Porsche is recalling the Taycan over sudden loss of power

Friday, 2 July 2021

The Stuff Top EV for 2020 is the Porsche Taycan.

Porsche is about to recall the Taycan sports sedan over sudden unexpected losses of power, as global sales in the first quarter almost match the iconic 911 sports car.

According to a report from Bloomberg, nine Taycan drivers in the U.S. complained about stalling earlier this year, with the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration describing the problem in May as “loss of motive power while in motion at any speed.” Six cars wouldn’t restart after the issue.

The filing from the NHTSA added that all complaints said the problem happened without warning or any error messages.

Porsche’s Taycan might be pulling big sales figures, but it has run into a bit of trouble with sudden losses of power.

As well as the 800-volt battery pack that powers the Taycan, an auxiliary 12-volt battery is included too, which may be the culprit. The NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) said a loss of charge in the 12-volt battery “may deactivate the entire electrical system and prevent the vehicle from operation.'

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Audi’s e-tron GT uses a similar battery architecture as the Taycan, so could be at risk of the same problem.

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An official announcement of a recall is expected in the coming days, say people “familiar with the matter.” A software update should fix the issue.

The ODI also sent a letter to Volkswagen, requesting information about the Audi e-tron GT and RS e-tron GT. Both the Audi and Porsche EVs use similar battery architectures so there’s a chance a similar problem could hit the Audi twins.

Porsche New Zealand told Stuff that it is currently waiting for further information from the factory regarding any local recall. An official announcement should come in the next few days.

Taycan sales in New Zealand have been healthy, with 68 units shifted for the year to May. Compare that to just 28 911s for the same period. Meanwhile, Tesla sold just four Model S’, although the upcoming Plaid model may change the lay of the land somewhat.

In any case, Tesla’s Model 3 destroys both in terms of sales (not that they are at all comparable as cars), with 512 registered for the year to May. Most Model 3s in New Zealand come from Tesla’s Gigafactory in China as well, for those interested.