Porsche CEO claims two power sources will be offered initially before Boxster and Cayman switch purely to electric motors
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by Chris Chilton
11 hours ago
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by Chris Chilton
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The two big news stories from this week’s Porsche annual press conference were the confirmation of an electric version of the Cayenne for 2026 and a couple of teaser images of the bigger, sportier K1 electric SUV that will sit above it from 2027.
But one other bit of interesting news that got lost in the mix was CEO Oliver Blume’s assertion that the introduction of the new all-electric 718 Boxster and Cayman won’t mean the end of combustion-powered versions of Porsche’s two-seat coupe and convertible.
Blume confirmed that the 718 EVs would go on sale in 2025, one year after the launch of the much-delayed electric Macan SUV, but said the zero emissions sports car twins would initially be offered in together with combustion versions of the older models. That strategy echoes the one Porsche is employing for the launch of the Macan EV, which will also be sold alongside an updated version of the current gasoline-powered SUV.
Electric 718 Boxster seen here in prototype form will be offered alongside older combustion model
“The 718 [is] scheduled to be fully electric by the middle of the decade,” said Blume, before adding that “we will launch the completely new model in parallel to the ICE version. In the medium run the 718 will then be exclusively available as an all-electric model.”
Blume didn’t say how long the new 718 EVs will be available alongside the current combustion models that date back to 2016, but it’s unlikely to be much more than a couple of years. Porsche has ambitions for electric vehicles to account for 80 percent of its new car sales by 2030, and hitting that target will mean cutting back on the availability of combustion cars.
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Offering two kinds of powertrain will help Porsche ease enthusiast buyers into the idea of an electric two-seat sports car, introducing them to the concept while still offering them something familiar if they aren’t ready for a fun-sized EV. It will also pave the way for something far more contentious: an all-electric 911. Porsche is holding back on creating a full EV out of its icon until 2030 at the earliest, but the 911 will get hybrid power by the middle of this decade as a stepping stone.
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