The Rich Don’t Want Electric Cars: Porsche Halts Taycan Production Over Low Demand

The demand for luxury electric cars isn’t turning out as manufacturers had expected, and that shortfall is taking a toll on them.

In the midst of the worst crisis in its history, Porsche has temporarily halted Taycan production to align supply with demand.

No solo afecta a Porsche: es un problema que comparten muchos fabricantes

The ascent of electric cars is a reality. The figures prove it: in Spain it holds a market share of 8.59%, and its sales have grown by 40.66% compared to the same period last year (January to May), while in Europe its market share is already around 20%.

However, it is also a reality that electric cars are taking off at a much slower pace than expected and that the phenomenon is not uniform across all segments. While sales of cheap, small electric cars are rising, sales of expensive, large electric cars are advancing at a much slower rate.

The logic is straightforward: the target audience for small cars is much larger than that for large models. This applies to any type of car, but it is especially true for electric models because a large portion of the audience who can afford a pricey, large car is not willing to adapt to full electrification (nor do they want or need it).

Moreover, if this type of buyer is seeking a car with passion, they are not drawn to electrification but to the sound, the handling, and that emotional edge that combustion models have and electric ones do not, no matter how fast they may be. And the brutal depreciation of luxury electric cars doesn’t help, because their technology becomes obsolete quickly, like a high-end smartphone.

We’re seeing this with the Porsche Taycan. The brand’s electric sedan has an attractive design, truly impressive dynamic performance, the sportiness everyone expects from a Porsche, and offers breathtaking performance; in fact, its figures aren’t within reach of the gasoline-powered Porsches. Yet, it hasn’t achieved the success it should have.

Its first generation continues to depreciate and its second iteration isn’t selling as well as Porsche expected; in fact, the Stuttgart firm has been forced to rethink its electrification strategy because the numbers aren’t adding up, and Porsche is navigating a very tough crisis.

According to Auto Motor Sport, Porsche has delivered only 3,420 Taycans worldwide in the first quarter of 2026, a 19% drop from the year-ago period.

Overall, Porsche’s vehicle registrations have fallen by 15% in the first quarter of this year, and in China, a market particularly favorable for both electric and luxury cars, Porsche’s sales have fallen by 21%; until recently, this market was a bonanza for brands like Porsche, but now they have their own local brands and Chinese buyers prefer those companies. Put differently, there is a rising pride in Chinese-made products thanks to brands like Xiaomi and BYD, and that is weighing on Porsche and other Western firms. The bottom line is that Porsche is barely turning a profit.

In Spain, 46 units of the Taycan were registered from January to April 2026, down 42.5% compared with the same period the previous year; meanwhile, 338 units of the 911 were registered in our country, up 36.29% from the first four months of 2025. Panamera sales stood at 132 units, down 13.73%, and Macan registrations, the other Porsche electric until the arrival of the new Cayenne Electric, totaled 309 units, down 27.63%.

All of this has driven Porsche to take a difficult decision: temporarily interrupt Taycan production. Auto Motor Sport has confirmed there will be several factory shutdowns to adjust production to the real demand for the electric model.

“We align our production with the demand situation, which naturally leads to fluctuations. In addition, the shutdown days are necessary to carry out the maintenance and conversion measures required in production,” says a Porsche spokesperson to the German outlet. The SWR medium also confirms this production adjustment.

This reality of the electric car has also prompted Porsche to rethink its electrification strategy, changing plans such as making the upcoming Cayman and Boxster fully electric to also include a gasoline version and even to cancel these 100% electric variants.

Be aware, that reality of the electric car, at least for the expensive electric car segment, isn’t only affecting Porsche. Lamborghini has scrapped its plans to launch a 100% electric model because it’s “an expensive whim,” claiming that its customers are not ready for such models.

Lotus won’t be 100% electric either, as planned, and will reintroduce a V8-powered model (hybrid, of course), the Type 135. Volvo has also postponed becoming a fully electric brand and now says they will do so “when the market allows.”

Maserati has also canceled the electric MC20 and sales of the GranTurismo Folgore are far from good: it is estimated that between 85% and 90% of Maserati GranTurismo sold are gasoline. Rimac is also not selling the Nevera as it should, according to the founder Mate Rimac himself. We can also talk about Mercedes: no one wants luxury electric cars from the German brand and customers prefer a Chinese car from BYD or NIO.

Other luxury brands, such as Aston Martin, are directly saying they will postpone as long as possible the launch of a 100% electric model. Ferrari has been bolder and has just presented its first electric car, the Ferrari Luce: the result, besides a poor reception online, is a sharp drop in the stock market: its shares closed at $310 yesterday and today they have continued to slide (they’re at around $290).

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