Porsche, Mercedes Said To Be Developing Electric Models In Response To Tesla

It appears that Germany's luxury automobile manufacturers are waking up to the threat that California's Tesla poses. Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, and Audi are all said to already be in development of their own all-electric models, however plans to see them on the road are still a few years off.

This information comes from German publication Manager Magazine, who recently spoke to Porsche chairman Matthias Müller. While Porsche already offers a hybrid electric version of its Panamera 4-door, Müller revealed that the model will serve as a design basis for an electric car to compete on the same level as Tesla's Model S in terms of weight, performance, and range. Little was said of other details, except for that 2018 would be the earliest for release.

In a separate interview with Manager, sources from Mercedes also said the company has a new focus on targeting Tesla. Unfortunately, the company has a bit of re-design work in store for themselves in coming up with a new model, as the battery they have now is too large to accommodate their current line-up. The sources said that an electric sedan is currently on a timeline for 2021.

That leaves Audi, who is already the closest at directly competing with Tesla, having announced the Q8 e-tron SUV for 2017. That won't be a rival for the Model S, obviously, but Germany is planning ahead for next spring's debut of Tesla's Model X SUV. It looks like the next 5-7 years are in to see some real new developments from electric vehicles in the luxury and sports car markets. Best to start preparing your wallet now.

VIA ArsTechnica

SOURCE Manager Magazine