Porsche’s finest promoting mannequin isn’t the 911 or the Cayenne, it’s the most cost effective, smallest Porsche, the Macan. Certain, it technically is the model’s entry-level mannequin, nevertheless it’s additionally arguably the very best compact crossover for folk who love the act of driving. By now everyone knows that the second-generation Macan is completely electrical, and my colleague Andy already went on the 2025 Macan’s preliminary first drive that noticed the launch of the Macan 4 and the Macan Turbo. That is trim stage–loving Porsche we’re speaking about, so for this second first drive Porsche let me pattern its new rear-wheel-drive base Macan and “the candy spot” Macan, the 4S. Properly, it at present holds the sweet-spot title till Porsche drops the inevitable Macan GTS.
Full Disclosure: Porsche flew me on my first worldwide enterprise class flight to Stuttgart, Germany so I may drive the brand new Macan and Macan 4S. I forgot that different areas are experiencing one thing known as autumn, so Stuttgart was chilly and drizzly but in addition bucolic and delightful. Thanks for a enjoyable journey, Porsche!
I received’t maintain you ready on bated breath. The brand new Macan could have transitioned to all-electric powertrains, nevertheless it nonetheless maintains the unique crossover’s spirit. It seems like a barely bigger, heavier, and electrified model of the outgoing automotive. Meaning it nonetheless clings to corners that will ship different crossovers understeering into the bush, it nonetheless throws you again into your seat, and it nonetheless seems like a strong, well-screwed-together runabout. You didn’t assume an automaker as storied as Porsche would fumble the bag, did you? The electrical single-motor Macan and the dual-motor Macan 4S are nonetheless implausible, if costly, small crossovers.
First let’s cowl the fundamentals. Each of those fashions are constructed on the identical 800-volt Premium Platform Electrical structure shared with the Audi Q6 E-Tron. They’ve the identical battery with 100 kWh of gross capability and the power to cost from 10 to 80 p.c in as little as 21 minutes. The place they differ is in worth and the way they get their energy to the bottom.
The bottom Macan begins at $77,295 together with $1,995 vacation spot, although my take a look at automotive was specced as much as a laughable $107,465. Its single rear-mounted electrical motor produces 335 horsepower and 415 pound-feet of torque, and it’s the primary rear-wheel-drive Macan, as all previous-generation fashions have been all-wheel drive (and it was based mostly on a FWD platform). The bottom Macan is the least heavy model of the brand new crossover, although it nonetheless weighs a porky 5,004 kilos, which is nearly 1,000 kilos heavier than the ICE Macan. Porsche claims it can go from 0 to 60 mph in 5.4 seconds, which is 0.6 seconds faster than Porsche’s claimed time for the outgoing base Macan that makes use of a 261-hp turbocharged four-cylinder. The only-motor Macan has the very best EPA estimated vary of the lineup at 315 miles on a cost.
Then there’s the Macan 4S, which begins at $86,895, although my take a look at automotive’s MSRP was an eye-watering $122,845. It has a barely completely different rear motor than the bottom automotive whereas including a small entrance motor for a complete output of 509 horsepower and 604 lb-ft of torque when launch management is energetic, and 442 hp and 578 lb-ft of torque in any respect different instances. Porsche claims the brand new Macan 4S will full the 0-to-60-mph run in simply 3.9 seconds, or virtually a full second faster than the outgoing six-cylinder Macan S. The Macan 4S good points simply 265 kilos over the bottom automotive for a still-heavy curb weight of 5,269 kilos, or once more about 1,000 kilos greater than the ICE Macan S. The EPA estimates the Macan 4S will cowl 288 miles on a cost.
The electrified rear-drive Macan’s vital bounce in curb weight is noticeable when chucking the automotive round twisty roads, particularly within the base Macan. It Macan felt good, however markedly much less exact than the 4S. Consider the 4S as knowledgeable ballerina and the Macan as knowledgeable ballerina who’s had a pair glasses of wine. It could nonetheless placed on an ideal present, nevertheless it’s a bit much less sharp and a bit much less exact than its 4S sibling. The 4S I drove got here geared up with the $2,040 rear-wheel-steering choice, which mixed with the entrance motor made it really feel like a real piece of meticulous engineering with a turning circle that was a lot tighter than I anticipated. The steering in each vehicles is exact and communicative, and the brakes are robust regardless of solely having two regen modes, neither of which permit one-pedal driving.
Whereas the usual Macan doesn’t really feel underpowered, transitioning immediately out of it and into the way more highly effective 4S made me neglect in regards to the base automotive solely. The rear-motor Macan by no means struggles for grip; it doesn’t have a mechanical limited-slip differential, however Porsche’s traction management pc wizardry makes it really feel very steady, and virtually tame. Even in Sport Plus mode, you received’t swing the tail out until you encounter a low-traction floor, and even then it slips for a short superb second and instantly reigns you again in. Nonetheless, the bottom Macan might be greater than sufficient automotive for many patrons, and it gives an elevated Porsche driving expertise in comparison with the first-gen Macan.
The Macan 4S actually felt just like the candy spot for the brand new crossover. Certain, it’s virtually $10,000 pricier than its single-motor sibling, however you get 154 extra horsepower and 107 extra pound-feet of torque. That equates to a considerably higher power-to-weight ratio, with the bottom Macan making do with 14.1 pounds-per-horsepower and the 4S dropping that right down to 10.4 pounds-per-horsepower. The considerably elevated energy mixed with AWD traction, a real mechanical limited-slip rear differential and elective rear-wheel steering made the 4S carve by Stuttgart’s wet mountain roads with actually surprising composure, even by hairpins and decreasing-radius turns. And sure, if you stomp on the accelerator within the 4S you’re thrown again into your seat.
That further 1,000 kilos on the brand new Macan isn’t at all times a detractor to the driving expertise. All U.S.-spec Macans will come normal with adaptive air suspension that absorbed the admittedly minor German highway imperfections with aplomb, even feeling solidly planted and extremely settled when breezing throughout prepare tracks. So long as you flip off the simulated engine sounds, it contributes to a bank-vault stage of silence, solidity and safety that makes it really feel definitely worth the sometimes egregious Porsche costs.
The brand new Macan’s inside is a pleasant place to be. The wheelbase has grown about 3.5 inches over the outgoing mannequin, and the inside feels considerably extra ethereal and spacious than the ICE automotive’s borderline claustrophobic cabin. I had loads of room up entrance regardless of the usual panoramic sunroof and I’m 6-foot-8, so should you’re taller than 99.9 p.c of people on this planet, maintain the Macan in your procuring record. Rear-seat room, whereas not what I might name spacious, is a giant enchancment over the outgoing Macan too. There’s loads of foot area, and also you don’t really feel such as you’re sitting within the fetal place like in another EVs.
I’ve to notice, although, that the roomy floating middle console that gives a lot of stowage area on your knick-knacks and doo-dads is manufactured from a really un-Porsche-like exhausting plastic. The within of the door pockets are additionally uncovered exhausting plastic, which seems like such a nitpick, however most of those vehicles are going to promote for greater than six figures, so I’ll name out the trivia.
Porsche expertly built-in the expertise, working Porsche’s new Android Automotive–based mostly working system. It’s a seamless, spectacular expertise; satellite tv for pc map photos load with no buffering and you’ll change between menus and capabilities with out ever ready for something to load. My testers each got here geared up with the $1,570 passenger display that was really enjoyable to make use of. It has options like karaoke, the place you possibly can search practically any tune and it’ll pull up the lyrics and play the music sans vocals. You may as well play video games or stream films on lengthy journeys.
Going through the motive force is a normal 12.6-inch curved digital instrument cluster that has a whole lot of helpful configurations, although navigating its menus utilizing the steering wheel buttons reveals a whole lot of hidden, illogical controls. For instance, I’m a 28-year-old who’s fairly tech-savvy and I needed to ask a Porsche rep how one can alter the peak of the borderline-overwhelming $2,520 augmented-reality head-up show. That’s not one thing you’ll have to regulate typically, nevertheless it’s nonetheless fully hidden. Other than adjusting the motive force’s show, most different capabilities are simple, particularly utilizing Porsche’s beautiful knurled local weather management toggles.
The easiest way to summarize the brand new Porsche Macan and Macan 4S is to say that they don’t really feel extremely completely different from the first-generation automotive. Will you miss the symphony of exploding dinosaur juice below the hood? Properly, I did. The electrical Macan drives very effectively, however I nonetheless missed the motive force involvement and aural pleasure of an ICE engine working by the gears. I yearned for paddle shifters, which is one thing I by no means thought I’d say.
Inside combustion attributes apart, you’d be exhausting pressed to discover a compact crossover that marries driver enjoyment with luxurious, high quality and refinement in the best way these vehicles do. Odds are, should you’re purchasing for a Porsche Macan, you’re unlikely cross-shopping it with something that gives an expertise corresponding to the Porsche expertise. It’s nonetheless the Porsche of compact crossovers, it simply occurs to be electrified this time round.
