2020 PORSCHE TAYCAN Power Train Problems

During my ownership, the vehicle experienced multiple dangerous failures. It suddenly lost power while driving with my 2‑year‑old child onboard, and on another occasion the steering wheel locked for several seconds on the freeway. The car has had numerous recalls, and the dealer later confirmed an EV motor failure but offered no buyback. These defects created serious safety risks and caused significant financial loss, which I believe requires NHTSA’s attention.

I am writing to bring to your urgent attention a recurring and serious issue with my Porsche Taycan (VIN: [XXX] ). On multiple occasions while driving, the vehicle has suddenly lost all power and displayed the error message: "Engine control error. Stop the car in a safe place." When this occurs, the car becomes completely unresponsive and unable to move forward, posing a significant safety risk, especially when it happens in traffic. I am forced to stop, switch off the vehicle, wait for a couple of minutes, and restart it. The error message disappears after restarting, but the issue continues to recur. This has now happened three times in the past two months. I first brought the vehicle to the dealer after the initial incident, and they recommended a software update. However, after the issue reoccurred and I returned to the dealership, they were unable to retrieve any error codes. Despite these efforts, the problem persists. Given the severity of the issue and the risk it poses while driving, I am requesting immediate assistance and a thorough investigation into the root cause of this malfunction. This is not only a mechanical concern but a serious safety issue that requires urgent attention. Please let me know the next steps to have this addressed properly and whether a formal case can be opened for further diagnostics and resolution. Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

While driving, shortly after a turn, the electric motor has a fatal error resulting in complete loss of power while driving. The car has to be stopped in the middle of the road and powered down and then turned back on. This clears the fault but the problem has occurred 3 times within a month resulting in me not driving it anymore.

While driving my electric vehicle, I experienced a sudden loss of power. The car abruptly stopped, leaving tire marks on the street, and the steering wheel began shaking. At the same time, an error message appeared on the dashboard, indicating an engine failure and instructing me to pull over immediately for safety. Fortunately, I was driving alone that day and had chosen an alternative residential route, which allowed for slower speeds and less traffic. Had this incident occurred during my usual commute, where I typically travel at least 45 mph on a heavily trafficked three-lane road, the outcome could have been catastrophic. I am certain that the sudden loss of power in such conditions would have led to a serious accident, endangering not only myself but also other road users. The service center required a full week to duplicate the issue. While there were no prior warnings, messages, or symptoms leading up to this event on my car after researching the incident it is clear that this same instance occurred in over 10,000 like kind vehicles under NHTSA recall number 21V-486. This unexpected failure poses a significant safety risk, and I am deeply concerned about the potential for recurrence, especially in less forgiving traffic conditions.

I was making a left turn after being stopped at a traffic light - just a few moments after the turn, all of a sudden I experienced violent jerking motions of the car, and lost all power in the middle of traffic, and rolled to a complete stop. This was an exceptionally dangerous place to just have the car stop responding. I noted an error message "Engine Control Error" with a red ring around it in the rightmost instrument cluster. I turned on my hazard lights; other electrical functions were still working in the car (e.g. music was still playing over the audio system). I power cycled car off and then on again, and cleared the error, and the car drove normally again. The problem did not recur despite driving about 5 miles more on the way home. I have stopped and started car and drove brief periods several times since then without issue. The state of charge was about 75%, having charged last night at home on AC to 80%. Ambient temperature outside was hot today, almost 90 degrees F, and very humid.

Vehicle lost all power with no response from the accelerator pedal causing me to almost get killed on a two lane highway. I was able to somehow coast into the grass on the side of the highway

I was driving in the fast/lane of the freeway, and suddenly the car flashed red "Electrical System Error" "Park Vehicle in Safe Place". The car immediately started to decellerate on its own and I didn't have time to go over to the right so had to move into the left shoulder of the freeway. I was stuck in the middle of the freeway, with cars driving fast coming around a bend of the freeway behind me having to swerve out of the way. Cops finally came to give me cover from behind. Dealership still trying to figure out what the issue is.

My Taycan suddenly lost power while driving on the road on 10/14/2022

My complaint is that the car will not move. I get in the car to drive and the car displays the following message, “ Electrical System Error. Stop vehicle in a safe place.” This has happened on numerous occasions(at least 7) since I received the car on February 10, 2021. Mind you I work from home so I don’t drive it but once a week. I am quite fortunate that thus far it has only happened in my garage. I took the car to the local Porsche dealership for a software update but that was not the solution. It occurred again after the update. I thought maybe it had something to do with the car charger because it usually occurred a couple days after charging the car but I haven’t charged it in over 2 weeks.

While driving normally on a highway, the car suddenly reported "Electrical System Error, Stop vehicle in a safe place", which is followed by a complete loss of power, even pressed on acceleration pedal. I immediately pulled over to the side of the highway, the car slowed down quickly and stopped. The car was unable to restart ever since. After 1-2 hours, the vehicle's power was completely lost.

The safety risk of having the car’s motor completely lose power on the road/highway is high, as you are then left powerless. We have not reproduced this issue ourselves. Our local Porsche dealer has looked at it and said it was a “one off” type of malfunction and could not find any issue with the car when we brought it in. The car shut off while driving and gave a “Motor control error.” The car’s interior electronics stayed on, but the car had no drive power at all. There were no warning signs or problems prior to this issue occurring

AS I WAS COASTING TO A STOP AT A STOPLIGHT THE CAR SHUDDERED AND LOST ALL POWER FROM THE ENGINE. I WAS ABLE TO STOP THE CAR AND A RED WARNING ON THE DASHBOARD SAID 'DRIVE SYSTEM CONTROL FAULT, PARK VEHICLE SAFELY'. I'VE HEARD FROM A NUMBER OF OTHER TAYCAN OWNERS AND THEY HAVE HAD THE SAME PROBLEM WHILE DRIVING, IN SOME CASES ON THE FREEWAY AND HAD TO STOP IN THE LEFT HAND LANE. I BELIEVE THIS FAULT IS VERY DANGEROUS AND SERIOUS. I AM VERY CONCERNED THIS COULD HAPPEN TO ME WHILE DRIVING AT SPEED, AND COULD RESULT IN AN ACCIDENT AND/OR INJURY TO ME OR OTHERS. THE CAR DID RESET AFTER I TURNED IT OFF AND RESTARTED, AND I DID NOT HAVE A PROBLEM FOR THE REST OF THE DAY. THE CAR IS CURRENTLY AT THE DEALER.

Mileage: 6,000

WHILE DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY AT C. 55MPH IN MODERATE TRAFFIC, THE CAR LOST ALL MOTOR POWER AND STARED TO COAST TO A STANDSTILL. AN ERROR WAS ON THE DISPLAY SAYING 'DRIVE SYSTEM CONTROL FAULT - PARK VEHICLE SAFELY. I MANAGED TO GET TO A SLIP ROAD OFF THE FREEWAY AND THE CAR JUDDERED TO A HALT FROM AROUND 15MPH UNTIL COMPLETE STOP. THERE WAS NO RESPONSE THE THROTTLE AT ANY TIME. I POWERED OFF THE CAR USING THE POWER BUTTON ON THE DASHBOARD, THEN IMMEDIATELY SWITCHED IT BACK ON. ONCE BACK ON, THE CAR WAS OPERATING NORMALLY. THIS HAS BEEN REPORTED ON PORSCHE TAYCAN FORUMS HTTPS://WWW.TAYCANFORUM.COM/FORUM/THREADS/MOTOR-CONTROL-ERROR-AND-SYSTEM-ERROR.3114/

Mileage: 4,950

THE CAR SHOWED AN ELECTRICAL ERROR & LOST POWER THEN SHUT DOWN ON THE FREEWAY. ONCE THE CAR CAME TO A COMPLETE STOP I WAS UNABLE TO GET OUT OF THE VEHICLE BECAUSE IT LOCKED ME INSIDE. THIS IS A SAFETY HAZARD AND HAD I NOT TAKE THE PRECAUTIONS TO EXIT THE FREEWAY I MAY NOT HAVE SURVIVED. THIS NEEDS TO BE INVESTIGATED AS FROM WHAT I'VE READY, THIS HAS BEEN A COMMON ISSUE IN THIS VEHICLE. IT HAPPENED FIRST ON THE ,'DECEMBER 16TH & THEN AGAIN DECEMBER 25TH. SOFTWARE AND THE 12V BATTERY WERE REPLACED THE FIRST TIME, AND THE DAY AFTER THE CAR WAS PICKED UP FROM SERVICE IT HAPPENED AGAIN.

Mileage: 115