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Porsche brings its cheaper rear-wheel-drive Taycan to the US

The entry-level model starts at $81,250.

Porsche

Porsche has introduced a Taycan model that won’t make such large a dent on your bank account. As Autoblog reports, the latest version — simply called Taycan — starts at $81,250, including a $1,350 destination fee, That’s roughly $24,000 less than the Taycan 4S, and dramatically cheaper than the company’s Turbo and Turbo S models. Porsche has made the cost reduction by switching to a rear-wheel-drive setup. If that sounds familiar, it’s because the model was launched as a China exclusive last summer.

The entry-level Taycan comes in two flavors, Performance Battery and Performance Battery Plus, which offer 79.2 kWh and 93.4 kWh capacity respectively. If you believe WLTP testing, that should mean 268 miles (Performance Battery) and 301 miles (Plus) of range on a single charge.

While cheaper, the entry-level Taycan should still provide plenty of thrills. The Performance Battery and Battery Plus models share a top speed of 143MPH and can rush from zero to 60MPH in 5.1 seconds. For context, the Taycan 4S can hit 143MPH, while the Turbo and Turbo S are capable of reaching 161MPH. According to Autoblog, the Plus model can manage a quarter-mile in 13.5 seconds, which is slightly faster than its cheaper counterpart. Part of the Taycan’s impressive performance can be attributed to its weight. As CNET’s Roadshow reports, the basic Taycan weighs roughly 4,566 pounds, which is 205 pounds lighter than the 4S.

There are some other small differences between the new Taycan and its all-wheel-drive counterparts. The rims are a basic silver, for instance, instead of the polished versions found on the Taycan 4S. The brake callipers are black, too, rather than red. Otherwise, the entry-level model should look very familiar. The best part? The rear-wheel-drive Taycan is available to order right now in the US. The first deliveries are expected in the Spring, according to Autoblog, so it shouldn’t be too long before you can head out and — in an extremely safe and controlled manner — hit the brakes and pretend that you’re able to match the car’s Guinness World Record drift.