2023 Porsche Taycan GTS First Test: Meeting in the Middle

Porsche continues to refine the Taycan, thanks to a tried-and-true formula.

In case you hadn’t noticed, Porsche has been cribbing from a familiar playbook when it comes to branding the trim level variants of its Taycan all-electric models, even down to using Turbo and Turbo S names, despite the fact that, you know, EVs don’t use turbochargers.

Some of it simply boils down to semantics (Turbo = powerful and fast), but the traditional idea for what a GTS model is supposed to represent carries over more directly to models like the 2023 Porsche Taycan GTS. As with other Porsche GTS vehicles, the Taycan GTS occupies the middle ground between the 4S and Turbo models in terms of power and performance. As such, the GTS-ified Taycan follows a playbook by which it gets a smattering of components from the Turbo menu, plus its own distinct, blacked-out look. And as an added bonus, the Taycan GTS sedan continues to be the longest-range Taycan in the stable at an EPA-rated 246 miles per full charge, alongside an 83-mpg-e combined efficiency number. That’s a marked improvement over most Taycans but still not exactly world class.

What is world class, though, is how well the Taycan GTS performs for an EV, especially given its 5,157-pound heft. Porsche has taken great pains to make its first-ever all-electric sports car haul and handle, and the GTS does both well. On the power end of the spectrum, its front and rear motors output a combined 590 horsepower on overboost (509 base system hp) and 626 lb-ft of torque, and they’re fed electrons by the Porsche model’s larger 93.4-kWh battery pack.

Its 0-60-mph time of 3.2 seconds and quarter mile of 11.4 seconds at 123.7 mph aren’t in the same ballpark as the last Taycan Turbo S we tested (2.4 and 10.3 at 133.3), but it outpaces the 4S, coming in two ticks quicker to both 60 mph and in the quarter.

The dynamic numbers are where the Taycan GTS gave the Turbo S everything it could handle, thanks in part to a GTS-specific tune for the adaptive air suspension and torque-vectoring system. Our specific test car also benefited from optional hardware such as Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control Sport ($3,590), rear-axle steering ($1,620), and Porsche’s carbon-ceramic brakes ($9,980).

Out on the skidpad, the GTS pulled a 1.02 g and buzzed through the MotorTrend figure eight in 23.6 seconds at a 0.83 g average. That equaled the best Turbo S lateral g number, and it came close to that car’s 23.6-second, 0.87 g figure-eight performance. At 105 feet, braking from 60 to 0 mph was within 2 feet of the Turbo S’ best.

Our resident test ace Chris Walton has pushed several flavors of the Taycan to their limits, and he had high praise for the GTS. Although it took him a bit to reorient himself to its heft, in every other way he likened it to a proper sport sedan. “This all-wheel-drive GTS feels like a Porsche should,” Walton noted. “The steering is surprisingly talkative, as is the brake pedal, and it’s easy to find the threshold and then trailbrake into the corner.”

Several other editors had a chance to hustle the Taycan GTS around a track, too; the reviews were slightly more mixed. One had significant issues with the feel of the brakes. Some thought its handling to be playful, others not so much. Some like its digital-heavy center stack controls, others dislike the lack of buttons and having to search too much for vehicle functions. And multiple staffers called out the GTS’ strangely low-resolution rear backup camera given the car’s price.

Speaking of which, the old bugaboo of Porsche pricing is worth noting. The starting ask for the Taycan GTS is $135,500, which sits neatly between the 4S and the Turbo, but a heaping helping of options both minor and major (including the aforementioned functional performance options) had this car stickering for $168,680. Yes, we know, if you’re playing in this stratosphere, what’s another $33,180 between friends? However, at that price, you’re talking Turbo money. Then again, with the GTS, you wouldn’t have to keep explaining to people why you have an EV that doesn’t have a turbo but says otherwise on its rump. Oh, and the GTS looks sweet. Maybe the middle child of the Taycan lineup is the favorite son after all.

2023 Porsche Taycan GTS Specifications
BASE PRICE	$135,550
PRICE AS TESTED	$167,550
VEHICLE LAYOUT	Front and rear-motor, AWD, 4-pass, 4-door sedan
MOTOR TYPE	Permanent-magnet electric
POWER (SAE NET)	590 hp
TORQUE (SAE NET)	626 lb-ft
TRANSMISSION	1-speed (front), 2-speed (rear) automatic
CURB WEIGHT (F/R DIST)	5,157 lb (49/51%)
WHEELBASE	114.2 in
LENGTH x WIDTH x HEIGHT	195.4 x 77.4 x 54.4 in
0-60 MPH	3.2 sec
QUARTER MILE	11.4 sec @ 123.7 mph
BRAKING, 60-0 MPH	105 ft
LATERAL ACCELERATION	1.02 g (avg)
MT FIGURE EIGHT	23.6 sec @ 0.83 g (avg)
EPA CITY/HWY/COMB FUEL ECON	83/83/82 mpg-e
EPA RANGE, COMB	246 miles
ON SALE	Now

^{_{Article Credits: William Walker
Full Articles: https://www.motortrend.com/reviews/2023-porsche-taycan-gts-first-test-review}}