Porsche crossovers may go EV, coupe route

LOS ANGELES — Porsche will make a final decision next year whether to build full battery-electric and coupe versions of its Cayenne and Macan crossovers.

Porsche CEO Oliver Blume told Automotive News at an auto show event here last week that the company will announce its next electromobility project in the first half of 2018.

That second project will follow an electric sports sedan based on the Mission E concept that is due in 2019.

"We have to check if it makes sense for Porsche to come with an SUV," Blume said. "But the so-called Mission E isn't going to be the last project in electromobility. We will continue. That's very, very clear."

Porsche executives have said an electric version of the Macan compact crossover is a possibility. The regular Macan is due to be redesigned in 2022. Porsche also has been said to be developing a coupe body style for the Macan that likely would arrive as an EV in 2021 or 2022.

Blume acknowledged the potential for coupe variants of the Macan and Cayenne midsize crossover. Porsche will decide in 2018 whether to commit to the coupe-style crossovers, he said.

"There might be opportunities for the future," Blume said. "But it always depends on the volume behind it. We analyze each segment, and where we will have an opportunity, we will take the opportunity."

Porsche is said to be developing a coupe variant for the Cayenne that could arrive as early as 2019. It would give Porsche a rival for the BMW X6 and Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe.