- Porsche EVs won’t be simulating gas vehicles with noise or shifting
- The automaker looked into the tech but never built a prototype
- Dodge and Hyundai are simulating exhaust systems with speakers
Don’t expect a system simulating the feel of a gas-powered car with a multi-gear transmission appearing on an electric vehicle from Porsche.
Hyundai employs such a system on its Ioniq 5 N, and a few other automakers have hinted at using one, but Porsche won’t be one of them.
In an interview with Drive published on Monday, Porsche test driver Lars Kern said the automaker had looked at using such technology in sporty EVs, but decided against it as it goes against trying to drive as fast as possible.
“Obviously we look into what the competition does, but our perspective on this is always why should we make something worse?” he said.
He also said that Porsche still offers vehicles with gas engines and multi-gear transmissions, so it doesn’t make sense to replicate that feel with EVs.
Lars Kern
“We don’t want to fake the combustion engine because we still produce combustion engines, so we don’t see the point of doing it,” he said.
Hyundai’s system, known as the N e-shift, mimics the feel of an 8-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission by purposely cutting the power and torque delivery from an electric drive system to simulate the jolts between shifts you get in a gas-powered car. Toyota has gone a step further and developed a system that simulates a manual transmission complete with a clutch, which the automaker may use on EVs from its own brand as well as those from Lexus.
Other automakers plan to employ fake engine sounds for their EVs, like Dodge with its Charger Daytona.
While such technologies may seem like gimmicks, BMW M chief Frank van Meel recently said that they also provide a level of feedback for drivers which can especially be useful on a racetrack. He said when driving an EV with only a single gear and no sound on a track, gauging your speed can be difficult.
Porsche’s current EV lineup include the Taycan and a redesigned Macan. An electric 718 sports car is next in the pipeline, and will be followed by an electric Cayenne and a new electric SUV positioned above the Cayenne, according to the automaker’s most recent announcements.