I have been enjoying the experience of my first EV so far, but it's raised a lot of interesting questions that I've seen from many petrolheads. From the learning process and also the pre-conceptions of many. let me take you through why the Taycan is going to be sticking around in the Shmeemobiles.
Exactly! 👍 The gold ones. And the yellow calipers don't fit the rest of the car, Tim should try to find the right color in Photoshop 😊 Red or green or black?
_Also here in Norway 🇳🇴 there are so many electric cars, it's a Beverly Hills in the sense that every other car is a Tesla, literally 70% of cars are EV or hybrid_
Thats a lie myfried it's only 5% are ev so stop it and for more ev's i don't think the power grid could handle it anyway so its impossible anyway and when we loose power whT do we do then when its a blackout?
The 'precool/heat' button ... an owner doing an owners review on another YT channel said this button allows you to cool/heat the cabin whilst you are charging the car (ie using the source power). This makes sense as when you drive the car away, the car would only have to maintain the current inside temp, which would use less energy than heating/cooling completely from start. Nothing on the other channel was mentioned about this being to do with cooling or heating the battery to aid charging speed.
You do have to get the battery temp up to get the max charging speed. Well documented in Taycan forums. It can be accomplished with that button, by using sport+ on the way to the charger, or if you use the nav to direct you to the charging station the car will do it automatically.
Being into tech and cars myself i have been looking to buy one of these,but watching these videos has put me off. I could not be doing with the worry of if a charger is going to be broken or not,and if it is then it could cause massive issues or at best a long wait. Yesterday i took my family on a 360 mile trip in our AMG A45s,it is packed full of tech,great performance and zero worries at all about range when we got diverted off the motorway due to flooding. If we had been in the Porsche then we would have had to have stopped at least once,and could have been in deep trouble if that charging point had been on the closed section of the motorway! I think the way forward for me will be some sort of hybrid,which i know AMG are going to be bringing out.Best of both worlds as you can get a nice bit of extra grunt (especially off the line) from the electric motor,but still have all the advantages of a combustion engine/no range worries.
I actually quite like the Taycan, especially with your spec. Electric cars just aren't affordable for most people and if it came to spending £20k on a car I'd want something better than a Renault Zoe.
@@LawrenceAbramoff If you don’t like it, why don’t you just leave and go watch someone else instead of wasting everyone’s time with your unwanted opinion? You’re pathetic.
Not gonna lie, the word “selling” had me worried for a second. Didn’t watch the video yet, but I believe you made the correct decision. And Happy Christmas Tim!
The infrastructure needs improving undoubtedly. If you have the charger at home then it shouldnt be too much of an issue unless you are doing long journeys.
People shit on EVs all the time, yet those same people seem to make excuses for nuclear power and nuclear fusion. "It's coming. It'll be amazing." EVs are here, and they've done it with less attention and funding than fusion. Imagine if there was more attention given to EVs?
@@ed8519 I have a Model 3 AWD, with a charger at home, so all I need, is for all hotels, and air B&Bs to get chargers. The supers will get me most anywhere. What Shmee needs is a charger in that garage. Makes all the difference.
Genuine question: What happens in 5 years time when all the electric car batteries become alot worse for range, deplete much quicker and all of the negative effects from a battery? Think about the landfill from Batteries and there have been stories that to keep up with the electric power that is now being drawn these days coal factories and negative energy plants are having to be turned on to cope with the power in my opinion it's an idea not thought out well enough I think Hybrids are the best option as of the moment for being better towards the environment
Apparently these batteries can be turned into auxiliary home power when they've become too worn for use in a car. At this point, the UK for eg. is getting up to 47% of it's power from sustainable sources. I agree that Hybrids are the interim solution, but not petrol. Diesel is still far more economical than petrol and manufacturers CAN make them nearly emissions free, they just lack the will to do it. I've seen giant Cummins diesel that produce over 600hp and 1500nm of torque that emit almost no pollutants.
Currently with liquid polymer batteries that use acids that are very very bad for the environment yeah, batteries are worse than just petrol/diesel cars in the long run. Luckily a german institution has developed a new method of coating battery cells in a way where no liquid is necessary anymore. This means they are getting rid of the worst part of a battery. By doing this their batteries are also able to charge a lot quicker, have a way higher capacity at the same size and last a lot longer. Currently they have been testing these batteries in corporation with big car companies and have been able to get a battery fully charged at maximum charging capacity in 10 minutes. That one charge is able to get you around 800 miles of driving. The battery is going to last a million charges, meaning the battery will literally outlast you and the vehicle it came with. That is the future of cars. Not the EVs we have today.
My husband said that wind farms plan to use the 'expired' batteries to store their power on certain days when it's not used. Idk, both Mini and VW said the batteries should last 8 years. Mini said theirs is guaranteed for 8 whereas VW said theirs would be down to 70% chargeable after 8 years. I'm really concerned about actually buying one. Maybe I'd be better trying to get a good offer on finance/lease and keep it 3 years then chuck it back?
We've already seen what happens, they're increasingly recycled and/or reused in less harsh applications, where they can live for decades. It's a fair question, but it's a misconception that they're just throw-away items. Likewise, what happens to the used/specialized parts which go into ICE motors, like spark plugs, oil/fluids, seals, filters and dozens of other wear items? Add to the fact, we have billions of ICE vehicles, each spending thousands of hours over their lifetime pumping waste into our atmosphere, which when you think about it, serves as yet another form of landfill. Most are okay with it, only because it's been normalized for over a century. Again, fair question, but if we're taking a hard look at EVs (which is fine), we should definitely take a harder look at technology that predates them (which many people fail to do). Powering a car (and other things) with electricity, just brings it into the modern world, like your phone or anything else electrified. It means you can localize energy production and build out alternative means to do so. With gas, you pretty much have some domestic production, but if if you're like many countries, you're trading for it and playing a lot of geo-politics. Energy isn't free in either scenario, but the more localized your energy production, generally the better and safer it is from disruption. Hybrids are better than ICE vehicles, but we've already enjoyed that transition during the "Prius era". There are plenty of them on the market, so consumers are free to buy them. It will take time and there are downsides, but electrification is the future. There was a time when liquid gas was scarce and people wondered why they should get rid of their beloved horse, too, especially with all the grass in ready supply. Now we're here.
I have just under 2000 miles on my Taycan 4S which I am loving. First thing I did was to have a 230V outlet installed in my garage and set up the Porsche supplied charger. It is great to charge the car on demand. I have not taken it to any public charging station yet as I have only done local driving. I appreciate learning of your experiences with on the road charging. We have two other cars available which is an option for long long trips. But using your experience I might attempt them. The charging network has much to grow here in the USA north east and that will make a difference as it matures.
Love the car Tim. Thanks for sharing the experience with us. Most who comment negatively on something have never experienced the car or could even afford one. Merry Christmas sir to you and your amazing team. Cheers from Canada
Until such times as these cars are as easy to fuel as ICE they are really not a viable solution for longer distance use or for those working to a tight schedule traveling a distance. So many unknowns and chances of disaster. For those who have easy access to charging at home or some other place doing very short journey's in town etc., a small EV car could be a good answer. Better still in towns get onto two wheels. Would much rather see this exercise with you being carried out using a far more modest EV as a sensible daily car or shuttle to unit. As mentioned the LEVC van caught my attention for this shuttle purpose. Would be great to see this being evaluated. Jonny Smith on The Late Brake Show did a great introduction to it. Looking forward to seeing the unit based charger in action.
I understand your curiosity for electric cars , but I personally agree with Mr Toyoda (Toyota President) when he stated that electric cars cannot be the future of automotive , and that EV are overhyped .
True, it makes only sense if You own your own charger and use it only as a car transporting You from home to work and back. Otherwise there is no point owning EV for now...
If you're lucky enough to live in a rural area rather than an inner city, then you're more likely (?) to have off-road parking - in which case, you get a 7kWh home charger installed and have a fully charged, pre-warmed and defrosted car to wake up to every morning... :-)
You can change the centre caps without removing the wheels or damaging them. Thin fishing line wrapped around the cap rim until the ends cross over then pull tight and they pop out. Been doing it that way for years unless they are flush which Porsche caps are not. Takes 15 seconds per corner.
Hi Shmee. All you need to do to remove the centre caps Is some good masking tape. Fold it back on itself across the cap and make it into a ‘t’ shape and they will just pull off with no damage.
Tim I’m so happy you are hanging in there with the vehicle. I know it’ll be 1000 times more convenient as soon as you get AC charging in your garage. If you have an iPhone then you can use Apple CarPlay in the Taycan and I believe get Waze to display on the PCM console. I really prefer the Gold center caps that you have gotten and I would recommend having the brakes painted black as I find the yellow to be an odd contrast with the gold.
Kudos to you for being so open minded... I actually own an Audi etron S sportback and I consider myself a petrol head (My goal is to own a 911 at some point). I love cars, all cars and I’m open to try everything. I’m fortunate enough to being able to charge at home so I got around 300km available every morning and I can enjoy lighting fast accelerations and great tech. Should I travel more than 500km, I prefer to take the plane (well, not so much now) and rent a car... Your taycan is sublime and I’m glad you’re enjoying it
Having owned a Tesla, and having an at-home 220V/30A charger, I will say it was nice to come into my garage to a nearly fully charged EV. Especially having a wife who is bad about it, it’s more common to come into the garage to a nearly empty fuel tank on my ICE, and have to stop at a fuel station before continuing on my way. For sure, a quick fuel up is faster than an electric charge-up, but that’s the advantage of an EV with at-home charging- it’s just always charged every morning. Here in TX, we actually have a surprisingly robust Tesla supercharger network and road trips were fairly seamless.
Stopping for the toilet and getting food can easily take 30 minutes. No issue really as if you can charge at home you start every journey with a full battery, so 2x 30 minute charging breaks in a full day of ~600 mile driving seems reasonable.
I try never to stop. The only time i have in the last year was driving from the Midlands to Plymouth. I'd stop off at Bristol for literally as long as it took me to get a Starbucks from the services and then carried on. A full tank took me from home to work, to work 10 miles each night to my hotel and then home (a total just shy of 550 miles), all on one tank of diesel. None of the EV on sale today would do that job, which means in turn it won't be replacing my car or van for work until that happens.
@@paul1978g so you'll drive 8 hours without stopping basically? That makes sense. No charging at home? No charging at work? No charging at the hotel? EV's don't work for some, but 550 miles in a day without the chance to stop for a break seems very unlikely
It’s interesting to see a petrolhead like myself going through the motions of buying their first EV and learning the quirks and ins and outs of owning one. Like you, I love my tech as much as a love my cars, so I am interested in EV’s to a point. My issues, include not having the facilities to charge at home, my daily commute to and from work is 15 miles each way and the charging network near me being a bit crap, and even if it wasn’t, would I want to sit around for 30 minutes plus on the way home from a long day at work to charge my car? At least when I fill up with petrol, it only takes 5 minutes and obviously the petrol station network near me is very well established, so I have plenty of options.
But if you add the facility to charge either at home or at work then you almost _never_ need to go to the petrol station. Most EV owners spend _less_ time overall filling up their cars.
@@Wookey. Indeed, but when you live in a rented property with a landlord who lives in the past, good luck trying to convince him to install anything like that. My work place would have to install hundreds if we all went EV. People who live in flats or can’t always park directly in front of their homes haven’t even got the luxury of the possibility of a drive when a lot of houses in the north & midlands have front doors that open directly onto the public pathway.
@@DanCollinsPhotography Your workplace can start with a few and do the rest as needed. Our workplace put in 6 chargers a few years ago, and the recently-built carpark has passive-provision for every parking space (i.e cable ducting) with just a few fitted out. I'd certainly start hassling them if they've not done any yet. Workplaces providing charging will become a norm, and are very important for people who can't easily charge at home. Cars spend almost as much time parked at work as at home, so workplace charging is effective. And yes, getting landlords to do anything that is not a legal requirement is an uphill struggle. EV provision is not yet a requirement on new-builds except in London, Edinburgh and a few other places, but almost certainly soon will be (pod-point.com/guides/business/ev-charging-legislation-new-build-uk). We'll probably get a requirement for rented places eventually, but that really needs doing about now too (same as a whole load of things to enable/require retrofit that are going far too slowly to hit our mandated emissions targets). This govt is currently talking about changing the rules by 2024 which is laughably slow given that the consultation finished last year, and there is serious time pressure on this stuff.
Great video Shmee. Amazing car, but would you agree the range just needs to be 400 miles+. I know this is obvious but having 150 to 200 miles must be constant range anxiety? And surely the tech will come soon.
Great vid Tim, nice to see you read the comments! I’ve been convinced for sometime now that EV for the daily and a multi cylinder for the weekend is the way forward. As an avid petrol head and being a bit nerdy the crossover between EV/ICE has been a subject I’m familiar with for a couple of years - so it’s really good to see a car enthusiast who’s coming at EV’s de novo, a proper real world test and this video explains that frame of reference very well👍 (and a much more common frame of reference I now realise)
That car just seems too stressful to live with. There's just too many negatives about ev's compared to internal combustion. For example an ev becomes lethargic as the battery depletes, internal combustion cars actually get a bit faster as fuel depletes.
@@gregsullivan7408 Yes lethargic means sluggish and apathetic. I've never driven a taycan but just going off of Tim's take on it, it suffers the exact same ailments as lower end EV's. Is a Taycan Turbo S really worth double than the top end Tesla Model S?
Shmee I’ve had an EV for a few years now and I want to make sure you have an app called Zap-Map. You can plan trips, look at Charging places with the right Charging port and as long as you avoid eco-tricity you’ll be fine
Shmee you have an Ultimate car collection including this car. Can't wait to see the Shmee Garage, man cave. Hopefully early 2021...Thank you for the great content each year
My problem with EV’s is they don’t excite me, the show just isn’t there. This Porsche is nice, but that’s it, it’s nice. I think a lot of the enjoyment I get from cars comes from the noise.
until you've tried one you'll never know, they are just different , you need to have a open mind and also consider local pollution , yes boring as that is your kids kids will benefit from cleaner air, fewer cases of cancer , heart disease's and respiratory issues linked to fossil fuel's, and it will be possible to digitally recreate a car engines noise internally , so unless you just want everyone else to hear the noise your needs could be met !
Ferrari have said they can't build full EV's as there are' impossible to individualise. In others words, they can't build the "Ferrari" into an all electric car.
@@jonathantaylor1998 the difference is you associate a porsche with the look not the sound no matter what the porsche is where as a ferrari is all about that sound a ferrari without that sound just wouldn't be right.
@@blueberrythekjericraeder9995 true, you might well do more than 200 miles in a day... but, unless you have the bladder-size of a camel, I know after the best part of 3 hours of driving, I need to pee and to eat...! That's when your EV is sat in the car park, charging up, while you're off doing the exact same stuff you normally do taking a break from a 3 hour drive...
@@jonathantaylor1998 Sorry, but I don't need a 30 to 40 minute break every three hours on a long trip. I might make one longer stop to have a meal, the other stops are just ten minute breaks to pee and stretch my legs. Excusing this poor range is just sad.
@@stubones paying £7.86 instead of £100 in fuel is pretty sweet tho. I can 350 trip in one go too in a petrol car but a couple stops is fine. You’d be surprised how much charge you get in just stopping to pee. I don’t eat meals every stop, I’d get pretty fat. 😆
@@blueberrythekjericraeder9995 Who'd a thunk it, a crazy powerful supercar quick car is inefficient. This thing has 88kwh battery and only gets 200 miles. At 2.3 Miles per Kwh it's one of the worst in the industry. The industry goal seems to be 3.5 Miles per Kwh thus 300 miles. It's literaly a special case not applicable to other EVs.
Hi Tim, first of all Happy Christmas to you and the team. Secondly would you consider doing collabs with youtubers that have more experience than you with evs?
Merry Christmas, Tim ! I love to see videos about my favourite car. This car is an absolute keeper, let's go for the golden center caps. I can't wait to be able to afford one myself.
GO with the gold center caps! They'll look so good! Love these Taycan videos. Electric cars sound great on paper but it's interesting to see first hand what it's like to live with one and own one. It'll be a great shuttle back and forth to the new Shmuseum
Great video! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! I am really enjoying watching your learning experience with the Taycan and commend your for your attitude, I think you have the right attitude and it will help you in learning going forward, well done. Thanks for sharing both the videos and your experiences with the car, Cheers!
This will sound weird, but, Tesla has ruined the image of EVs. Tesla's are seen as an appliance, like a washing machine, or a cooker. Yes, they have sporty versions, but, the majority still see them as an electrical appliance, and judge them as such. With Tesla being so prevelant, this means they become the electric car image, so, by extension, the electric car in general gets the same designation, as an electrical appliance. The Taycan however, isn't an appliance, it's a 4 door sports car. You don't buy it solely for practicality, you buy it, for fun, like any sports car. Think of it like an electric 911. You can use it everyday, but that's not it's purpose. People who judge the Taycan like a Tesla, and therefore as an electrical appliance, are, IMHO, totally missing the point of the Taycan. So enjoy your Taycan as intended, drive it because it's fun to drive, and just ignore anyone who doesn't understand that logic, because, people who miss the point, weren't ever really a part of the conversation to begin with.... Oh, and Happy Christmas!
I’m glad to see that you are enjoying your ev experience. I myself have tried the ev by renting(prior to COVID, now I am at home since the current situation ) it in the city of my employment and wasn’t disappointed so far ,personally I don’t own a ev yet but since I was having no problems with them so far I think I would probably have one in future . Have many more fun and enjoyable miles in your ev and looking forward to seeing it more on your channel in the future,stay safe 😉✌️🍀🍀
Even if it were a nice cafe or restaurant instead, think of the vast amount of land required, if most vehicles were electric. They have to drastically improve charging time IMHO.
It truly amazes me how many knuckle dragging halfwits give you grief for buying a car that you deem interesting enough to purchase. I'm fascinated by the EV journey you are learning. I'm a regular European driver and your plans to take it to Europe and the Nurburgring really pique my curiosity for the future.
We do have an EQC and an E-Class Hybrid at home as well as a wallbox, so we can charge the cars over night or whenever they are parked in the garage. So unless you go for a longer road trip or vacation, this is all you need. I'm still not a fan of those current batteries but as long as you can charge your EV at home, most people can use it without any trouble.
Center wheel caps look great in black, the new one fool my eyes, they look larger in diameter. I do agree with the others, if you change to the gold caps have the caliper color altered at the same time, perhaps to either black, gold or the color of the wrap.
@@juniorhulzebos1005 yep, typically heavily discounted lease rate to run it for 6 - 12 months with a discount based on hits and content. BMW Park Lane terrible for this especially, seen them cancel customer orders to then fulfil influencer requests. Porsche getting into it now too which I hoped would be beneath them but alas...
HI Shmee i do think You don't have to always switch OFF or ON with that dedicated button. You go out it locks it self and sleeps. When You get in You have to only press brake pedal if I remember from other videos.
Here's why Shmee is really the best car youtuber in terms of sharing experiences... In an automotive world, in which they are pushing us to EVs, no one out there took the risk to give us an insight... They all make one or two videos about "living with an electric vehicle"... They didn't buy one "because they are petrolheads"... And TIM out done himself buying a Taycan, making it his (with the wrap and details), and sharing with us what it's like. And this is just the start... I was the guy who was thinking "Eh... Shmee it's an old format, with the same editing, alot of informations in reviews, etc. But with this kind of content (and driving his cars properly in the Ring, etc), dare I say it... You are the most innovative one out there. Keep it up.
I have spoken by email to both Mini and VW about their electric vehicles as covid permitting, I am test driving the Mini E and the ID3 in January. Both have told me their batteries are expected to last 8 years yet neither can tell me what happens in 8 years time. I asked about the price of replacing the batteries and neither Mini nor VW know, with VW going so far as to say they don't know if it is possible or viable. Considering I was seriously thinking of purchasing (with cash) an electric vehicle for the use of my adult children who still live at home. I am now seriously thinking of sticking with an ICE because at least we know where we stand with them. One of my sons would actually prefer a classic car, pre ECU as he knows how easy they are to personally maintain rather than the big lumps under the bonnets nowadays with a huge plastic cover stuck onto it. I'm in quite a dilemma what to do. Maybe I'll just buy them all a bus pass and a railcard. Any suggestions?
I just bought a Lexus hybrid 450h gs f sport and love the best of both worlds ice and electric power combined my 1st hybrid/electric car ever and I love it.
So essentially to bring it down to a short TL;DR: You want to get used to the inevitable future of EVs and come to terms with all electric vehicles as soon as possible so it wont be too drastic a change when only EVs are allowed to be sold.
I can totally see the draw of electric cars, fantastic torque dead silent and comfortable but the fact I like to take trips over the range capabilities and or not want to stop to charge a car VS a 5 min fill-up is the killer for me... I could see myself owning a honda E for in city commutes and other electric cars for in city stuff but long trips just aren't viable with the poor infrastructure in place now.
I think keeping the Porsche Taycan is important for you and your subscribers as the car market will be turning more towards EVs in the future. You are still an early adopter as the infrastructure is not fully developed as you have learned. The Taycan is a good car to have as the EU has a relatively robust network of Porsche dealers compared to Tesla. Your visits to the Ring will be interesting as we see hoy the car works there. Maybe you can see if Robert and Misha will add a charger at Apex. Misha is already interested in EVs. Happy holidays and stay safe from the bug.
@@GamesLegoemais hadn't really thought about it before but it might be that they just don't look very Porsche. A bit like how the 944 was actually a good looking car in the day, but they never sold well. Personally I would've preferred that the taycan looked more like the panamera
Good reasoning as always Tim! You said one crucial thing at the beginning, it's not for everyone and not for every purpose. EV's should live side by side with petrol cars, but they want to ban petrol and diesel cars completely by 2030 which is insanity! That is too soon! For example I love to go to wilderness, my diesel pickup truck gives me 1000km's of range and I can take spare gas with me if I need to. That kind of flexibility won't be possible with EV's anytime soon. They are rushing this like crazy and we are paying the price as usual, while real and biggest polluters will be exempt from all of this
I am glad you're keeping it and I get to watch your experience as it'll be helpful having someone with a long term review. I'm holding out for pts myself and won't order one until it's available.