Car Enthusiast - click here to access the home page


 


Porsche digitises Taycan’s interior. Image by Porsche AG.

Porsche digitises Taycan’s interior
Up to five digital display screens possible in high-tech cabin of the Porsche Taycan EV.
<< earlier Porsche article     later Porsche article >>

 


News homepage -> Porsche news


What's all this about?

The epochal Porsche Taycan is very close to being unveiled in all its glory at the Frankfurt Motor Show, but we've already been invited to have a poke around its interior. And we can tell you that it's very, very high-tech. You can, for instance, have up to five digital screens dotted about the car, four of them touch-sensitive, with the possibility of a head-up display (HUD) further down the line taking the tally to (potentially) six.

Five screens?!

Yes. And no physical air vent controls, either.

You what?! What do you control them by, telekinesis?!

Nope, you use a touchscreen. Indeed, the interior of the Taycan is heavily digitised. Miriam Mohamad, the director of User Interfaces for the EV, says that the driver experience is defined by 'less is always faster'. This is why the Taycan's cabin has very few physical buttons and a streamlined look to the fascia, although it still takes the 911's interior design as its role model. So there's a wide, low feel to the dashboard, the seating position is low and sporty, and the driver's cockpit is focused around their seating position, as is right of a true Porsche.

I've spotted a problem - where's the cowl for the instrument cluster?

There isn't one. This freestanding, 16.8-inch TFT screen has curved glass with a coating that allows it to be legible in bright sunlight and which also prevents it from reflecting up onto the windscreen at night. Light blue highlights for active elements team with customisability and various viewing modes, including one where only the speed is shown on a black background which made us think of an old Saab and the Night Panel, if you know what we mean. Even the headlight 'buttons' and the chassis controls are arrayed on this screen, with touch-sensitive panels arrayed down each side of the unit.

Cor! So what does the centre screen have to do, then?

This 10.9-inch item controls all of the Taycan's onboard apps from one home screen, this being displayed in a tile-graphics formation. Once again, it's fully configurable and has haptic feedback when you press it, while the Notification Centre bundles all types of messages in one place - things like car warning messages, texts from the owner's smartphone, live traffic announcements from the satnav (which has new mapping graphics, as well) and any available over-the-air software updates are found here. Language recognition Voice Control is prompted by saying 'Hey Porsche', the infotainment supports Apple CarPlay (but not Android Auto, as Porsche owners are 80 per cent Apple users) via USB (Bluetooth connectivity of this is on the cards - find the update in the Notification Centre, presumably) and it can be controlled via a 'blank' bit of the 8.4-inch touchscreen below it in a touchpad-stylee.

Is that 8.4-inch item the climate control screen, because I'm still worrying about these air vents?

It is. To keep the Taycan's smooth-looking cabin intact, Porsche has designed a new type of air vent which has flaps located deep within it that are controlled by small motors. If you want to adjust the direction of airflow into the cabin, you therefore use the 8.4-inch screen and a nifty little graphic to move a blue virtual stream of air to where you want it; you should then find the Taycan's HVAC system responds in the real world and cools your face/elbow/thigh etc (delete as appropriate).

So, cluster, infotainment and climate - that's three screens. Where are the other two?

One is in the back of the car, centrally mounted on the back of the (for want of a much better word) transmission tunnel, and it's not a touchscreen - it's just a digital display for the split-zone rear-seat climate control. The fifth is an option, so it won't be seen on all Taycans necessarily, but it's another 10.9-inch touchscreen with infotainment functions on it, only this time mounted on the passenger-side dash so they don't feel left out in HMI terms. This screen cannot control driving functions (suspension, drive modes etc) and is deactivated if there's no passenger in the car (the Porsche uses weight sensors, like a seatbelt warning chime, to detect if the passenger seat is occupied and responds accordingly) to prevent distraction of the driver.

Blimey, this is all very clever. What else can you tell me?

Just a few other details. There's wireless smartphone charging in the centre armrest, behind the 8.4-inch climate touchscreen is a hidden storage area in the lower dashboard, there will be a choice of two different types of steering wheel (normal and GT Sport) and three types of seat (normal, Comfort and Sport), various materials used in the cabin will be sustainable and ecologically sound items like Paldao wood and biologically tanned Alea leather, and Mohamad said that Porsche is working on a HUD to be available for the Taycan as soon after launch as was possible. Oh, and finally, the stubby little gearlever seen in the current 992, which looks like a men's electric razor, is present on the Taycan - but it's mounted on a vertical bit of the dash panel, just to one side of the steering wheel.



Matt Robinson - 22 Aug 2019

Earlier articles featuring 2020 Porsche Taycan

2018-12-18: Porsche to cut EV charging times
2018-10-22: Tech details of the Porsche Taycan revealed


2020 Porsche Taycan Interior. Image by Porsche AG.2020 Porsche Taycan Interior. Image by Porsche AG.   








www.porsche.co.uk    - Porsche road tests
- Porsche news
- Taycan images






Porsche’s £186,000 Taycan Turbo GT is a 1,108hp electric saloon. Image by Porsche.
Porsche Taycan Turbo GT reveal
New lightweight, more potent Taycan variant is Porsche’s most powerful production car ever.
 
Porsche adds more hybrids to new Panamera range. Image by Porsche.
Porsche Panamera 4 E-Hybrid and 4S E-Hybrid revealed
German company grows hybrid saloon range with two new V6-based models.
Porsche Taycan gets more power, more range. Image by Porsche.
Porsche Taycan updated for 2024
All of the Taycan, the Sport Turismo and the Cross Turismo EVs are treated to a useful round of updates from parent company Porsche.

 
 215 Racing
 9ff
 A. Kahn Design
 Abarth
 Abt
 AC Cars
 AC Schnitzer
 Acura
 Aehra
 AIM
 Alfa Romeo
 Alpina
 Alpine
 Amari
 APS Sportec
 Arash
 Arden
 Ares
 Ariel
 Arrinera
 Artega
 Ascari
 Aston Martin
 Atalanta
 Atomik
 Audi
 Austin
 Auto Union
 Autodelta
 Autofarm
 Autosport
 AVA
 Avatar
 Axon
 Aznom
 BAC
 BAIC
 Bentley
 Bertone
 Bizzarrini
 Bloodhound
 Bluebird
 BMW
 Bosch
 Bowler
 Brabham
 Brabus
 Breckland
 Bridgestone
 Brilliance
 Bristol
 Bugatti
 Buick
 Burton
 BYD
 Cadillac
 Callaway
 Callum
 Caparo
 Capstone
 Carlsson
 Caterham
 CCG
 Chang'an
 Changfeng
 Chevrolet
 Chevron
 Chongfeng
 Chrysler
 Citroen
 Climax
 Connaught
 Cooper Tires
 Corvette
 Cummins
 Cupra
 Dacia
 Daewoo
 Daihatsu
 Daimler
 Dartz
 Datsun
 David Brown
 David Brown Automotive
 DDR
 De Tomaso
 Delta
 Detroit Electric
 Devon
 Dodge
 Donkervoort
 Drayson
 DS
 Eagle
 Eagle E-type
 EDAG
 edo competition
 Eterniti
 Everrati
 Evisol
 Exagon
 FAB Design

 
 Factory Five
 Faralli & Mazzanti
 Fenix
 Fenomenon
 Ferrari
 Fiat
 Fisker
 Ford
 G-Power
 Geely
 Gemballa
 General Motors
 Genesis
 Ginetta
 Giugiaro
 Glickenhaus
 GMC
 Goodwood
 Google
 Gordon Murray
 Gordon Murray Automotive
 Gordon Murray Design
 Gray Design
 Great Wall
 GTA
 GTM
 Gumpert
 Hamann
 Hartge
 HBH
 Heffner Performance
 Hennessey
 HERE
 HiPhi
 Holden
 Honda
 Hulme
 Hummer
 Hyundai
 I.D.E.A
 Icona
 IFR
 Infiniti
 Ionity
 Isis
 JAC
 Jaguar
 Jeep
 Jensen
 Jetstream
 JJAD
 Joss Developments
 Kahn
 Kamala
 Keating
 Kia
 Koenigsegg
 KTM
 Kumho
 Lada
 Lagonda
 Lamborghini
 Lancia
 Land Rover
 Lexus
 Liberty
 Lightning
 Lincoln
 Lister
 Loma Performance
 Lorinser
 Lotus
 LupiniPower
 Luxgen
 Mahindra
 Mansory
 Maserati
 Mastretta
 Maybach
 Mazda
 McLaren
 Mercedes
 Mercedes-AMG
 Mercedes-Benz
 Mercedes-Maybach
 Mercury
 Metrocab
 MG
 Michelin
 MINI
 Mitsubishi
 MMI
 Monte Carlo
 Mopar
 Morgan
 Mosler
 MTM
 Munro
 NAC MG
 Nichols Cars
 Nissan
 NLV

 
 Noble
 Novitec
 Opel
 Overfinch
 Pagani
 Perodua
 Peugeot
 Piaggio
 Pininfarina
 Polestar
 Pontiac
 Porsche
 Praga
 Preview
 Prodrive
 Project Runningblade
 Project Velocity
 Proton
 Protoscar
 Qoros
 Radical
 Range Rover
 Red Bull
 Renault
 Reva
 Rimac
 Rinspeed
 RoadRazer
 Rolls-Royce
 Ronn Motor Company
 Rover
 RUF
 Saab
 SAIC
 Saleen
 Saturn
 Scagliarini
 SCG
 Scion
 SDR Sportscars
 SEAT
 Sin
 Singer
 Skoda
 Smart
 Soleil
 Spada
 speedArt
 Sportec
 Spyker
 SRT
 Ssangyong
 SSC
 Startech
 STaSIS
 Subaru
 Suzuki
 Suzusho
 TAD
 Tamiya
 Tata
 Techart
 Tesla
 The Little Car Company
 THINK
 Thunder Power
 Tojeiro
 Tommy Kaira
 TomTom
 Toray
 Toyota
 Trabant
 TranStar
 Trident
 Tushek
 TVR
 UKCOTY
 Vanda Electrics
 Vauxhall
 Velozzi
 Vencer
 Venturi
 Veritas
 Vizualtech
 VL Automotive
 Volkswagen
 Volvo
 VUHL
 WCA
 WCotY
 Webasto
 Westfield
 Wiesmann
 Xenatec
 Yamaha
 Zagato
 Zarooq
 Zeekr
 Zenos
 Zenvo



 
 






External links:   | Irish Car Market News |

Internal links:   | Home | Privacy | Contact us | Archives | Old motor show reports | Follow Car Enthusiast on Twitter | Copyright 1999-2024 ©