It’s a known fact that Porsche will be launching a fully electric version of the Macan in 2021. Although it might ultimately get a different name, it will serve the same purpose in the company’s lineup, sans the combustion engine. The conventionally powered variant will stick around as the two models will peacefully coexist for a couple of years, according to Porsche deputy chairman Lutz Meschke as per his interview with Autocar in October 2019.

2021 Porsche Macan EV rendering

This week, YouTube’s The Sketch Monkey decided to see into the future of the zero-emissions crossover by imagining the Macan EV with Taycan styling cues. Bear in mind this was done just for fun as even though its Taycan influences are obvious, it still looks very much like the Macan we’re all familiar with. The reason why I’m bringing this up is that Porsche has already announced its first electric crossover will adopt an entirely different design compared to its ICE-powered cousin.

Not only will the styling be vastly different, but so will the underpinnings. The Macan EV is being developed right from the start as an electric model by using the Volkswagen Group’s Premium Platform Electric (PPE) architecture. It’s being jointly developed by Porsche and Audi for upper midsize models with a technological package “generally similar” to MEB, but with added support for torque vectoring, air suspension, and rear-wheel steering.

By not having to stick a combustion engine up front, designers have the freedom to create a lower nose for the Macan EV and electric Porsches in general. The reveal was made to Autocar by the company’s director of SUVs, Julian Baumann. He went on to mention the electric crossover will be “immediately recognisable” despite having entirely different bodywork compared to the regular Macan. It won’t have a swoopy roofline à la Cayenne Coupe as the peeps from Stuttgart want the high-riding EV to be practical and perform the duties of a family’s main car.

Much like the high-end versions of the Taycan were prioritised at launch, the Macan EV is expected to go on sale first only in the top specifications – Turbo and Turbo S. The latter could have as much as 700 bhp and a whopping 750 pound-feet (1,016 Newton-metres) of torque. Lesser versions will follow in the same vein as the Taycan, which recently received a more affordable 4S trim priced at £83,367.00 RRP compared to the £115,858 price tag of the Turbo and the eye-watering £138,826 price of the Turbo S.