The comprehensive rethink of Porsche’s future model line-up has been triggered by current market conditions, well-placed sources within the company have told Autocar.
Originally, Porsche had aimed to make 80% of its global sales electric by 2030. The Macan – which has long been its second-best-selling model, after the Cayenne – was earmarked to spearhead this EV push and Porsche made the second-generation version electric-only.
At the time, Porsche ruled out a combustion Macan successor, citing the prohibitive cost of developing two distinct versions. But amid a 67% year-on-year fall in pre-tax profits in the first half of 2025, a sharp 28% drop in China and rising US tariffs on European car imports, Porsche has elected to replace the combustion Macan with a new model instead.
Porsche CEO Oliver Blume confirmed the programme in July, describing the new SUV as a “very, very typical Porsche for this segment” and stressing that it will be “differentiated from the [electric] Macan”. He also noted that the M1’s short, three-year development was “speeding up the process” of bringing it to market. A new Porsche typically takes five years from concept to road.
To hit that deadline, the new model will lean heavily on the Q5. Sources say Porsche managers have already seen early design concepts, which outline an SUV with petrol power and mild-hybrid assistance, and a four-wheel drive system biased to the front axle. Plug-in hybrid and diesel variants are not planned.
The entry-level Q5 offers clues as to what to expect. It is powered by the group’s 2.0-litre hybrid turbo petrol four, producing 201bhp and 251lb ft, and drives through a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox. Audi claims 0-62mph in 8.6sec and a 140mph top speed.
In time, a broader line-up of performance variants – badged S, GTS and Turbo – are expected to be offered. Higher-powered engines and adaptive chassis tuning are claimed to be under consideration.
A production location for Porsche’s new BMW X3 and Mercedes-Benz GLC rival has not yet been confirmed, although two sites are said to be under review. One is Audi’s San José Chiapa plant in Mexico, where the Q5 is built. The other is Porsche’s plant in Leipzig, Germany, which builds the ICE Macan.
By
