When electric vehicles first took to Australian streets a little over a decade ago, there was one shape, one size and one aura. 10 years later, however, the landscape has evolved in an almost unexpected way. Born-and-bred motorheads have historically insisted that no electric car could compare to the hum of a performance, fuel-injection motor. But 2026's suite of EVs proves them all wrong.
When the Macan Electric first hit Australian roads, I was lucky enough to be one of the first in the driver's seat. Now, years later, I spent a week driving around in the new, all-electric Porsche Macan GTS and it was more exciting that any petrol car I've ever driven.
GTS stands for 'Gran Turismo Sport', and the cursive badge acts as Porsche's signature commitment to those who love to drive. It isn't always the flashiest model in a the range. But it's the enthusiast's car. The one tuned for the person who still loves to drive. Every drive in a GTS model just feels that little bit more special.
On paper, the difference between the entry-level Macan and this GTS reads like a standard list of specs and numbers, but the way they come together makes it special. The standard Macan 4 EV makes do with a single motor turning the rear wheels; the GTS adds a second motor at the front. This turns an already quick car into one that can match the 0-100km speeds of some supercars, even with all those batteries on-board.
The Macan GTS EV also sits lower to the road, on fancy air suspension that hunkers down and firms up the harder you lean on it. There's even rear-wheel steering to shrink the car around you in the corners, and bigger brakes to hold it all down. Porsche has even balanced that heavy battery pack further down in the car so your centre of gravity is lower to the road, for a better drive when the roads get twisty.
All of that is impressive, to be sure, but a spec sheet is always going to be a poor emulator for how something special can make you feel when you experience it for yourself. I drove around with friends and family in the Macan GTS, and what starts as 'oohs' and 'aah' over its styling, breaks through into infectious smiles over faces when it's time to unbuckle the seatbelt at the destination.
The Porsche engineers who built the new Macan GTS connect you with the road in a way that most electric car makers can only dream of. The steering has weight and honesty to it, and the wheels bite the road confidently the second you ask for it. And the windier the bends, the smaller and sportier the car feels as you weave in and out. It is actually quite astonishing that something this big and heavy – almost two tonnes of German luxury – comes together to forget how heavy it is when it's time to go somewhere quickly.
It used to be sacrilege to suggest that you could take the petrol-powered heart out of something like a Porsche GTS model and replace it with batteries and brushless motors. But 10 years later, Porsche engineers found a way to make lights and clockwork feel just as special to drive. And dare I say more exciting, knowing the engineering feats that pulled this experience together.
The Macan GTS EV was built as a driver's car first before it was bolstered with modern conveniences. It was never made to be an appliance first. The screens, the assistance systems, the cosseting comfort you expect of a luxury SUV – they're all present and accounted for, but they know their place. Those modern conveniences actually all jump out of the way to give you that all-important spirited drive when you want it, and resume their important work when it's time to get back to reality and its peak-hour problems.
The Macan GTS then is more than a car, it's an experience. One that shows that EVs can and should be more than perfunctory. They can still be for drivers who really love the drive.
