Porsche's Electric Flagship SUV Might Come With A V8

Porsche was going to have a big, electric SUV to sit above the Cayenne. The new flagship would have big shoes to fill: the Cayenne practically saved Porsche during its toughest years in the late 1990s and early aughts, after all. The new SUV, initially, would be a huge departure, having been fully and solely electric, unlike the Cayenne, which offers gas, electric, and hybrid powertrains. However, a new Autocar report alleges Porsche has abandoned the flagship's EV-only bent, opting instead for what will really amount to a bigger Cayenne.

Porsche dumps EV ambitions

Porsche allegedly called this upcoming SUV the K1, which would have used its own platform to support all those EV bits. Instead, the brand has pivoted the SUV to share a platform with the upcoming Audi three-row, the Q9, offering a range of gas powertrains.

The reason for this appears to be twofold: the market has cooled on EVs in the US, one of the brand's largest markets. Buyers want gas engines and hybrids after regulatory pullbacks made them more accessible and cost-effective than EVs. The switch to the new platform, the Volkswagen Group’s Premium Platform Combustion (PPC) architecture, will also grant more flexibility.

As a result, a host of options becomes available to Porsche. The SUV can be sold like a Cayenne: five seats with a gas engine. Or, it could be sold as an upscale seven-seat hybrid. Maybe the brand will sell it as a gas-only GLS-Class-fighting performance SUV. All these choices and more become available: three powertrains, a V6, a V8, and a hybrid setup, adds a lot of flexibility. Reportedly, we're talking about 350 to 730 horsepower depending on trim.

Porsche CEO Oliver Blume has alluded to this choice to retool the K1, though not so directly. Blume said in September that a combustion platform makes sense given "new market realities and changing customer demands."  The brand hasn't totally abandoned the electric version, but could sell it separately as it does with the Cayenne.