If the rumors are true, Porsche’s long “will they be, won’t they be” flirtation with electric sports cars could be coming to an end.
Rumors on the street say that the 718 Cayman and Boxster EV projects are on the verge of closure, reports the Telegraph.
If so, that’s a lot of money wasted. But for die-hard Porsche fans, this may offer some relief.
Building an electric sports car that meets Porsche’s famous standards is turning out to be much more difficult than the automaker initially anticipated.
Combine this with a projected year-over-year decline in electric vehicle sales through 2025, and Porsche is joining many other automakers in shifting its focus.
Electric cars are still selling, but the market for a true electric sports car is small and niche. In the meantime, Porsche needs momentum on the sales front.
Despite a record year in the US, global sales fell 10 percent compared to 2024. An expensive electric sports car is not the solution to the company’s sales problems.
However, that doesn’t mean Porsche is abandoning electric vehicles entirely. In Europe, one in every three Porsches sold by 2025 was electric.
Plug-in hybrid and fully electric models remain popular, accounting for nearly 58 percent of European sales.
The Porsche 718 is a legendary sports car in its own right. While the 911 often gets the spotlight – and rightly so – it’s the 718 that offers the purest sports car experience.
Anyone who has spent time behind the wheel of a 718 GTS 4.0 knows how close to perfection it really is.
What makes a car like the 718 special is the way it communicates with the driver. Weight distribution, steering response, suspension tuning and braking performance work together to create an analog driving experience.
And the key word here is analog. Modern technology can simulate many aspects of this sensation, but true enthusiasts are able to spot digital shortcuts or fake sensations in an instant.
If Porsche launched an electric 718 and tried to sell it with simulated exhaust notes, fake gear shifts, or other electric tricks, fans would likely destroy it.
Making a good electric sports car is not impossible. The low center of gravity and instant torque that electric cars offer can make driving exciting.
As battery weight drops and performance increases, electric sports cars become more feasible. Steer-by-wire technology could allow engineers to mimic the feel of classic sports cars.
But at the end of the day, the “feel” often has to be programmed. For those who pursue true analog thrills, that’s a problem. A Porsche Cayman EV, no matter how advanced, would struggle to deliver the same magic.
Porsche knows this. The company believes it can create a great electric sports car—but getting it right is incredibly difficult and increasingly expensive.
In the meantime, the simplest and most economical solution is to improve the existing Cayman and Boxster: modify the chassis and interior, refresh the styling and continue with a conventional petrol engine – or perhaps a hybrid powertrain, like the GTS configuration, as a bridge to a future electric vehicle. /Telegraph/
