While it has not received approval yet, an electric SUV could join the Mission E sedan in the Porsche lineup sometime in the next few years, reports Autocar. Even if it does get the green light, though, this model won’t appear for some time. The British car magazine says it will previewed by a concept car, but not until 2018 at the earliest.
The Porsche electric SUV will reportedly use a mix of components from the Mission E and the electric SUV from fellow Volkswagen Group brand Audi, which will start production in 2018. Based on the e-tron quattro concept from the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show, the Audi will use a three-motor powertrain that could be adapted to the Porsche. Naturally for an SUV, the Porsche will feature all-wheel drive.
Read more: Learn how Porsche built its lightning-fast Mission E concept
Porsche’s electric SUV could also get more coupe-like styling, similar to the e-tron quattro concept. It’s reportedly been described by insiders as a “Cayenne coupe,” even though it won’t share major components with that internal-combustion Porsche model. The electric model could serve as a more radical counterpart to the Cayenne, similar to how the Audi electric SUV will compare to the brand’s current Q7.
A second all-electric model could help Porsche amortize the cost of setting up production facilities to build the Mission E. The company is building a dedicated assembly line and paint shop for the electric car on the site of its current Zuffenhausen factory in Germany. Porsche plans to add 1,400 jobs for Mission E production.
If the Mission E stays close to the original 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show concept, it should be quite a stunner. The concept had 600 horsepower and could do 0 to 62 mph in under 3.5 seconds, Porsche said at the time. It also featured DC fast-charging system that could recharge the battery pack to 80-percent capacity in 15 minutes, significantly faster than current systems.
