Fun or frustration? We put the new Porsche Macan 4S up against the Taycan 4 Cross Turismo. We embarked on a road trip to the French Riviera – weaving between Savoir-vivre, rally vibes, snow and sandy beaches – to try and answer crucial questions: which is the better electric Porsche? Is the Macan a true Taycan killer? And why did we end up feeling disappointed?
We never expected things to take such a dramatic turn. The plan was simple, even laid-back considering the magnitude of the challenge: crossing the snow-covered Alps en route to the French Riviera. We packed the boots to the brim, with everything we needed to have a good time – Brompton folding bikes, a backgammon set, swimming shorts, and some of our best mates. In short, the perfect “good-vibes” road trip.
Table of contents
- Facts ≠ emotions: Porsche Taycan vs.Porsche Macan – prices and technical data
- High speed or charging frustration? Our electric road trip to the Côte d’Azur
- Route planning and navigation – Porsche Taycan vs. Macan
- Motorway and long-distance driving: Porsche Taycan vs. Porsche Macan in direct comparison
- Too much voltage? Comparing the charging performance of the Porsche Taycan and the Porsche Macan
- Brushed off: Porsche Taycan frustration at Porsche service centres?
- Feeling at home with friends: Café du Cycliste in Nice and a city escape on our Brompton folding bikes
- The night of long knives: Porsche Taycan vs. Porsche Macan on the tracks of Rallye Monte Carlo
- Gravel adventure: Are Porsche’s cross-turismo EVs built for off-road?
- Efficiency and range: Porsche Taycan vs. Porsche Macan
- Porsche Taycan vs. Porsche Macan specifications – luxury, tech, and the ONE BIG question: what’s really worth it?
- Made for bikes? Porsche Taycan vs. Macan rear carriers on test
- Porsche Taycan or Macan – which one would we buy?
- Conclusions – Porsche Taycan or Porsche Macan?
But what if suddenly, nothing goes to plan – if we miss a business meeting in Monaco, ditch our dinner reservation in Nice, and end up munching takeaway pizza in a dodgy supermarket car park instead? What if the official Porsche service centre sends us away, and we end up driving back with just one car? A freak incident, or is there more to it?
Let’s start from the beginning… Our mission was clear: to put the new Porsche Macan 4S head-to-head with the freshly facelifted Taycan 4 Cross Turismo. And not just in any setting, but the way a Porsche should be tested – in everyday urban driving, on long-distance journeys, and, of course, carving through the legendary mountain passes of the Monte Carlo Rally. The big question: which is the better electric Porsche? The recently updated Taycan, a car that makes no secret of its sports car DNA, or the younger Macan, designed to turn heads not just on mountain roads but also outside schools and nurseries?
Facts ≠ emotions: Porsche Taycan vs.Porsche Macan – price and technical data
Electric sports car or electric SUV? While the Taycan and Macan fall into two different vehicle categories, they’re still surprisingly comparable – their key specs are remarkably similar.
| Porsche Taycan 4 Cross Turismo | Porsche Macan 4S | |
|---|---|---|
| Price (test car) | € 168,131 | € 130,713 |
| Base price | € 113,100 | € 90,700 |
| Power output | 435 PS (320 kW) | 448 PS (330 kW) |
| Overboost power output | – | 516 PS (380 kW) |
| Torque | 585 Nm | 820 Nm |
| Top speed | 220 km/h | 240 km/h |
| 0–100 km/h acceleration (s) | 4,7 s | 4,1 s |
| WLTP range (specific configuration, combined) | 577 km | 544 km |
| Maximum DC charging power | 320 kW | 270 kW |
| Gross battery capacity | 105 kWh | 100 kWh |
On paper, the new Porsche Macan 4S seems to do almost everything better – with faster acceleration, more space, greater comfort, and the latest infotainment system based on Android Automotive OS. And to top it off, it comes in at nearly €40,000 cheaper in our test spec. A clear win, then? Hold your horses … Numbers only tell part of the story. Our Taycan vs. Macan comparison reveals just how different these two Porsches really are in practice – who they suit and who they don’t. And, most importantly, it clearly proves that emotions can paint a very different picture from the stats.
High speed or charging frustration? Our electric road trip to the Côte d’Azur
Just hop in and go? Long-distance journeys in an EV still feels daunting to many – and not without reason. We criss-crossed Europe in electric cars before and have had our fair share of charging issues and delays. Reliable charging remains one of the biggest challenges of electromobility. But this time, we weren’t worried – hey, we were driving Porsches after all! With WLTP ranges of over 500 km and record-breaking charging speeds (up to 320 kW in the Taycan!), we expected our charging stops to be quicker than it took to demolish a Reginella sandwich at an Autogrill. Or, at least, that was the plan…
Route planning and navigation – Porsche Taycan vs. Macan
Even before setting off, the two electric Porsches revealed their first major differences. Our route was set: from Stuttgart – the home of Porsche – through Switzerland and Italy, all the way to Nice. And, no road trip is a road trip without a few stops to visit some friends.
While the Macan calculated the route to Nice in under a second, the Taycan took over 30 seconds – which feels like an eternity when you’re eager to hit the road. To make matters worse, the suggested route was different, with an estimated travel time around 30 minutes longer.
The reason? While both are electric Porsches, they’re built on entirely different software and hardware platforms. The Macan features Porsche’s latest infotainment system based on Android Automotive OS, which starts up as soon as the driver approaches – meaning all vehicle and infotainment functions are instantly available and run smoothly.
Motorway and long-distance driving: Porsche Taycan vs. Porsche Macan in direct comparison
Back on the road to Nice: if you like to push the pace on Germany’s motorways, you might be surprised – the more family-friendly Macan actually outperforms the Taycan. True to its spec sheet, the electric SUV accelerates faster and has a higher top speed. That said, unless you’re driving them back-to-back, the Taycan never feels underpowered. And going flat out in an EV is a double-edged sword – high speeds drain the battery fast. So for most of the journey, we kept things brisk but sensible. After all, we still had to make it to Nice…
Too much voltage? Comparing the charging performance of the Porsche Taycan and the Porsche Macan
At first, everything went smoothly – effortless cruising to our first charging stop, where both German EVs performed flawlessly. The Taycan peaked at 300 kW, slightly outpacing the Macan, though the SUV had nothing to be ashamed of either. Onward to Switzerland. Mountain views, speed limits, near-empty motorways – this is what electric road-tripping should feel like. And with such a high density of chargers, there was always one available whenever we made an unplanned stop. Facile! Bella Italia – arriviamo! But instead of dolce vita, our charging troubles began.
Suddenly, the Taycan refused to charge at a fast charger. DC – the high-speed direct current system – had failed completely. That left us with a painful alternative: four hours of sluggish AC charging, a pizza delivery straight to the charging bay, and a late-night arrival in Nice at 10 pm instead of a relaxed afternoon coffee in the autumn sun. So much for the joys of e-mobility! On the bright side, we made the most of our unexpected detour with a city tour on our Brompton folding bikes through the charming Italian port town of Savona – a place that wouldn’t have made it anywhere near the top of our bucket list otherwise. You’ve got to roll with it, right? So, frustration turned into… well, at least a story to tell. Still, our business meeting in Monaco? That wasn’t going to happen .
Sometime late in the evening – around 10 pm instead of the estimated 4 pm – we finally arrive at the hotel in Nice. A quick check-in, plug the Taycan and Macan into the AC charging station in the car park, and straight to bed.
The next morning we need a new plan – and it starts with a call to Porsche and a drive to the nearest Porsche Centre.
Brushed off: Porsche Taycan frustration at Porsche service centres?
Things going wrong is one thing. Let’s be honest – most modern, high-tech cars have their fair share of bugs and issues, just like many other connected devices. So, after our painfully slow AC charging ordeal, our first stop was obvious: a pit stop at a Porsche service centre. But what we didn’t expect? Being brushed off over the phone. That wasn’t just disappointing – it was downright shocking. Of course, we weren’t about to take no for an answer and drove there anyway. And once we arrived, we saw first-hand just how big a problem Taycan servicing had become.
Unlike the new Macan, which runs on a centralised computer system, the Taycan relies on more than 100 individual control units that all need to communicate with each other. When one component gets an update, it inevitably affects many others – and that’s something Porsche service centres are struggling with. The mood? A mix of frustration and helplessness.
The electric tech is so complex that software and control unit issues seem to be a constant headache. We saw this first-hand at Porsche Centre Antibes, and when we later called other centres incognito with the same issue, the reactions were telling. The problem isn’t with the service centres – it’s with Porsche. And in the end, it’s the customer who pays the price.
Oh, and also we did – because as if the DC charging failure wasn’t enough, more and more warnings started popping up on the Taycan’s display. Rear-wheel steering failure, suspension issues, glitching sensors – the Taycan made it painfully clear that spreading high-tech features across countless control units is a recipe for trouble.
As regular customers, we would have had to leave the car there – and wait three months for a repair. Totally unacceptable.
But as journalists on a test drive, we essentially had a VIP pass from Porsche AG. They offered to deliver a replacement Taycan to us in Nice the very next day – though in a different colour and slightly different spec. Tempting, but we declined. By that point, the first part of our story was already in the bag, and since we were deep in the mess, we figured we might as well experience it in full. Swapping cars might have been the easy way out, but it wouldn’t have done the test justice.
Our longtime pro tester Erik Bötzle – who doesn’t just test cargo bikes in Paris and eMTBs in Finale Ligure with us, but also every EV for DOWNTOWN – has bought over 300 Porsches in his lifetime. And yet, even he was visibly disappointed. After we reached out to the factory, Porsche was able to identify the likely cause of the problem: a faulty charging station that sent a brief voltage spike to the Taycan, triggering an overvoltage protection fuse. In principle, a sensible and necessary safety feature – if only it didn’t permanently disable the car’s entire DC charging system. The only fix? Replacing the entire charging booster. Since the Porsche service centre in Antibes didn’t have the part in stock, we decided to make the best of the situation. We adjusted our test routes through the Maritime Alps to stay within a single charge per day, relying on slow AC charging overnight. Not ideal – but at least it gave us more time for backgammon, the sea, and a bit of savoir-vivre.
Feeling at home with friends: Café du Cycliste in Nice and a city escape on our Brompton folding bikes
After our frustrating visit to the Porsche service centre, we were in desperate need of a good coffee – and some fresh air on two wheels! So we headed straight to our friends at Café du Cycliste, our current favourite brand when it comes to seamlessly blending fashion and functionality in cycling apparel. Their cosy showroom and café, tucked away in Nice’s harbour, was the perfect spot to reset. And naturally, we made ourselves right at home.
There, we met up with marketing manager Jacqueline and founder Rémi, chatting about Nice’s best insider spots, checking out the latest collection, and plotting our next mission over a relaxed espresso: a hunt for perfect corners on the legendary Rallye Monte Carlo roads. After all, road cyclists and rally drivers share a love for the same twisting tarmac – and the backroads of Monte Carlo? Pure asphalt bliss!
But before diving into the real action, it was time for some sea, sun, and a deep breath. With the Taycan happily sipping power at an AC charger, we pulled the Brompton folding bikes from the boot, threw on our sunglasses, and headed straight for the beach. Côte d’Azur style meets city escape – on y va!
The night of long knives: Porsche Taycan vs. Porsche Macan on the tracks of Rallye Monte Carlo
For a proper dose of fun and adrenaline, we set our sights on the legendary Alpine passes of the Rallye Monte Carlo. And on the Col de Turini – standing at nearly 1,600 metres – it quickly became clear that while the coast was still basking in late-summer warmth, the mountains were telling a different story. The conditions were a real challenge: light and shadow flickered unpredictably around every corner, and the road surface kept us on our toes – one moment dry and grippy, the next damp and slippery, with nasty ice-blankets in shaded sections where the sun hadn’t touched the tarmac all month.
It’s not just the road conditions that highlight major differences – the two cars themselves couldn’t be more different.
At first glance, the Taycan is clearly the sportier machine. But more important than its low-slung silhouette is what’s underneath: the Porsche Active Ride Suspension. This active, high-tech chassis is designed to strike the perfect balance between comfort and performance. Using a powerful hydraulic system, the air suspension can actively extend and compress to counteract body roll and pitch, keeping the car flat and composed through corners. It can even overcompensate, meaning the Taycan leans into corners like a motorcycle instead of tilting outward. This might not necessarily make it faster, but makes it feel incredibly sporty and precise – we like it! Despite its weight and size, the Taycan feels completely at home on these roads – effortlessly controlled, thrillingly agile, and backed by the Porsche Electric Sport Sound. This isn’t just an electric sports car on paper – it delivers the kind of driving excitement that stirs your soul.
Pro tip for the assist-system-loaded Taycan: On narrow mountain roads, always switch off the lane-keeping assist. Unfortunately, we learned this the hard way – when it forcefully intervened and nudged us straight into the barrier. The result? A scuffed alloy and some battle scars on the bodywork. And a special thanks to the EU for mandating that this system reactivates every single time you restart the car.
And how does the Porsche Macan 4S compare on the Monte Carlo roads? It quickly becomes clear: the Macan is a sporty SUV, but it’s no sports car. Getting in is noticeably easier, and visibility is better than in the Taycan – if only it weren’t for the bulky A-pillar we mentioned earlier. Both cars come with adaptive sports seats, but there’s no hiding the difference in chassis dynamics. The Macan is comfortable and capable, but it simply doesn’t deliver the same razor-sharp precision as its low-slung sibling.
Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) in the Macan is far from bad – but it’s nowhere near as quick or responsive as the Active Ride Suspension of the Taycan. PASM continuously adjusts the damping system and offers four manually selectable modes: Normal, Sport, Sport+, and Offroad. It keeps the Macan from feeling like a cushy sofa, but in a direct comparison, the difference is undeniable. If Active Ride Suspension were available for the Macan, it would be a no-brainer. As it stands, the SUV’s weight and higher centre of gravity are hard to ignore on demanding Alpine roads. Push it hard into a corner, and you’ll feel it – understeer sets in, and the Macan drifts wide, struggling to match the precision of the Taycan. Not even the well-crafted sound design and the comfort of the cabin can fully mask that reality.
Gravel adventure: Are Porsche’s cross turismo EVs built for off-road?
Off-road? Let’s put it this way – it’s possible, but with limitations. Both the Taycan and Macan can handle light gravel tracks, provided you manually raise the suspension to its highest setting. But if you’re venturing beyond paved roads, the Macan has a clear advantage with nearly 50 mm more ground clearance. The Taycan Cross Turismo sits at 176 mm, while the Macan offers a more off-road-friendly 224 mm.
Efficiency and range: Porsche Taycan vs. Porsche Macan
Mountain passes are the ultimate stress test for electric cars – climbing uphill sends energy consumption soaring well beyond the expected long-distance average. And if you’re driving with a heavy right foot, that effect multiplies even further.
But here’s the thing: according to the law of energy conservation, all that effort going uphill doesn’t just disappear. As the Taycan and Macan climb, their energy consumption shoots up to around 33 kWh/100 km. But once gravity takes over on the descent, regenerative braking kicks in, recovering energy and bringing overall consumption back down – often below average. Over a full mountain pass, the net consumption levels out to roughly 25 kWh/100 km. Of course, it’s never a perfect zero-sum game – conversion losses to heat and friction always play a role. For energy-conscious driving, the trick is to maximise regen on the way down. Smooth, anticipatory braking helps recover energy efficiently, whereas hard, late braking forces the mechanical brakes to take over – wasting energy like an old steam locomotive.
On the motorway run from Stuttgart to Nice, the Taycan averaged around 24.5 kWh/100 km, while the Macan came in slightly lower at 24 kWh/100 km.
Porsche Taycan vs. Porsche Macan specifications – luxury, tech, and the ONE BIG question: what’s really worth it?
The Taycan is designed as a sports car, the Macan as a versatile SUV – and you feel that difference immediately. In the Taycan, you sit low, tucked away behind the cockpit, while the Macan offers the typical, slightly raised SUV experience. The sense of space is noticeably different too – the Macan feels airier, with more room to move, especially for the front passenger.
In terms of price, the Porsche Taycan 4 Cross Turismo base model retails at €113,100, while the Macan 4S starts at €90,700. But our test cars were far from entry-level. The Taycan Cross Turismo was loaded with extras, pushing the total price to an eye-watering €168,131. Meanwhile, the Macan 4S got to €130,713 – which isn’t a bargain either.
Both cars come packed with cutting-edge tech, but not every feature truly was truly impressive. The Augmented Reality Head-Up Display in the Macan is a real attention-grabber with its large, road-projected arrows, whereas the Taycan’s version feels less spectacular. Porsche’s adaptive cruise control and InnoDrive driver assistance do their job well, keeping the car safely in lane, adjusting speed to match limits, and assisting with lane changes – but road sign recognition isn’t always spot-on. And the Night Vision Assist? Sounds like something from a spy movie, but in reality, it’s more distracting than helpful. It might have some use for spotting cyclists and pedestrians in the dark, but it’s hardly useful – especially considering the sensitive front sensors are prone to damage. At €2,250, it’s far from a must-have.
The comfort access system brought its own frustrations – the gesture-controlled boot opening seemed to fail exactly when we needed it, and worked flawlessly when we didn’t. The four-zone climate control? Only worth it if you regularly carry passengers in the back seats. If you mostly drive with just one or two people, you can safely save yourself €850. And the air ioniser? Nice to have if you spend a lot of time in polluted city traffic, but hardly a dealbreaker. Another pricey extra that didn’t convince us: the Rear Seat Entertainment system of the Taycan. At €2,200, it offers limited functionality and struggles with technical issues in our case – our Netflix app, for instance, refused to work properly. The Macan does this better, thanks to the Porsche App Center, which provides direct access to native apps like Spotify and Netflix. Not that we needed Netflix in Nice – but hey, we’re testing this stuff for you! 😉
Made for bikes? Porsche Taycan vs. Macan rear carriers on test
If anyone can judge this, it’s us at DOWNTOWN – bikes are a huge part of our lives, and we often transport them by car. Porsche offer bike rack solutions for both the Macan and the Taycan, but unfortunately, neither is particularly convincing. The real letdown isn’t even Porsche’s fault – it’s Thule’s. For the Macan, Porsche sell an older Thule model with Porsche branding for a hefty €1,100. The problem? It’s nowhere near as user-friendly as the latest Thule Epos 3, which costs just €100 more (€1,200) and took the top spot in our rear rack group test.
With the Taycan, mounting the rear rack is a €2,400 exercise in patience. Instead of attaching to a tow hitch, it slots into round tubes directly integrated into the chassis. The result? Rock-solid stability – but at the cost of a fiddly and overly-complex setup. Given the hassle, plus concerns over aesthetics, everyday usability, and aerodynamics, we skipped it entirely and just transported our Brompton folding bikes inside the car. Much easier!
The most expensive extra in the Taycan that really makes you question its value? The Sunshine Control panoramic roof – which costs a whopping €5,000. The tech is undeniably cool: at the push of a button, it switches from transparent to fully or partially opaque, blocking out sunlight. But honestly? We’ve never found a standard panoramic roof – costing less than a third of the price – to be unbearably hot. And in its dimmed state, the grey tint isn’t exactly a design highlight either.
Porsche Active Ride, on the other hand, is a true highlight. Originally introduced in the Panamera, it delivers a noticeable boost in stability while perfectly blending comfort and dynamics. This advanced suspension system significantly reduces body roll, keeping the car flatter and more composed through corners, ensuring for an even sportier drive. The four adjustable ride heights – Lift, Medium, Lowered, and Low – allow for flexibility in different driving conditions. And with Smart Lift, the car automatically raises itself at pre-set GPS locations, like speed bumps or steep driveways. A brilliant feature – and every bit worth its €8,000 price tag!
Porsche Taycan or Macan – which one would we buy?
The Porsche Taycan and the new Macan differ far more than their spec sheets suggest – and that’s exactly what makes this decision so interesting.
Inside the Taycan, everything feels tight and sporty, just as you’d expect from a performance-focused machine. The Macan, on the other hand, offers noticeably more space up front, a more dominant driving position, and an overall airier cabin. he Macan also feels safer and more comfortable as a passenger, – not least thanks to its highly visible LED-based blind-spot warning system, a small but genuinely useful feature. When it comes to usability, the Macan hardly puts a foot wrong. Everything operates smoothly and quickly – exactly what you’d expect from a modern EV in this price range (or even lower!). The Taycan, in contrast, feels outdated in this regard, with sluggish loading times for navigation and apps, no built-in support for streaming services like Apple Music or Spotify, and a lack of App Store functionality.
The Taycan delivers exactly what you’d hope for – brutally good driving fun. Even in the 4 variant without the S badge, it has more than enough power – at no point do you feel like it needs more. That said, it’s worth noting that despite its lower price, the Macan actually accelerates faster.
When it comes to handling, the Taycan’s sports car DNA is undeniable – but it comes at the expense of visibility. In tight city streets and when parking, it requires more caution. With its higher seating position, the Macan offers better visibility overall, though the bulky A-pillar does limit the view somewhat. Both cars benefit from rear-wheel steering, which makes them far more agile than their dimensions would suggest. Surprisingly, the difference in boot space isn’t as big as you might think. The Taycan offers 446 litres compared to the Macan’s 540 litres, and with the seats folded, it’s 1,212 litres versus 1,348 litres. Since the Macan’s rear is slightly flatter, the Taycan’s cargo area is actually a bit more practical to use.
Technically, the Taycan shines not just in driving dynamics but also at the charging station, with its 320 kW peak charging speed and slightly greater range. That said, the Macan holds its own in daily use. With a peak charging speed of 270 kW and a realistic range of 380-400 km, it’s far from inadequate. A quick 20-minute top-up extends its reach to around 700 km, and its average charging power from 15% to 80% SoC sits at a solid 200 kW – not quite Taycan levels, but still impressive.
A major problem of the Taycan are its technical issues. During our test, we encountered multiple faults – ranging from rear-wheel steering failures and glitchy assistance systems to persistent error codes. Worse still, Porsche service centres seemed overwhelmed, quoting a staggering three-month wait for repairs. Simply unacceptable. Many Porsche dealers are already steering clear of Taycan customers, as the car’s extreme technical complexity – with over 100 separate control units – has become a major source of frustration.
In contrast, the new Macan runs on Porsche and Audi’s modern PPE platform, which relies on just five central computers – meaning fewer potential faults, faster software, and better functionality. During our entire test period, we didn’t experience a single software glitch or technical issue.
Conclusions – Porsche Taycan or Porsche Macan?
The Taycan is an electric dream – when it works. With outstanding driving dynamics, cutting-edge suspension technology, and true sports car DNA, it’s by far the more exciting EV. But as sophisticated as its performance may be, its complexity is its Achilles’ heel – and we experienced that firsthand.
The Macan can’t quite match the Taycan’s driving dynamics, but it strikes a solid balance between fun and everyday usability. Let’s be honest: most people don’t spend their daily drives on rally stages (if you do, please get in touch – we’d love to swap!). A key advantage of the Macan is the modern software architecture, which makes a huge difference in navigation and infotainment. Add in more space and better visibility, and it’s clearly the better daily driver.
So, is the Macan a Taycan killer? No. The Taycan remains our emotional favourite – but with its technical issues, it’s in danger of taking itself out of the game. In terms of driving fun and pure dynamics, it’s still the undisputed king of the premium EV segment. But the fact that Porsche service centres seem overwhelmed by its problems – and even tried to brush us off – speaks volumes. The choice is clear: maximum emotion with risk – or pragmatic performance you can rely on?
Words: Robin Schmitt, Julian Schwede, Patrick Gruber Photos: Robin De Nys, Robin Schmitt
