The 2025 Porsche Taycan 4S Cross Turismo is far from the fastest electric Porsche you can buy today; yet, after a week-long test, I reckon it’s the one to buy. It offers a superb ride quality and an elegant design that’s also practical; its vibe is old-money elitism married to modern technology. And of course, it’s quick enough to splatter your groceries onto the rear window if you stand on the accelerator.
While I don’t mean to reiterate the tired car-dork cliché, there’s just something special about a high-performance station wagon that an SUV can’t quite capture. Sure, the Macan EV might be easier to get in and out of, and the Cayenne’s all-around practicality is well established, but the low-slung seating position of the Taycan—even with the Cross Turismo’s extra ground clearance—gives it that real Porsche sports car feeling.
The Basics
The Cross Turismo wagon gives the Taycan EV a little extra ground clearance (0.7 inches) and some fender cladding. The huge rear hatch opens up to a wide and well-appointed cargo area, which you can expand by folding the seats. I like how thoughtfully designed this section of the car is. The pockets and retaining straps come in handy for securing groceries, backpacks, or whatever else you might have to haul around.
The Cross Turismo is 195.8 inches long with a 114.3-inch wheelbase and a 39.4-foot turning circle diameter. Unladen, it weighs 5,093 pounds and can carry another 1,268 pounds of passengers and payload.
Like its gas-powered siblings, the 4S moniker denotes a more powerful, all-wheel drive drivetrain. In this case, it boasts 509 horsepower and 523 lb-ft of max torque with launch control. A 10-second overboost function bumps it up to 590 hp for a quick pass. Its 97-kWh battery is supposed to deliver 272 miles of range, but I’ll discuss more realistic numbers shortly.
Air suspension gives you multiple ride heights, with the most elevated setting providing 6.9 inches of ground clearance. Not a whole lot, given that a Subaru Outback has about 9, but it’s more than enough to get over rutted roads and steep driveways. Despite being the “cross” version, this car is still pretty low to the ground—you’re dropping in, not climbing up, when you open the door.
Driving the 2025 Porsche Taycan 4S Cross Turismo
The Taycan’s interface is great. Aesthetically, it’s simple yet sophisticated. If you take the time to explore all the menus, you can customize the displays quite nicely. You can even deactivate the infotainment screen entirely, and it effectively disappears into the dashboard design.
The car itself has an “engine start” button, which I was grateful for—I don’t like the “hop in and it turns on, open the door and it turns off” power cycle automation I’ve dealt with in some other EVs, like the VW ID Buzz.
Like all modern Porsches, the Taycan 4S is swift and smooth. But I think the crux of what made the car so pleasant is how well it manages its weight. The vehicle feels very substantial below you—no surprise there, since it weighs 2.5 tons. However, it feels planted, not cumbersome.
My tester was equipped with a Performance Package featuring Porsche Torque Vectoring Plus (PTV+). That means the car has electronically controlled, fully variable torque distribution, which contributed significantly to this sensation. (Of course, the air suspension and wide tires help, too.) Call it high-mobility heft; wherever the car was on the road, and pretty much no matter the speed, it felt very secure. It steamrolled its way over bumps and broken road surfaces. But when it came time for evasive maneuvering or attacking corners, the 4S was instantaneously at attention.
What you won’t find much of in this car is road feel. It’s responsive, but isolated, almost like you’re flying a craft through space rather than communing with the pavement.
Acceleration is deeply satisfying when power’s applied judiciously—the car can bravely charge into action from almost any pace with a deep well of torque. The launch and boost functions, while objectively impressive, are not particularly fun or necessary to me. But if you enjoy the feeling of having your stomach pulled into your spine and don’t mind paying for tires all the time, you may feel differently.
Highs and Lows
The Taycan Cross Turismo feels like a spaceship; it’s a relaxing daily driver, but it’s still definitely a Porsche. It’s also simultaneously shouty while remaining classy. Anyone looking at it will be able to tell it’s an expensive car, but the fender flares and wagon configuration soften the showboater vibes. You ride into town on a quiet cloud of good taste with this thing, rather than a tornado of hostile elitism (looking at you, G-Wagens).
The low points? I’d be happy to see even more dashboard display customization options, and perhaps hard buttons for some of the basic media and climate functions instead of a touchscreen. But for what it is, a high-performance electric station wagon, the Taycan Cross Turismo is pretty much perfect.
Like all EVs, they’re bound to whatever charging infrastructure is near you, and that is too bad, because taking a Taycan Cross Turismo across the country would be delightful. Not impossible, of course, but you’d just need to be tactical about where you stop, when, and for how long.
2025 Porsche Taycan 4S Cross Turismo Features, Options, and Competition
There are three Taycan bodystyles: sedan, Sport Turismo (wagon), and this Cross Turismo (lifted wagon). From there, you’ve got rear-wheel-drive cars, the 4S all-wheel drives, and the super-fast Turbo models. For me, the 4S is the easy choice. There’s more than enough power and performance, and as with all other Porsches, the customization catalog is deep.
The big-ticket items that have the most significant impact on the driving experience are Porsche Active Ride air suspension ($7,140) and the Performance Package ($3,260), which add torque vectoring, rear axle steering, and aluminum pedals. You can easily spend thousands more on specific decorative options.
Analyzing the Taycan Turismo’s competition is a little tough. There are other highline wagons and electric luxury cars, but there isn’t a dead-on equivalent to this from other automakers right now. I could see people cross-shopping a BMW M5 Touring or a Tesla Model S—both look and feel very different. I’d certainly pick the Porsche over either, based on looks alone.
2025 Porsche Taycan 4S Cross Turismo Range and Charging
The Taycan 4S Cross Turismo has a 105 kWh gross battery capacity (97 kWh net). Charging it with an AC plug at 9.6 kW, from 0 to 100%, is supposed to take 13 hours. Charging at a DC charger with up to 150 kW from 10% to 80% is supposed to take 33 minutes, and charging from 10% to 80% with a DC fast charger at 320 kW should be done in just 18 minutes.
While I was not able to test this scientifically, I did plug the car into a 180 kW CCS charger and juiced the battery from 30% to 100% in about 45 minutes.
The car’s range is stated at 272 miles (82 mpge city, 77 highway, 80 combined). The way I was driving it, mostly politely with a few backroad attacks in fair weather, the displays indicated I’d be closer to 220 miles. The optional 20-inch wheels might have brought that down a bit, too. Expect your mileage to vary quite a bit in a car like this—the power demands are so dramatically different when you’re tootling along at 55 mph versus raging around backroads. Sites like the EV Database are a good resource for real-world range insights.
I have found that a minimum of 200 miles of range is enough to endure only minimal inconveniences without a home charger, at least here in New York’s Hudson Valley. The Taycan’s quick charging at the ViaLink station near a diner in Kingston made my re-powering pretty painless. By contrast, the VW I.D. Buzz and the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N didn’t seem quite as quick to take a recharge.
Value and Verdict
Value’s tricky when it comes to P cars—and my Taycan 4S Cross Turismo started at $125,200 but climbed to $165,655 after options. I already called out the options I think are worth springing for—but if deviated stitching or special colors turn you on, your local Porsche dealer will be thrilled to host you. Even after the jump-scare upcharges, this Taycan more than holds its own against other cars at that price point (or higher) in terms of all-around automotive excellence.
If charging’s not going to be a big hassle for you, a Taycan wagon is really hard to beat as a fun, handsome, and practical daily driver. Simply put, it just feels good to drive in a way that doesn’t come through on a spec sheet. While it may be heavy, it’s ultimately graceful at any speed.
| 2025 Porsche Taycan 4S Cross Turismo Specs | |
|---|---|
| Base Price (As Tested) | $125,200 ($165,655) |
| Gross Battery Energy (Net) | 105 kWh (97 kWh) |
| Horsepower | 509 (590 with boost) |
| Torque | 524 lb-ft |
| Curb Weight | 5,192 lbs (Euro spec) |
| 0-62 | 3.8 seconds (P4D Performance Pack) |
| Range | 272 miles (EPA) |
| Top Speed | 149 mph (P4D Performance Pack) |
| Cargo Capacity | 15.75 cu ft (behind seats) | 2.7 cu ft (frunk) |
| Score | 9/10 |
Quick Take
Comfortable, classy, quick, and extremely cool-looking.
Image Gallery
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