Macan 4 EV Detailed Review: 3 Days After Delivery

[RunningOnSolar]

Hi All,

Please read the first impressions post if this post is too long. This post is for those seriously considering the Macan or others who have already ordered.

Here are some additional details after 3 days and almost 200 miles (321 km) to expand on my first impressions posting.

Heads Up Display
Keeps your attention on the road. No need to glance down at the dashboard in most driving situations. The HUD works well with CarPlay navigation and displays a checkered flag when you arrive at your destination. AR (augmented reality) features show potential lane departures as a red line superimposed over the center or edge lines in your field of view. It also shows the car separation distance superimposed in your field of view for cruse control. However, the HUD can be distracting at night and puzzles passengers when you describe it because they can’t see it from their vantage point. It can be easily toggled on and off by pressing and holding the steering wheel left knurled switch (and volume control) if the HUD causes visual overload.

Rear Axle Steering
This tightens the turning circle and adds stability at higher speeds. It is a major component of the precision handling feel of the Macan. I cannot say enough good things about the Macan’s handling, but also can’t say how much handling degrades without it.

Powered charge port doors
I was holding them wrong and almost wrote a negative review as a result. By inspiration, I discovered guaranteed success steps:

1. Make sure the car is unlocked by using the fob. Comfort access unlocking may be insufficient.
2. Rest your hand gently on the edge of the charge port door closest to the taillight UNTIL the door starts to move (about 2 seconds). The owner’s manual tells you to lay your hand on the door, but not how long. Many reviewers touched and released too quickly. Waiting until the door moves means the charge port opens every time without fiddling. See note 1

Passenger display
Unless you have a passenger, this display shows you CarPlay album cover art and song info. It also gives you an impressive animation of the car’s taillights when your car wakes up. We confirmed that the CarPlay and Porsche Navigation run simultaneously at least when you run one it on the driver display and also on the passenger display. This allows combining charge planning and CarPlay use. Passenger display can also be skipped as an option by many. If you team well with your passenger, specify it.

Driver assistance usability
For those accustomed to driver assistance on the steering wheel, the assistance function stalk is initially quite awkward. You have to remind yourself upper left stalk for headlights and lower left stalk for driver assistance. Apologies to anyone that I flashed my brights at while getting used to this. They were doubtless thinking: “One of those Porsche drivers”. See note 2

Innodrive
A button on the bottom surface of the driver assistance stalk activates Innodrive. I forgot this detail from reading the manual and had to be reminded of it by my SA. I tried Innodrive on both highway and back roads. if you want to have confidence in Innodrive you really need to option the HUD too. When Innodrive anticipates a speed change (and is showing traffic signs) Innodrive signals the speed change to the right of the current speed in blue outlined rectangle. A curved arrow signals upcoming curves. You might want to bump the speed up a little with the stalk to stay with traffic as Innodrive strictly observes posted limits. Driving with Innodrive is a bit dance-like, similar to an able but cautious copilot. Tesla is far ahead in this respect, but I would not pay large sums to put my life in the hands of a self driving car (yet).

Surround View
My diamond button is assigned to Surround View and I appreciate this feature for parking precisely in spaces and when pulling into our barely big enough garage. I have not tried park assist, but will sometime (in an empty lot). Honestly, with the surround view perspective, you don’t need to trust the car to park itself. See note 3.

Charging
It is great to get a level 2 charging solution with the car and I’m using it. However, the Mobile Charger relies completely on the car for all settings and feedback. The app shows wording (“Target charge reached: 7 PM”) which made me think the charge info was from yesterday and it was actually in the future as I originally wrote this. I suggested different wording to Porsche. This may change.

i activated the battery conservation setting in the PCM which lengthens charge times and caps the charge percentage at 80%. for the bundled charger this means about 7% charge percentage per hour, I’m averaging 3 hour charge times per day if I want to go to 80% and I travelled about 60 miles today.

Range
Correction: I calculated my range at 320.5 miles (516 km) on a 95 kWh (available on a 100 kWh) battery. See my mumbers and Diego’s below.

Siri vs Porsche Voice Assistant:
Both Siri and Porsche voice assistants work from the same button. I use the Porsche assistant (short press) for vehicle only functions like temperature setting and Siri (long press) for music selection, navigation and typical Siri incidentals. They both have their strengths and weaknesses. It is better to combine both than choose.

User Interface
Most features are easy to find, but settings are all over the place. The quality of graphics and animation are excellent. There are a lot of great graphical touches. The AR HUD to quote You Tuber Gas Guzzler Reviews: “It truly is class leading”. The second amazing feature displays cars and trucks in front of and beside you. If it included behind it would be even better, but sensational for multi-lane highways when I drove in rush hour traffic this morning. See the picture below circled in orange, but unfortunately not populated with multiple lanes of cars.


Comparing EVs
This is our second EV. Our first is a Subaru Solterra. The Solterra is a fantastic commuter car, but is far surpassed by the Macan as a road trip car. I feel very comfortable driving each. The Solterra has a better design for its ACC steering wheel switches and has a very useful video rear view mirror. Otherwise the tech superiority style, handling, customization and comfort go to the Macan. To be fair the Macan is almost 2X the cost of the Solterra and so it needs to justify the price tag by being worth it.

Notes

1. I completely understand that powered charge ports could fail in long term use like pop up headlights did in the past. However, the charge port doors are a joy to use once you know how. I will also favor concentrating wear on the AC only charge port door to save the AC and DC charge port for as long as possible. If you are risk averse or want to save the cost, skip this option.
2. For some reason Macan switched from Taycan’s up/down for set, resume and cancel and forward and back to speed up and slow down to the opposite for Macan. Why?
3. Macan gets only one diamond button whereas Taycan has two. This was somewhat disappointing

Important Note
As revealed in the first impressions posting, adaptive headlights will be coming to all Macan EV models with the LED matrix headlight option (either as part of the premium package or ordered separately). I think most Macan EVs in EU or Canada already have adaptive headlights.

Some You Tube Videos I consulted prior to ordering:
Out of Spec Reviews
Savage Geese reviews
Gas Guzzler Reviews

Configuration You Tube Videos
Nick Murray
The Cycling Tech Guy
Martin Karel

Photos:

 

[Dragon Tourniquet]

I will also favor concentrating wear on the DC only charge port door to save the AC and DC charge port for as long as possible.

Just to clarify, isn't one of the ports AC only and the other AC+DC?

 

[RunningOnSolar]

Just to clarify, isn't one of the ports AC only and the other AC+DC?

Yes. Thanks for catching my mistake. I corrected it to say AC only now. That is why I save the AC and DC charge port by mostly using the charge port that is only AC.

 

[Dragon Tourniquet]

Yes. Thanks for catching my mistake. I corrected it to say AC only now. That is why I save the AC and DC charge port by mostly using the charge port that is only AC.

Mine is on order (delivery in Q1), so unfortunately I can't just go look, but which side is which? I'll need to park on a specific side of the garage because the approach angle / curve is tight and makes my wife a bit nervous to park on one of the sides.

 

[Diego]

Thanks for your complete review @RunningOnSolar!!!
Adaptive headlights (Matrix headlights) are simply amazing and I hope they will get to all my US friend as soon as possible.

 

[Salmonfisher]

Mine is on order (delivery in Q1), so unfortunately I can't just go look, but which side is which? I'll need to park on a specific side of the garage because the approach angle / curve is tight and makes my wife a bit nervous to park on one of the sides.

Just been over one in UK.
Ac and Dc is on passenger side rear and Ac only on drivers side rear

 

[Salmonfisher]

Just been over one in UK.
Ac and Dc is on passenger side rear and Ac only on drivers side rear

Just realised this is for a UK left hand drive car. So to be clear Ac/Dc is on left rear looking forward and Ac on right rear

 

[Sahajesh]

Same side as a Tesla then, I think.

 

[shawn]

Hi All,

Please read the first impressions post if this post is too long. This post is for those seriously considering the Macan or others who have already ordered.

Here are some additional details after 3 days and almost 200 miles (321 km) to expand on my first impressions posting.

Heads Up Display
Keeps your attention on the road. No need to glance down at the dashboard in most driving situations. The HUD works well with CarPlay navigation and displays a checkered flag when you arrive at your destination. AR (augmented reality) features show potential lane departures as a red line superimposed over the center or edge lines in your field of view. It also shows the car separation distance superimposed in your field of view for cruse control. However, the HUD can be distracting at night and puzzles passengers when you describe it because they can’t see it from their vantage point. It can be easily toggled on and off by pressing and holding the steering wheel left knurled switch (and volume control) if the HUD causes visual overload.

Rear Axle Steering
This tightens the turning circle and adds stability at higher speeds. It is a major component of the precision handling feel of the Macan. I cannot say enough good things about the Macan’s handling, but also can’t say how much handling degrades without it.

Powered charge port doors
I was holding them wrong and almost wrote a negative review as a result. By inspiration, I discovered guaranteed success steps:

1. Make sure the car is unlocked by using the fob. Comfort access unlocking may be insufficient.
2. Rest your hand gently on the edge of the charge port door closest to the taillight UNTIL the door starts to move (about 2 seconds). The owner’s manual tells you to lay your hand on the door, but not how long. Many reviewers touched and released too quickly. Waiting until the door moves means the charge port opens every time without fiddling. See note 1

Passenger display
Unless you have a passenger, this display shows you CarPlay album cover art and song info. It also gives you an impressive animation of the car’s taillights when your car wakes up. We confirmed that the CarPlay and Porsche Navigation run simultaneously at least when you run one it on the driver display and also on the passenger display. This allows combining charge planning and CarPlay use. Passenger display can also be skipped as an option by many. If you team well with your passenger, specify it.

Driver assistance usability
For those accustomed to driver assistance on the steering wheel, the assistance function stalk is initially quite awkward. You have to remind yourself upper left stalk for headlights and lower left stalk for driver assistance. Apologies to anyone that I flashed my brights at while getting used to this. They were doubtless thinking: “One of those Porsche drivers”. See note 2

Innodrive
A button on the bottom surface of the driver assistance stalk activates Innodrive. I forgot this detail from reading the manual and had to be reminded of it by my SA. I tried Innodrive on both highway and back roads. if you want to have confidence in Innodrive you really need to option the HUD too. When Innodrive anticipates a speed change (and is showing traffic signs) Innodrive signals the speed change to the right of the current speed in blue outlined rectangle. A curved arrow signals upcoming curves. You might want to bump the speed up a little with the stalk to stay with traffic as Innodrive strictly observes posted limits. Driving with Innodrive is a bit dance-like, similar to an able but cautious copilot. Tesla is far ahead in this respect, but I would not pay large sums to put my life in the hands of a self driving car (yet).

Surround View
My diamond button is assigned to Surround View and I appreciate this feature for parking precisely in spaces and when pulling into our barely big enough garage. I have not tried park assist, but will sometime (in an empty lot). Honestly, with the surround view perspective, you don’t need to trust the car to park itself. See note 3.

Charging
It is great to get a level 2 charging solution with the car and I’m using it. However, the Mobile Charger relies completely on the car for all settings and feedback. The app shows wording (“Target charge reached: 7 PM”) which made me think the charge info was from yesterday and it was actually in the future as I originally wrote this. I suggested different wording to Porsche. This may change.

i activated the battery conservation setting in the PCM which lengthens charge times and caps the charge percentage at 80%. for the bundled charger this means about 7% charge percentage per hour, I’m averaging 3 hour charge times per day if I want to go to 80% and I travelled about 60 miles today.

Range
I calculated my range at 294 miles, but that was with only 138 miles of use and 33 miles was the already on the car at purchase. I saw regen appear only recently on the gauge so this number may improve.

Siri vs Porsche Voice Assistant:
Both Siri and Porsche voice assistants work from the same button. I use the Porsche assistant (short press) for vehicle only functions like temperature setting and Siri (long press) for music selection, navigation and typical Siri incidentals. They both have their strengths and weaknesses. It is better to combine both than choose.

User Interface
Most features are easy to find, but settings are all over the place. The quality of graphics and animation are excellent. There are a lot of great graphical touches. The AR HUD to quote You Tuber Gas Guzzler Reviews: “It truly is class leading”. The second amazing feature displays cars and trucks in front of and beside you. If it included behind it would be even better, but sensational for multi-lane highways when I drove in rush hour traffic this morning. See the picture below circled in orange, but unfortunately not populated with multiple lanes of cars.


Comparing EVs
This is our second EV. Our first is a Subaru Solterra. The Solterra is a fantastic commuter car, but is far surpassed by the Macan as a road trip car. I feel very comfortable driving each. The Solterra has a better design for its ACC steering wheel switches and has a very useful video rear view mirror. Otherwise the tech superiority style, handling, customization and comfort go to the Macan. To be fair the Macan is almost 2X the cost of the Solterra and so it needs to justify the price tag by being worth it.

Notes

1. I completely understand that powered charge ports could fail in long term use like pop up headlights did in the past. However, the charge port doors are a joy to use once you know how. I will also favor concentrating wear on the AC only charge port door to save the AC and DC charge port for as long as possible. If you are risk averse or want to save the cost, skip this option.
2. For some reason Macan switched from Taycan’s up/down for set, resume and cancel and forward and back to speed up and slow down to the opposite for Macan. Why?
3. Macan gets only one diamond button whereas Taycan has two. This was somewhat disappointing

Important Note
As revealed in the first impressions posting, adaptive headlights will be coming to all Macan EV models with the LED matrix headlight option (either as part of the premium package or ordered separately). I think most Macan EVs in EU or Canada already have adaptive headlights.

Some You Tube Videos I consulted prior to ordering:
Out of Spec Reviews
Savage Geese reviews
Gas Guzzler Reviews

Configuration You Tube Videos
Nick Murray
The Cycling Tech Guy
Martin Karel

Photos:

I like the idea of using the diamond button for the surround view. I think it’s a good use of that feature.

 

[Daniel]

I like the idea of using the diamond button for the surround view. I think it’s a good use of that feature.

This was the case on my two previous Macan but since the "regen" button has disappeared (same as with J 2 Taycan) , I will use the "diamond" to activate and deactivate light regeneration.
What a strange idea from Porsche engineers!
I used this button a lot with my Taycan

 

[W1NGE]

The changes to the cruise / ACC control appear on J2 Taycan. The charging control is also the same on the Taycan so if used to that then transition should be straight-forward.

Park Assist / Remote Park Assist - former is what you get and Remote is the unattended parking. Surround is almost essential in the Taycan and I suspect no different in the Macan EV - big bonus is that your get side view (if no Remote option specified) and is a kerb saving delight. Not sure if this is on the Macan EV to - annoyingly it should be there once you have surround view and any layer on top shouldn't remove this key feature (blue line to mark the kerb).

 

[Daniel]

The charging control has been updated.
I hope that this 80% limit setting will avoid, as with the J1 Taycan, finding the car the next morning with 100%, sometimes and for various reasons, despite the programming being set to 85 maximum.
This really annoyed me for 3 years with the CT4

 

[W1NGE]

The charging control has been updated.
I hope that this 80% limit setting will avoid, as with the J1 Taycan, finding the car the next morning with 100%, sometimes and for various reasons, despite the programming being set to 85 maximum.
This really annoyed me for 3 years with the CT4

Timer and a profile is the answer-profile only is not reliable in my experience. Many will disagree.

 

[Diego]

Tried the programmed charges (charge at 80% and warm the car at 22C for departure at 6:00) and it worked fine (as my old Tesla did). Next week I have a long trip (800km in a day) and I will check my first 100% charge.

 

[Awaz]

@Diego
Your long trip review would be good.
Looking forward to it.

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