All Porsche Cayenne E-Hybrid PHEVs get BIGGER battery for increased EV range

Porsche has increased the battery size on the plug-in hybrid Cayenne – Cayenne E-Hybrid and Cayenne Turbo S E-Hybrid – for greater EV range.

Are plug-in hybrids the way to go to turn car buyers on to electric cars? Well, like all tricky questions, the answer is both yes and no.

Yes, running a plug-in hybrid cam mean you can use your car as an EV for short journeys, as long as you plug-in every day, but many, especially company car drivers who get a big tax break to run a PHEV, simply don’t bother.

Perhaps the answer is some sort of software solution, compelling drivers to plug-in for a certain ratio of time to mileage to ensure the headline official emissions are not in the realms of fantasy, and PHEVs really are emission savers.

But, for now, it’s mainly about cutting fleet average CO2 emissions for car makers and delivering the tax breaks governments are offering for drivers of PHEVs. So say hello to a new bigger battery in the Porsche Cayenne E-Hybrid and Turbo S E-Hybrid.

Just as they have with the new Porsche Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid, Porsche has increased the size of the battery in the plug-in Cayennes from 14.1kWh to 17.9kWh, yielding an increase of up to 30 per cent in EV range as a result.

The result still isn’t a massive EV range, with the E-Hybrid now good for 30 miles and the Turbo S 26 miles. Officially.

But what it does do is give German buyers enough EV range to qualify for an ‘E’ badge, and reduced company car tax. Which is what it’s all about.

There have been a few other titivations, like tweaked driving modes and battery charging targets reduced to 80 per cent for improved efficiency, and a price rise of a couple of grand to take account of the improvements. 

The updated E-Hybrid Cayennes are now on sale.