Monday 26th July 2010

Porsche Planning Electric Boxster

Prototype testing starts next year, says Porsche

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Porsche has today unveiled plans to create a fully electric sports car based on the Boxster roadster.

"The tests begin early 2011," says Porsche, "and will help research user behaviour and the infrastructure necessary for electro-mobility".

As part of the 'Modellregion Elektromobilität' programme in Stuttgart Porsche will build three electric Boxster prototypes in order to test electric components and battery systems, as well to help provide an insight into what users want and precisely what will be required to create an effective electric car infrastructure.

"We will definitely be offering an electric sports car in future," says Michael Macht, CEO of Porsche AG. "But such a concept only makes sense if it offers performance and a cruising range comparable to that of a sports car today."

Porsche is also keen to insist that it will continue its development of hybrid technology, including the Cayenne and Panamera - and more than likely the 918 Spyder supercar...

[jakesmith]

Can't imagine it'll sound as nice

[the Fantom]

If it drives as well as it should then it will help convert a few more to Faraday's finests.

[Greenwich Ross]

I'm sure a boot full of batteries will do wonders for the handling.

[Don]

Greenwich Ross said:

I'm sure a boot full of batteries will do wonders for the handling.

The current car is mid-engined. With no need for an engine of that nature they can fill that area with batteries. Then they'll probably mount two electric motors on the axles. It'll handle very well I expect. Porsche don't screw that sort of thing up.

There will be a ready market for the car.

[Oddball RS]

Ooow oow where can i order my Porsche 3 pin plugster.....?

[[AJ]]

Oddball RS said:

Ooow oow where can i order my Porsche 3 pin plugster.....?

Porsche Plugster... haha, I like that.

As for the idea of an electric sports car powered by batteries, well, that just seems old now. Shouldn't they be looking at a better idea, one that works?

[Perra]

Inserting standard PistonHeads comment:

[AJ] said:

As for the idea of an electric sports car powered by batteries, well, that just seems old now. Shouldn't they be looking at a better idea, one that works?

[ctallchris]

[AJ] said:

Oddball RS said:

Ooow oow where can i order my Porsche 3 pin plugster.....?

Porsche Plugster... haha, I like that.

As for the idea of an electric sports car powered by batteries, well, that just seems old now. Shouldn't they be looking at a better idea, one that works?

repeating something doesn't work will not make it true. It does work. Otherwise tesla owuld have gone bust on day 1 when it delivered a load of case that "did not work"

It can and will work. The noise it makes and the range it will achieve sure argue about them but my tvr barely gets 220 miles to a tank and i don't think ive ever used a tank in a single trip I'd say the ranges proposed are about in line with high end petrol.

[RichB]

ctallchris said:

...my tvr barely gets 220 miles to a tank and i don't think ive ever used a tank in a single trip .

You must be the exception then because I see many TVRs going to Le Mans, Spa, Goodwood etc. etc. I always seem to be stopping for fuel in my Griff

[ctallchris]

RichB said:

ctallchris said:

...my tvr barely gets 220 miles to a tank and i don't think ive ever used a tank in a single trip .

You must be the exception then because I see many TVRs going to Le Mans, Spa, Goodwood etc. etc. I always seem to be stopping for fuel in my Griff

I Rarely drive it on the motorway. When i do it just associates the "Bored" sensation of being on a motorway with the car i'm driving. My swift is the boring car so it gets the motorway journeys.

Possibly not for everyone though I'm fortunate enough to have some very nice driving roads a stonesthrow from my house

[Davi]

ctallchris said:

[AJ] said:

Oddball RS said:

Ooow oow where can i order my Porsche 3 pin plugster.....?

Porsche Plugster... haha, I like that.

As for the idea of an electric sports car powered by batteries, well, that just seems old now. Shouldn't they be looking at a better idea, one that works?

repeating something doesn't work will not make it true. It does work. Otherwise tesla owuld have gone bust on day 1 when it delivered a load of case that "did not work"

It can and will work. The noise it makes and the range it will achieve sure argue about them but my tvr barely gets 220 miles to a tank and i don't think ive ever used a tank in a single trip I'd say the ranges proposed are about in line with high end petrol.

exactly, and pretty much every "fun car" I've had, has seen the majority of it's life being used for hoons of considerably less miles than the average capable electric vehicle can do.

[HoulioUK]

RUF have been tinkering with these for a few years now. The Greenster went up the hill at FoS in 09.

[Johnpidge]

So you can buzz like a vibrator while your in your Cockster

[soad]

HoulioUK said:

RUF have been tinkering with these for a few years now. The Greenster went up the hill at FoS in 09.

So true.

Will see more and more of these electric motors one day.

[anonymous-user]

I'm not sure it's the absolute range as such that is the issue?

take a std car, you can drive it away from home with the fuel light on, play a bit of fuel light roulett, and then just stop at a garage, fill up in 5, and away you go. Or assume the worst happens, you actually run out, you call the AA (other motoring rescue services are availible..;-) they come out, call you an idiot, stick 5l of fuel in, and send you off on your way to the nearest garage.

Now try that with your battery car, empty light on, that'll be a minimum of 30mins (on fast charge) to get even 20 or 30m range assuming you can find a charging socket, or worse still, run out completely on the road, and the AA are just going to have to tow you home (which can also be problematic with the latest PM motors, due to the posibility of uncontrolled generation accurring at low BV's)

Now, none of those issues are unsolvable, but they do make "early adoption" more problematic for the average driver.

[Frimley111R]

ctallchris said:

It can and will work. The noise it makes and the range it will achieve sure argue about them but my tvr barely gets 220 miles to a tank and i don't think ive ever used a tank in a single trip I'd say the ranges proposed are about in line with high end petrol.

Maybe but most people aren't like you. Also, you can fill your car up at countless locations anywhere in the country in minutes and putting the wipers, lights and heater on won't make much difference to your fuel consumption.

The best solution by far to date are these cars with a battery and small engine to keep them topped up like the Ampera and the (prototype admitedly) new Jaguar XJ.

[ctallchris]

Max_Torque said:

I'm not sure it's the absolute range as such that is the issue?

take a std car, you can drive it away from home with the fuel light on, play a bit of fuel light roulett, and then just stop at a garage, fill up in 5, and away you go. Or assume the worst happens, you actually run out, you call the AA (other motoring rescue services are availible..;-) they come out, call you an idiot, stick 5l of fuel in, and send you off on your way to the nearest garage.

Now try that with your battery car, empty light on, that'll be a minimum of 30mins (on fast charge) to get even 20 or 30m range assuming you can find a charging socket, or worse still, run out completely on the road, and the AA are just going to have to tow you home (which can also be problematic with the latest PM motors, due to the posibility of uncontrolled generation accurring at low BV's)

Now, none of those issues are unsolvable, but they do make "early adoption" more problematic for the average driver.

But your empty light wouldn't be on when you leave home. You would have a full charge. With a decent GPS your car should be able to tell you if it can get to the destination. If you get slowed down by traffic your efficiency will rise so as long as you have enough to get there at 60mph you will get there. unlike a petrol car which will use more petrol in a jam.

The worst case fuel scenario would be a bind. I can see a roof rack mounted get you home generator being standard AA kit. you loan it for a fee and they collect it from your house the next day.

Might take a few extra minutes though. As for the towing it's no more difficult than towing an automatic. Keep the driven wheels off the ground to avoid damaging the gearbox or if it's a 4wd wait for the flatbed. Given that all electrics are single speed (effectively the same as an auto) it's pretty much the same deal as you'd get from a petrol anyway

[[AJ]]

Davi said:

ctallchris said:

[AJ] said:

Oddball RS said:

Ooow oow where can i order my Porsche 3 pin plugster.....?

Porsche Plugster... haha, I like that.

As for the idea of an electric sports car powered by batteries, well, that just seems old now. Shouldn't they be looking at a better idea, one that works?

repeating something doesn't work will not make it true. It does work. Otherwise tesla owuld have gone bust on day 1 when it delivered a load of case that "did not work"

It can and will work. The noise it makes and the range it will achieve sure argue about them but my tvr barely gets 220 miles to a tank and i don't think ive ever used a tank in a single trip I'd say the ranges proposed are about in line with high end petrol.

exactly, and pretty much every "fun car" I've had, has seen the majority of it's life being used for hoons of considerably less miles than the average capable electric vehicle can do.

And have you ever noticed how much additional fuel you use whilst out driving for fun? Usually those roads are far enough away from the cities and any electric plug-in stations you wouldn't want to risk driving an electric car there in fear of being stuck drained of all juice in deepest Wales.

Battery powered electric only cars are a flawed technology and they will continue to be until battery technology develops significantly. Tesla have almost gone bust on a number of occasions and have had hundreds of millions in loans. Great for short drives in cities, but pointless as a sports car.

[odyssey2200]

Oh dear fking God!!

More pointless battery bks!

Bandwagon being jumped on.

[markcoznottz]

ctallchris said:

Max_Torque said:

I'm not sure it's the absolute range as such that is the issue?

take a std car, you can drive it away from home with the fuel light on, play a bit of fuel light roulett, and then just stop at a garage, fill up in 5, and away you go. Or assume the worst happens, you actually run out, you call the AA (other motoring rescue services are availible..;-) they come out, call you an idiot, stick 5l of fuel in, and send you off on your way to the nearest garage.

Now try that with your battery car, empty light on, that'll be a minimum of 30mins (on fast charge) to get even 20 or 30m range assuming you can find a charging socket, or worse still, run out completely on the road, and the AA are just going to have to tow you home (which can also be problematic with the latest PM motors, due to the posibility of uncontrolled generation accurring at low BV's)

Now, none of those issues are unsolvable, but they do make "early adoption" more problematic for the average driver.

But your empty light wouldn't be on when you leave home. You would have a full charge. With a decent GPS your car should be able to tell you if it can get to the destination. If you get slowed down by traffic your efficiency will rise so as long as you have enough to get there at 60mph you will get there. unlike a petrol car which will use more petrol in a jam.

The worst case fuel scenario would be a bind. I can see a roof rack mounted get you home generator being standard AA kit. you loan it for a fee and they collect it from your house the next day.

Might take a few extra minutes though. As for the towing it's no more difficult than towing an automatic. Keep the driven wheels off the ground to avoid damaging the gearbox or if it's a 4wd wait for the flatbed. Given that all electrics are single speed (effectively the same as an auto) it's pretty much the same deal as you'd get from a petrol anyway

To be fair, electrics just dont work, if you have to make allowances in the real world, then its questionable, although maybe they will get better. Saw a fifth gear recently, tiff needell tried one, by far the biggest problem was charge time. Get that sorted and you are 90% there but doesnt look like improving any time soon. Also having lights on ate into the battery big time, so what about 4 people up, roofrack, lights on, air con if fitted, what about towing?(obvioulsy not on a porsche but generally speaking), theres a lot to consider. As previously mentioned not enough charge locations.