Porsche Macan Turbo - long-term-review

“I’m a big fan of electric cars, actually – I’ve got an electric Porsche Macan, which I love.” So said Rob Dickinson, founder and executive chairman of Singer, during Top Gear’s recent ‘Boss Chat’ with Christian von Koenigssegg and Mate Rimac.

And just like that, after months of trying to find a Macan Electric owner, having canvassed the likes of Porsche Club GB’s forum in vain, I had (unexpectedly) someone to ask.

We first met in late 2014, when I took a then-new 991-generation Porsche 911 straight from the international launch, to see Rob and co. when they had a mere handful of cars to their name. Times have changed, Singer has grown exponentially, and Rob’s the last person I expected to be an EV proponent.

“It’s been an interesting ownership experience, actually – it’s our first electric vehicle. It was a no-brainer that we went to Porsche really. I’m lucky enough to have what is perhaps the ultimate two-car modern Porsche garage: I’ve got a 2018 GT3 Touring, which is the antidote to our Macan 4 Electric. And if we needed any proof that the electric revolution is a nuanced one, I think those two cars spell it out for me.

“I drive my son to Malibu every Sunday, and we take the GT3 and go through the canyons (which are some of the finest driving roads in the world) and you realise what the joy of during is. And we’ve never taken the Macan.

“But as I said during the [boss] chat, it’s incredibly convenient. Generally, we’re enjoying it, mainly for its convenience, mainly for its ability to be incredibly fast, incredibly discreetly. The ability to zip around, to find spots in traffic, without undue drama, is one of the things I like about it the most.

“But Porsche is clearly looking to define something that they have unavoidably lost with the democratisation of speed. All of these EVs are fast now, which is one thing Porsche had up its sleeve and mainstream cars didn’t. Porsche is trying to find what makes a Porsche special when it’s no faster than anything else. I would say the steering is very nice compared to other stuff I’ve driven, and the oily, highly developed touchpoints of a car make it feel like a Porsche.”

Did a man whose company motto is ‘everything is important’ buy it from dealer stock?

“No, we specced it! Black metallic, green-leather interior, 22in wheels, done. I insisted we had to have the 22s, which bring the car a certain proportion that starts to make sense. But with those wheels comes the usual payback of bump/thumb; the huge unsprung weight hanging off those axles is very evident when you hit the wrong obstacle. Someone said ‘beauty is pain’ so we put up with it because it makes the car look better.

“We have never used a [public] charger; we just stick it in the garage and plug it in there. We’ve never been to a charging station and never been on a long journey. This year’s Monterey Car Week, I debated for a second taking the car, which would have required a top up halfway, and I thought ‘I don’t want to do that, I don’t want to bother’ so I took the 911 instead.

“The massive irritation for me is the key fob: the first button is the release for the frunk, so the number of times I walk up and opening the f**ing frunk. I’m a luddite so I always click a button and click the one that opens the front.

“With radar cruise control, it’s just so useful and easy and in certain circumstances you want easy. But when you want to drive a car and fill the thrill of life, you get in your GT3.”