As you may be aware, Clive White recently agreed to help Register Secretary Mike Allen, by acting as Macan register technical officer and moderator for the Macan Register forum on the club website. Clive and I met in summer 2014 on a PCGB trip to Norway (see article in October 2014 edition of Porsche Post) and Clive recently asked me if I would provide an article on my experiences with the Macan Turbo, in its latest iteration.
This article is not a story of how shiny my car is. I like a clean car, but I am not one to spend hours polishing every last nook and cranny, respect to those that enjoy doing this though!
In 2019 my wife Carole and I upsized our house, at a time of life (I’m 57) when most are doing it the other way around. But we now have the space I’ve wanted, including a large driveway and garaging for both Porsches (the other, Carole’s, being a 2016 718 Boxster S).
My Macan story started back in 2014 when I bought one of the first Macans, a petrol S version. We paid extra, (c. £2,000 I think it was) to be able to collect the car from the factory just outside Leipzig. This could be an article in itself, suffice to say, do it, when you get chance or, if you’re not intending to order a new Porsche anytime soon, consider joining the factory tours that the club organise.
The car had a modest specification and we had intended to keep it for c. ten years (how many of us say that?). The change was prompted primarily by Porsche AG announcing, in February 2019, that the third iteration of the Macan, was to be powered solely by electric motor(s). However, they seem to have backtracked a little since.
The jury is out for me on whether a fully electric Macan is the right vehicle for us as we are now living in a rural location near Ashbourne in Derbyshire. We don’t have to undertake commuting into a city centre and for me there remain questions on how to efficiently and effectively charge such a vehicle at home given the numbers of electric vehicles that might be around over the next few years. For balance, I should say that I was happy to hear that in (at least) one month in 2019 the UK sourced c. 50% of its electricity needs from renewable sources.
So, against that background I decided to take the plunge and bought one of the first Gen 2 turbos, taking delivery in November 2019. But suddenly I had a few questions fired at me by the wife; "how much?”, "is it worth it?”, "do we need it?”.
The last question is easy to answer; No, we don’t.
I’m sure that a Macan 2.0 litre petrol would have been a very acceptable, practical and appropriate car for our needs. Why would I want to pay a 46% (based on current list prices) premium for a Turbo?
Why indeed, and is it worth it?
Of course, it is! I’m also pleased to say that it is not quite as black and white as it seems. Whilst surfing the internet for reviews of the new turbo pending its arrival I found someone who had added up the cost of all the items included in the standard turbo specification that were not standard on the other models. He concluded that if you added this sum to the price of an S model, then the turbo’s higher-powered engine was thrown in for free. Bargain! It must be worth it then?
I’m also a believer in the fact that we are only here once and should make the most of our time.
So, what did I spec?
Sapphire blue metallic paint
Adaptive sports seats 18-way electric
Automatically dimming exterior and interior mirrors
Black smooth-finish leather with light-blue seat inserts
Comfort lighting package
Front seat heating
Heated multifunction GT sports steering wheel
Park Assist, front and rear, plus camera
Side window trims in gloss black
Smoking package
Sports chrono inc. mode switch and
20-inch wheels in satin platinum.
Like many of us I’ve not been able to drive it much yet. It has just shy of 4,000 miles on the clock now so nicely run in. Need to find time to "open her up” and get the sports chrono working. Looking forward to that!
Differences.
The rear tail-light cluster now has the Porsche family look being across the whole car, left to right.
The PCM screen is larger, more intuitive and, for me, for the first time, I have integrated satnav which is proving useful. For the first two years I have complimentary satellite imaging and also the more basic look of the software as it will be if I choose not to pay the subscription for the satellite version upon expiry.
The PCM also seems to be more comprehensive and easier to navigate (no pun intended). It has more functionality too including media options and online driver’s manual.
The Turbo has a lot of extras in the price, as alluded to above, and this all adds to the sense of occasion. We are not fans of the look of the more overtly sporty GTS version and prefer the understated look of the turbo badged version.
Once we get out of lockdown I’ll get back to this thread with details of the driving sensation, sans wife, mais plus le sports chrono.
All in all, if you can afford it, want to "live a bit” and have a good time, go for it!
Je ne regrette rien.
David
(The French seemed to work better than German!)
This article is not a story of how shiny my car is. I like a clean car, but I am not one to spend hours polishing every last nook and cranny, respect to those that enjoy doing this though!
In 2019 my wife Carole and I upsized our house, at a time of life (I’m 57) when most are doing it the other way around. But we now have the space I’ve wanted, including a large driveway and garaging for both Porsches (the other, Carole’s, being a 2016 718 Boxster S).
My Macan story started back in 2014 when I bought one of the first Macans, a petrol S version. We paid extra, (c. £2,000 I think it was) to be able to collect the car from the factory just outside Leipzig. This could be an article in itself, suffice to say, do it, when you get chance or, if you’re not intending to order a new Porsche anytime soon, consider joining the factory tours that the club organise.
The car had a modest specification and we had intended to keep it for c. ten years (how many of us say that?). The change was prompted primarily by Porsche AG announcing, in February 2019, that the third iteration of the Macan, was to be powered solely by electric motor(s). However, they seem to have backtracked a little since.
The jury is out for me on whether a fully electric Macan is the right vehicle for us as we are now living in a rural location near Ashbourne in Derbyshire. We don’t have to undertake commuting into a city centre and for me there remain questions on how to efficiently and effectively charge such a vehicle at home given the numbers of electric vehicles that might be around over the next few years. For balance, I should say that I was happy to hear that in (at least) one month in 2019 the UK sourced c. 50% of its electricity needs from renewable sources.
So, against that background I decided to take the plunge and bought one of the first Gen 2 turbos, taking delivery in November 2019. But suddenly I had a few questions fired at me by the wife; "how much?”, "is it worth it?”, "do we need it?”.
The last question is easy to answer; No, we don’t.
I’m sure that a Macan 2.0 litre petrol would have been a very acceptable, practical and appropriate car for our needs. Why would I want to pay a 46% (based on current list prices) premium for a Turbo?
Why indeed, and is it worth it?
Of course, it is! I’m also pleased to say that it is not quite as black and white as it seems. Whilst surfing the internet for reviews of the new turbo pending its arrival I found someone who had added up the cost of all the items included in the standard turbo specification that were not standard on the other models. He concluded that if you added this sum to the price of an S model, then the turbo’s higher-powered engine was thrown in for free. Bargain! It must be worth it then?
I’m also a believer in the fact that we are only here once and should make the most of our time.
So, what did I spec?
Sapphire blue metallic paint
Adaptive sports seats 18-way electric
Automatically dimming exterior and interior mirrors
Black smooth-finish leather with light-blue seat inserts
Comfort lighting package
Front seat heating
Heated multifunction GT sports steering wheel
Park Assist, front and rear, plus camera
Side window trims in gloss black
Smoking package
Sports chrono inc. mode switch and
20-inch wheels in satin platinum.
Like many of us I’ve not been able to drive it much yet. It has just shy of 4,000 miles on the clock now so nicely run in. Need to find time to "open her up” and get the sports chrono working. Looking forward to that!
Differences.
The rear tail-light cluster now has the Porsche family look being across the whole car, left to right.
The PCM screen is larger, more intuitive and, for me, for the first time, I have integrated satnav which is proving useful. For the first two years I have complimentary satellite imaging and also the more basic look of the software as it will be if I choose not to pay the subscription for the satellite version upon expiry.
The PCM also seems to be more comprehensive and easier to navigate (no pun intended). It has more functionality too including media options and online driver’s manual.
The Turbo has a lot of extras in the price, as alluded to above, and this all adds to the sense of occasion. We are not fans of the look of the more overtly sporty GTS version and prefer the understated look of the turbo badged version.
Once we get out of lockdown I’ll get back to this thread with details of the driving sensation, sans wife, mais plus le sports chrono.
All in all, if you can afford it, want to "live a bit” and have a good time, go for it!
Je ne regrette rien.
David
(The French seemed to work better than German!)
