Feb. 28, 2018—Porsche plans to equip its 189 U.S. dealerships with 800-volt fast-charging stations in an effort to sell its forthcoming Tesla-fighter, the Mission E electric sedan, USA Today reports.
The German automaker already has six such EV stations at its Porsche Experience Center in Atlanta, home of its North American headquarters, and plans to add more soon at its sister center in Los Angeles. Both facilities allow Porsche owners to take delivery of new vehicles as well as experience them on a track.
"Charging infrastructure is an extremely important part of the EV experience as a whole," Porsche Cars North America CEO Klaus Zellmer said in a blog post provided to USA TODAY that will appear on the company's website.
Zellmer said fast charging stations will allow the company's four-door Mission E, due sometime in 2019, to add 250 miles to its range in around 20 minutes.
Zellmer noted that for the majority of their charging needs, customers ultimately would have to rely on the nation's slowly growing network of charging stations, most of which will not charge a vehicle at an accelerated pace. "You have to keep in mind that more than 80 percent of charging occurs at home," he said.
It remains unlikely that Mission E owners would be able to charge for free at dealerships. Tesla initially offered free access to its highway-based Supercharger high-speed charging stations for its Model S sedan.
Stefan Weckbach, head of battery electric vehicles at Porsche, said in the blog post that the company is exploring a range of fee structures for charging, including the possibility of flat-rate options depending on demand.
