Audi Workers Help with Ramped Up Taycan Production
Porsche borrows 400 workers from Audi to help them keep up with extreme demand for the Taycan.
Strong Demand
Porsche spent a very long time developing the new Taycan, its first-ever mass-production electric vehicle. And the result is a truly game-changing sedan that's been well-received by everyone who's driven it thus far. But the Taycan is also proving to be a big seller, to the point where Porsche is borrowing 400 Audi workers to help them keep up with current demand, according to German news site Automobilwoche.
Photos: Porsche
Longer Term
Those 400 employees will stick around for a full two years, at the very least, in an attempt to meet what has proven to be unexpectedly high demand for the electric sedan. The workers come from a variety of areas on the production line, including assembly, body shop, and paint.
Photos: Porsche
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Record Demand
Demand for the Taycan has been high since Porsche began taking pre-orders for the car back in 2018. Originally, the automaker expected to sell around 20,000 units in its first year of production but quickly doubled that number to 40,000 after orders began rushing in.
Photos: Porsche
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Real Threat
The Taycan's success is great news for both Porsche and the electric vehicle market overall, but also clearly bad news for Tesla, which has dominated that segment thus far. The Taycan is the first real threat to Elon Musk's brand, which has long remained atop the best-selling EV in America list.
Photos: Porsche
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Growing Competition
This year alone, Tesla has produced four of the top five best-selling EVs in America. However, mainstream automotive manufacturers are beginning to roll out some competitive models. Along with the Taycan, that includes vehicles like the Jaguar I-Pace, Volvo's Polestar, and the Audi e-Tron, to name a few.
Photos: Porsche
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Premium Offering
Of course, Tesla produces a full lineup of EVs, which includes sedans and SUVs, priced from the low $30k range up past $100k. The Taycan starts out at just over $100k right now, which makes it a decidedly premium offering. It's possible that the currently China-only base model makes it to the U.S., but that hasn't happened yet.
Photos: Porsche
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Good Things to Come
Of course, Porsche is a premium performance brand, so it isn't like it'll ever be going after Tesla in every conceivable way. But the Taycan is a direct threat to the Model S, and that burgeoning competition will only mean good things for anyone thinking about getting into the ultra-high-performance EV sedan segment moving forward.
Photos: Porsche
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