Porsche introduced the most powerful production, or mass-produced, car it has ever made. The electric 1,093-horsepower Taycan Turbo GT has already set two racetrack speed records for an electric car. It even beat one set by a Tesla Model S by a gigantic 18 seconds.

High horsepower numbers and eye-popping acceleration are more common among electric cars than gasoline-powered ones, especially since EVs can have multiple motors. Performance figures like these serve little practical value, of course. It would be impossible to approach this car’s potential other than at a track and few would have the driving skills to do it.

This is about giving customers the ability to brag about what their car can, theoretically, do. And, for Porsche, it’s about putting aside concerns about whether electric cars, with their heavy batteries and near silent operation, can be exciting as gas-powered cars, as regulatory pressure mounts to sell more EVs.

The Taycan Turbo GT set a world record lap time on Germany’s famous Nürburgring Nordschleife, a twisty, challenging track where automakers frequently test their most competitive sports cars. The Nürburgring requires cars that are not only very fast and accelerate quickly but also corner well. 

This Turbo GT, a new version of the electric Porsche Taycan, features two motors. Together they can produce more than 1,000 horsepower. This kind of high-horsepower EV experience won’t come cheaply, though. The Porsche will cost around $230,000.

Source: CNN

Image: CNN/Porsche