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Porsche says it was "wrong" to go all-in on electric power for the Macan SUV, but it is changing course and fast-tracking a new model to fill the gap left by its petrol predecessor.
Electric Cars
The global boss of the Volkswagen Group – and, until last week, Porsche – has revealed that it was "wrong" to switch the sports-car brand's top seller, the Macan SUV, to electric power.
But the executive has acknowledged that, given the rapid growth in electric-car sales when the call was made, Porsche would not have made any other decision, were it placed in the same situation again.
The frank admission by Oliver Blume comes as Porsche fast-tracks the development of a new mid-size, petrol-powered SUV to sell alongside the electric Macan, which has not proven as popular as its internal combustion-engined predecessor.
It will be developed in three years – down from Porsche's usual five-year timeframe – by drawing heavily on the bones of the new petrol and plug-in hybrid Audi Q5.
"Based on the data available at the time and our assessment of our markets, we would make the same decision again [to go electric-only]. Today, the situation is different. We have responded and are adding combustion engines and hybrids."
The VW Group CEO was succeeded as head of Porsche on January 1, 2026, by ex-McLaren boss Michael Leiters.
"Our strategy was to offer combustion engines, hybrids, and electric sports cars in each of our three segments – but not for every product."
Plans to introduce electric power for the second-generation Macan were announced in February 2019, weeks before the reveal of the Tesla Model Y, the first electric vehicle to become the world's best-selling car.
Interest in electric cars reached a peak in 2022 and 2023 – as supply restrictions contributed to long wait times – but by the time the electric Macan launched in 2024, demand for battery power in luxury cars had cooled.
Electric-car demand has since picked up in sub-$100,000 cars, but it remains modest in the prestige-car market, and has prompted Porsche to backflip on a goal for 80 per cent of its sales to be electric-only in 2030.
New generations of the Cayenne and Panamera will also offer petrol and plug-in hybrid power.
Work has begun on a new mid-size petrol Porsche SUV to complement the Macan, which is based on a dedicated electric platform, so is more difficult to convert back to fuel-burning propulsion.
The outgoing, first-generation Macan is due to end for its final markets in 2026, but the plug was pulled for Australia in 2024 ahead of the electric version's launch.
Porsche reported 212,509 global deliveries between January and September 2025, down 6 per cent on the prior year, amid a 26 per cent slump in China, 16 per cent decline in Germany, and 4 per cent slide in the rest of Europe.
Yet Macan sales were actually up 18 per cent over that period, likely helped by the petrol model still being in production for certain regions.
About 56 per cent of global Macan sales in the first nine months of 2025 were electric.
Porsche announced late last year that it expected to post a financial return on sales in 2025 of only two per cent, down from an earlier forecast on 12 per cent.
Its finances and global sales have also been affected by slowing demand in the important Chinese market, as well as US import tariffs taking a chunk out of its profits.
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Alex Misoyannis has been writing about cars since 2017, when he started his own website, Redline. He contributed for Drive in 2018, before joining CarAdvice in 2019, becoming a regular contributing journalist within the news team in 2020. Cars have played a central role throughout Alex’s life, from flicking through car magazines at a young age, to growing up around performance vehicles in a car-loving family. Highly Commended - Young Writer of the Year 2024 (Under 30) Rising Star Journalist, 2024 Winner Scoop of The Year - 2024 Winner
