No more SUV 'coupes', says Porsche

Porsche will not build any more SUV ‘coupes’.

Even as the Porsche Cayenne Coupe  is launched in Europe, ahead of its Australian release in early 2020, the German sports car maker says it will be the first and last of its type.

Building a four-door fastback spin-off of their boxy SUVs has become a popular route for many car-makers, following a pattern that was pioneered by the BMW X6, but Porsche is not making any long-term commitment to applying the twin-hat system to its SUV platforms.

Its smaller SUV, the mid-size Porsche Macan, looks like an obvious target for a sportier spin-off body but Porsche says it has already moved the car's shape down and away from a high-riding box.

“We don’t speculate on future product, but we would say that the Macan already has a coupe-like swoop in the tail,” Porsche Cars Australia spokesman Chris Jordan tolds carsales.com.au.

Porsche has developed a habit of adding derivatives to its core models, something that began when the mid-engined Boxster roadster grew a roof to become the Cayman coupe.

We understand the original Porsche Macan was also intended as a two-door ‘coupe’, in the same vein as the now-discontinued two-door Range Rover Evoque, but that plan was scrapped.

More recently, Porsche has added the Sport Turismo wagon to the Panamera range and it will also offer a Cross Turismo version of the upcoming battery-electric Taycan sedan.

“We are always looking at maximising segment opportunities,” says Jordan.

So, with the questions on SUV shapes both covered and dismissed, the Macan story moves into electrification.

“The next big news for Macan is when we launch the all-electric version. That’s the next big development, not a body change,” says Jordan.

The all-new Taycan will be Porsche’s first production EV when it’s launched at the Frankfurt motor show in September and arrives in Australia around mid-2020s, and the Macan should offer battery power within two years.

“For electric, Taycan is first and the next two after that are Taycan Cross Turismo and Macan BEV,” said Jordan.

“We don’t have a timetable yet, but they are still a couple of years away.”