Porsche reportedly plans to invest about €500 million ($567 million) at its plant in Zuffenhausen, Germany, to build the fully electric successors to its 718 line of entry models, the Cayman and Boxster.
According to German auto industry website Automobilwoche, which cites unnamed sources, Porsche will start production of the 718’s battery-powered replacements next year.
The report cites Porsche managers as saying that series production of the all-electric sports cars was delayed a year by the technological complexity of the project and lengthy coordination with other VW Group brands.
Porsche has been frustrated by the lack of speed within the group on the project, the German publication reports.
The electric Porsche 718 sports cars will be underpinned by the Premium Platform Electric (PPE) architecture that Porsche co-developed with Audi. The electric version of the Macan SUV, which will be built at Porsche’s Leipzig plant, will be based on PPE as well.
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The battery-powered 718 successors will adopt the looks and some of the technical solutions seen on the Mission R race car concept that debuted at the 2021 IAA Mobility show in Munich. However, the study’s 800 kW (1,073 hp) dual-motor AWD powertrain is less likely to make it to production as such, especially since the current 718 models are RWD only.
Porsche’s vice-president responsible for the Porsche 911 and 718 model lines, Frank-Steffen Walliser, recently told CarExpert that acceleration and outright performance won’t necessarily be the focus, but rather the handling, feedback, and sound of the car.
He added that a dual-motor setup like on the Mission R might not be right for a compact electric sports car for reasons related to weight, packaging and weight distribution.
The new EVs are expected to offer a 250-mile range from battery packs supplied by Finnish company Valmet. The supplier will build the batteries at a new plant in Kirchardt, Germany, creating about 160 new jobs.
Production of the electric Porsche 718 models follows the €700 million ($794 million) investment made in 2018–2019 at the company’s main plant to add production of its flagship EV, the Taycan. To accommodate production of the new 718 electric sports cars, no further staff expansion is planned.
Porsche expects all-electric cars to make up at least one-third of its global sales by 2025 and two-thirds by 2030.
