The Porsche Mission E all-electric sedan has been renamed the Porsche Taycan as the German automaker gears up for the model’s launch in 2019. The production name was announced by Porsche CEO Oliver Blume during Porsche’s 70th-anniversary celebration last week. According to Blume, the name “Taycan” means “lively, young horse,” a reference to the black horse found on the city of Stuttgart’s coat of arms. That same black horse also appears on Porsche’s own logo.

Porsche’s mission to become a big presence in the all-electric car market is now in full bloom. The announcement of the Mission E’s production name is a big step in that direction. As strange as the name “Taycan” is — who knew it was a reference to the horse on Porsche’s logo — it’s still in line with some of Porsche’s recent string of obscure names like the Macan. That said, there is some positive news coming out of this announcement. Now that Porsche has confirmed that the Mission E will be called the Taycan, we can all put to bed the thought of having to call it the “Pajun,” the oft-rumored name that is, quite frankly, a lot worse than what it’s going to be called.

So, there you have it. The Porsche Mission E will be called the Porsche Taycan. New name notwithstanding, the model is considered as one of Porsche’s most important new releases in the automaker’s history. It’s the company’s first all-electric sedan, the first offering in a full-scale $6 billion investment in hybrid and electric vehicles. How the Taycan does when it hits the market will likely determine the direction Porsche takes in developing its future hybrids and EVs. Given how ambitious the automaker’s plans are, it’s safe to say that the weight of the world is going to be on the Taycan’s shoulders when it hits the market next year.

Fortunately, Porsche is developing the car with an all-hands-on-deck mentality that the Taycan needs. That approach extends across the model's scope of development, right down to its looks and performance capabilities. As far as we know, the Taycan will carry a few design nods to the Porsche Panamera and will have 600 horsepower on tap, allowing it to sprint from 0 to 60 mph in under 3.5 seconds. It will also carry an 800-volt charger that can charge the floor-mounted battery pack to 80 percent in just 15 minutes. In addition, Porsche is also planning an in-floor wireless induction charging system that will debut a few months after the launch of the Taycan.

Once it hits the market, the Porsche Taycan will cost around $85,000, putting it between the Panamera and the Porsche 911. It’s expected to compete directly against the Tesla Model S.

References

Porsche Mission E

Read our full speculative review on the 2020 Porsche Mission E.

Read our full speculative review on the 2020 Porsche Mission E GTS.

Read our full review on the 2015 Porsche Mission E Concept.

Read our full review on the 2018 Porsche Mission E Cross Turismo Concept.

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