The former boss of Porsche has gone on the record to admit the company was wrong to only offer the second-generation Macan only as an electric model.
Volkswagen Group CEO Oliver Blume, formerly Porsche’s global chief, told a German newspaper it was a mistake to drop petrol engines from the new Macan lineup – but said its research suggested it was the right move at that point.
“Our strategy was to offer combustion engines, hybrids, and electric sports cars in each of our three segments – but not for every product,” Mr Blume told Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.
“We were wrong about the Macan. Based on the data available at the time and our assessment of our markets, we would make the same decision again.”
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While the first-generation Macan was produced with diesel and petrol engines since its launch in 2014, the second-generation mid-size SUV was based on Volkswagen Group’s electric ‘PPE’ underpinnings – shared with models such as the Audi A6 e-tron and Q6 e-tron.
However, as reported in August 2025, Porsche now has plans to reintroduce a new SUV with hybrid powertrains to effectively replace the original Macan and be sold alongside the new Macan EV.
The move will effectively mirror Porsche’s strategy with the larger Cayenne SUV, the petrol-powered third generation of which will continue to be available alongside the all-electric fourth generation, but this new Porsche SUV isn’t expected until 2028.
“Today, the situation is different,” Mr Blume said. “We have responded and are adding combustion engines and hybrids.”
While details of the new model remain unknown at this stage, it’s likely to employ the same Volkswagen Group ‘PPC’ platform and engines with the latest Audi Q5 TFSI and SQ5.
These include a turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine, and a 3.0-litre turbo-petrol V6.
Porsche could also introduce a new nameplate to help differentiate the model from the electric Macan already on sale.
Porsche Macan sales were down 34 per cent last year in Australia, where the Macan EV was launched in December 2024.
