Hybrid and Electric Car Reviews

2025 Porsche Taycan GTS First Drive Review

As part of its progression towards electrification, Porsche updated its Taycan to provide more range and power, not to mention faster charging and sharpened styling.

On top of that there’s the insane 1,092-hp Taycan Turbo GT, whose sole mission is to lay waste to any other electric sedan at Germany’s famed Nürburgring (we’re looking at you, Tesla Model S Plaid), while in the process laying waste to your internal organs. Believe me — I’m still recovering.

By comparison, the 2025 Porsche Taycan GTS is the somewhat saner enthusiast variant.

For many Porschephiles, those three letters denote the sweet spot in the lineup. Such models sit mid-level, generally sandwiched between the S and Turbo variants, with a focus on handling and driver engagement. They also represent good value — in the Porsche world, at least — by adding a suite of performance goodies from the options bible for less than what it would cost to upgrade an S model à la carte.

More Peak Power

For 2025, the Taycan GTS gets a boost from 509 hp to 596 hp, with max overboost power on launch control going from 590 hp to 690 hp. With a max torque figure of 583 lb-ft, the all-wheel-drive Taycan GTS scoots to 100 km/h in a claimed 3.3 seconds on its way to a top speed of 250 km/h.

Both front and rear axles get asynchronous permanent magnet motors, and there’s a single-speed transmission up front along with a two-speed transmission in the back. Standard performance-oriented kit includes adaptive air suspension with GTS-specific tuning, torque vectoring, 20-inch wheels, Porsche Electric Sport Sound, the Sport Chrono package, and a push-to-pass button that unleashes a 10-second burst of 94 hp for those times when the GTS’s eye-widening thrust just isn’t enough. This translates to the 80-to-120 km/h passing move happening in a scant 1.8 seconds.

Long Roof Available

Wagon enthusiasts will be glad to learn the long-roof Taycan Sport Turismo body style is back. More than half of Taycan GTS buyers opted for the Sport Turismo with the previous GTS, according to Porsche. It makes sense if only for the added utility and badass-ness for its $2,300 price premium over the Taycan GTS sedan’s sticker price of $167,200. In the Porsche world, that uptick counts as a steal when considering one could drop that amount without batting an eye on a few interior bits and bobs. 

Rear-axle steering adds $1,520, and available with the 2025 Taycan GTS is Porsche’s trick new Active Ride suspension system for another $8,150. The Guards Red Taycan GTS Sport Turismo I got to fling over the smooth, winding, and perfectly cambered roads of rural South Carolina was armed with all that plus 21-inch wheels with performance tires and carbon ceramic brakes that contributed $10,350 to this specimen’s $256,000 bottom line.

Expanded Handling Bandwidth

Porsche Active Ride utilizes the same dual-piston dampers as the standard Taycan but uses powerful electro-hydraulic pumps at each corner to control compression and rebound in real time, thus eliminating the need for anti-roll bars. It does a spectacular job of keeping the car level, be that while cornering or under braking and accelerating. It also magically absorbs most larger road imperfections while still providing the detailed road information you’d want from a Porsche.

Another cool feature is so-called Comfort Access; open a door and the car instantly raises on its tippy-toes to make for easier entry and exit.

The initial takeaway from behind the wheel of the GTS Sport Turismo is a question: how does Porsche make a 2,234-kg (4,925-lb) wagon drive like it’s 1,000 kg (2,204 lb) lighter? The steering is naturally weighted and communicative, and the way the GTS hungrily dives into corners and powers out is a thing of beauty. It lasered through this landscape with uncanny poise and balance, helped in no small part by the trick suspension that all but eliminates body roll and dive. 

The only giveaway to the Taycan’s avoirdupois took place on some damp sections of tarmac, where the car started to overwhelm the tires’ grip earlier than expected. What’s never in question is the crazy acceleration that’s just a toe-tip away. In sport and sport+ modes, the steering, throttle response, and chassis dynamics ramp up for max fun. There’s also the enhanced sound that pipes in a jet-age soundtrack to complement the blurring scenery. It’s a bit goofy, but it’s also defeatable.

On the flip side, when not on a rampage, the Taycan GTS is everything we expect of a premium electric vehicle (EV) — smooth, calming, and effortlessly capable — albeit with that signature Porsche feel that retains the driver as an integral part of the equation. The cabin is whisper quiet, and while those 21-inch wheels make themselves known over scarred road surfaces, this most sporting of the Taycan’s ride is remarkably quiet and acceptably compliant. It’s a champion highway cruiser.

No One-Pedal

Unlike most other EVs on the market, Porsche doesn’t do the proper one-pedal driving thing, preferring to keep the Taycan feeling more like a normal car. I get it, although it would be nice to have the option.

Inside, the Taycan GTS gets standard 18-way memory seats trimmed in faux-suede. It’s a sporty, low slung driving position with perfectly placed controls, and the view in the side mirrors of those salacious rear haunches is almost criminal.

Better EV Stuff

The 2025 Taycan GTS ships with Porsche’s 105-kWh Performance Battery Plus (net capacity 97 kWh), and while there were no range figures at the time of this writing, the updated 2025 Taycan sees much faster charging times and as much as 35 per cent more range than 2024 models.

Final Thoughts

The Porsche Taycan is the best driving EV on the market, with the GTS arguably the most engaging of the bunch. Yes, it’s expensive — and as is the way with Porsche, you’ll add 50 per cent to the bottom quicker than you can say, “Yes, I do need those leather trimmed air vents, and the carbon fibre trim, and the puddle lights, and the upgraded suspension, and…”

Assuming you’re okay with that, the 2025 Porsche Taycan GTS is an exceptional EV that blends engaging agility, luxury, and nutty pace with the option of speccing the très sexy and functional body style. My big dog and upright bass are both appreciative of this utility.