Porsche Fast-Tracks New Compact SUV With Gas And Hybrid Power
Falling sales, shrinking profits and a smaller than expected EV market are forcing Porsche to put energy into new combustion models
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by Chris Chilton
Porsche’s CEO has reiterated commitment to developing more combustion cars.
EV sales are strong, but the market is growing much more slowly than expected.
New ICE Macan is coming, K1 super-SUV could get combustion and EV options.
Much has changed for Porsche since its 2022 stock market debut, and we’re not just talking about the share price, which has fallen to less than half of its peak value. Sales are down, too, and so is faith in the electric-focused future model plan Porsche had put in motion before the IPO. Now the company’s boss admits it was wrong to turn away from combustion power, and he’s taking steps to rectify the mistake.
Related: Porsche Could Announce A New Macan ICE As Soon As March
Maybe mistake is too harsh a word. Porsche created its EV-heavy product strategy, which included phasing out the combustion 718 twins and Macan in favor of electric versions, when all the market signals pointed to sustained growth in EV sales and the brand was flying high in China. It didn’t read the signals wrong, the signals themselves proved to be wrong.
After Sales Slump, Strategy Shift
“We continue to face significant challenges around the world,” CEO Oliver Blume conceded as Porsche announced half-year figures showing total sales were down 6 percent and profit had slumped by a scary 67 percent. “This is not a storm that will pass. The world is changing dramatically, and above all, differently than expected just a few years ago,” he added.
That’s not to say Porsche’s EVs have gone down like lead balloons. Taycan sales were strong until recently, and the new Macan Electric has been a big hit. More than a third of all Porsches sold in Europe are now fully electric, and half of buyers choosing a Macan, Porsche’s best selling model, go for the EV.
That gives the brand a bigger slice of the electric segment than some of its rivals, but the slower than expected growth in the EV market – particularly in the US, where growth appears to be stalling – means that segment is smaller than predicted.
Macan’s ICE Successor Coming By 2028
Porche
Part of Blume’s plan to steady the ship is to put more energy into traditional combustion models. “A more balanced drivetrain portfolio from 2028 onward will enhance market positioning and underpin sustainable long-term growth,” said Blume.
It’s not abandoning EVs by any means, but the Macan Electric is getting a previously unplanned ICE counterpart after all. When asked by an investor during the H1 2025 Earnings Call about the ICE Macan’s successor, Blume revealed that it will be introduced no later than 2028.
“It won’t be later than 2028. We’re developing a compact SUV with both ICE and hybrid versions,” said Blume. “And that’s what we said by the end of the decade, a global rollout in all markets. We are speeding up the process with very short development times and making a very, very typical Porsche for this segment and also differentiated from the BEV Macan. So we think, especially for the SUVs now, we’ll have a very flexible product lineup between Macan and Cayenne across all drivetrain options.”
Our spies recently spotted a test mule for Porsche’s compact ICE SUV, hidding beneath a modified Audi Q5 body shell.
One thing Blume didn’t clarify is whether the new combustion-powered compact SUV will retain the Macan name or debut under a new nameplate, potentially setting it apart from its electric sibling. That decision could signal how closely Porsche intends to align the two models, or how much distance it wants between them.
Furthermore, the Cayenne (pictured below) will be offered with a choice of electric and combustion engines and the electric K1 super-SUV due at the end of the decade could now also get an ICE option, Automobilwoche reports.
The 718 Boxster and Cayman – believed to be delayed until 2027 due to the collapse of battery supplier Northvolt – would seem even more deserving of an ICE option, but it’s unclear if that will happen.
Global Hurdles Beyond Powertrains
Making more combustion cars won’t help fix the sales disaster in China, where deliveries have fallen by 28 percent this year and are unlikely to fully recover, or deal with President Trump’s new 15 percent tariffs on Porsche cars coming to the US from Europe. Job cuts and price increases are helping to minimise the financial sting from those problems being felt at the Stuttgart HQ.
Apart from slightly higher prices, though, as far as Porsche buyers are concerned this upheaval, and the greater choice of powertrains and cars it will bring, can only be seen as good news.
Porsche
