Geneva show: Porsche crosses over to electricity

PORSCHE has given the world an insight into its second all-electric car to follow in the wheel-tracks of its initial Mission E electric sports sedan that is due to be revealed in its production form next year.

Called Mission E Cross Turismo and thought to be coming in 2021, the blistering 440kW twin-motor “cross utility vehicle” was revealed at the Geneva motor show where Porsche CEO Oliver Blume described it as an expression of how the company envisions the all-electric future.

The vehicle – based on the Mission E’s battery friendly architecture and seemingly using the same electric all-wheel-drive powertrain – came as a surprise at Geneva, as Porsche had given no hints of its existence.

As expected, Porsche showed off the hardcore 911 GT3 RS at the show, describing the 383kW coupe as one of the most radical high-performance sportscars of today.

But the GT3 RS could not be any more radical than the Mission E Cross Turismo which has the looks of an off-roader but is claimed to be able to sprint from zero to 100km/h in under 3.5 seconds – just 0.3s slower than the GT3 RS – and reach 200km/h in under 12s.

“Furthermore, the level of continuous power is unmatched by any other electric vehicle: multiple accelerations are possible in direct succession without loss of performance,” Porsche said.

At 4950mm long, the Mission E Cross Turismo is big – a few millimetres longer than the latest Cayenne large SUV that is just months away from Australian launch.

Now that we have seen the new electric vehicle, we can understand why Porsche was adamant that it would not launch an all-electric-powered Cayenne. It had something else in the wings.

Porsche describes the Mission E Cross Turismo as “already fit for the road”.

According to the guff released by Porsche at the show, the new vehicle will come with an 800-volt system prepared for fast charging. It also is equipped for induction charging – just drive over an induction-charge pad on the floor of the garage.

Mr Blume said the car would not only be fast to drive but also fast to charge.

The vehicle is expected to have an 80 per cent charge time of just 15 minutes on a high-power fast charger. The range is expected to be a minimum of 500km on a full charge.

Inside, the concept boasts what Porsche describes as “an innovative display and operating concept with touchscreen and eye-tracking control”. To our eye, the all-electronic cockpit looks like an attempt to clean up Porsche’s current over-complicated cockpits festooned with buttons and knobs, taking the design well into the 21st century.

The five-door concept has seating for four, but a production version could offer a family friendly five-seat layout.

Porsche has been working on its electrification program for years, having shown the original Mission E concept at the 2015 Frankfurt motor show.

Even before that, it revealed its ground-breaking 918 plug-in hybrid in 2010, going on to smash the production-car lap record for the Nurburgring, setting the first sub-seven-minute lap time of 6:57.