Porsche to name all-electric model Taycan

Stuttgart (Reuters): Sport car maker Porsche will name its first all-electric car model the Taycan, it said on Friday (8 June), a year before it plans to launch serial production of a vehicle that will compete with Tesla’s (TSLA.O) Model S.

The name, announced by Chief Executive Oliver Blume at Porsche’s 70th anniversary celebration on Friday, means “lively, young horse”, reflecting the iconic rearing black horse on Porsche’s coat of arms.

The four-seater electric sports car due to roll off production lines in 2019 has so far been known as Mission E.

Porsche has said it plans to double its investment in hybrid and fully electric vehicles to more than 6 billion euros ($7.06 billion) by 2022 as parent Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) seeks to overcome an emissions-cheating scandal and tap into growing demand for greener transportation.

Porsche has said battery-only vehicles could account for a quarter of its sales by 2025.

With the Taycan, the company aims to tap consumer demand with powerful engines and batteries. The company says the Taycan will be able to go from 0 to 100 kph in 3.5 seconds and will have a range of 500 km and rapid 800-volt charging.