Porsche has big plans for its model range going forward. Electrified vehicles will play an increasingly vital role in the lineup due to increasingly stringent emission and fuel economy regulations. The Macan comes to mind, a sporty crossover that became fully electric in 2024 for the 2025 model year. Now powered by four- and six-cylinder turbocharged and free-breathing boxers, the 718 will switch to electrons no later than 2025.
Spied on countless occasions by the carparazzi, the 718 Boxster EV has been recently photographed with production headlights and taillights. Pictured in Sweden, the latest prototypes appear to be stylistically influenced by the refreshed Taycan.
Codenamed 983, the 718 Boxster EV – or whatever it will be called – is based on a new platform. Zuffenhausen's favorite son made it clear that its two-door electric sports car will get a bespoke platform. The relatively short wheelbase means that Porsche couldn't have adapted the J1 platform of the Taycan for this model, which likely means that Porsche modified the PPE of the Macan EV for the 718 Boxster EV.
PPE stands for Premium Platform Electric. Similar to the J1, the new architecture features an 800-volt system, resulting in better acceleration and faster charging. There is also talk about the Sport version of the Scalable Systems Platform, yet the SSP will be launched in 2026.
In any case, you can look forward to a proper sports car. Porsche has already proven that electric vehicles can be thoroughly exciting with the increasingly popular Taycan electric sedan, which lapped the Nurburgring Nordschleife in 7 minutes and 7 seconds. In other words, the yet-to-be-launched Taycan Turbo GT is almost 10 seconds faster than a 992-generation 911 Turbo S Coupe.
Photo: Baldauf
The Macan EV – which is advertised as the Macan because a combustion-powered successor isn't coming anytime soon – is currently available in two flavors: Macan 4 and Macan Turbo. They both feature dual motors, but in the 983's case, rear-wheel drive seems more fitting. A dual-motor specification is probably going to happen as well.
Active cooling flaps in the front bumper's air intakes are definitely happening, and chances are that Porsche will further give this fellow rear-axle steering and two-valve dampers. Nobody will miss the 2.0- and 2.5-liter turbocharged boxers of the outgoing 982, but we'll sure miss the naturally aspirated 4.0er of the GTS 4.0, Spyder, and GT4.
From the standpoint of aural pleasure, an electric drive unit is far more clinical than a high-revving boxer. Even so, the near-instant torque of an electric motor connected to an 800-volt battery pack will result in relentless acceleration. Responsiveness is a different matter altogether in this context, for it depends exclusively on the software calibration.
Depending on regulations and customer demand, the 982 will soldier on for a few more years. The only exceptions are South Korea, Japan, and the European Union because said markets will adopt new auto cybersecurity regulations in July 2024. Head of research and development Michael Steiner declared that updating the 982 to meet said regulations would be too expensive for Porsche, meaning that South Korea, Japan, and European markets will have to settle for the upcoming 983.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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