhile, grandson Onsi Sawiris Jr. is a co-founder and Managing Partner of HOF Capital, the venture capital firm now acquiring Porsche’s stakes in the Rimac Group and Bugatti Rimac.
Porsche CEO Michael Leiters explained the decision: “In setting up the joint venture Bugatti Rimac together with Rimac Group, we successfully laid the foundation for Bugatti’s future. As an early-stage investor of Rimac Group, Porsche made a significant contribution to developing Rimac Technology into an established Tier-1 automotive technology company. Now, with the sale of our stake, we demonstrate that we will focus Porsche on the core business. We would like to thank Mate Rimac and his team for the constructive and trusting cooperation over the past years.”
Today, the Rimac Group comprises four divisions. The Bugatti Rimac division focuses on hypercars with both battery-electric (Rimac Nevera) and conventional powertrains (Bugatti). Rimac Technology serves as a Tier 1 supplier, producing components, including battery systems, for the new BMW i7.
Verne develops its own robotaxis and operates a robotaxi service that recently debuted in Zagreb and is set to expand to additional cities in Europe and the Middle East soon. The fourth and newest division, Rimac Energy, is building a business in stationary battery storage systems.
