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Porsche CEO Confirms The Electric 718 Is Still Coming

Michael Leiters says the delayed electric Boxster and Cayman remain in development as the brand works to attract new buyers.

Porsche 718 EV Rendering

Photo by: Motor1.com

Andrei Nedelea Andrei Nedelea

By: Andrei Nedelea

Aug 4, at 2:57pm ET

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Porsche’s delayed and electric 718 replacement is still alive. Porsche’s new CEO, Michael Leiters, who assumed the top job at the start of the year, confirmed last week that it’s still in development, following months of speculation regarding its future.

“With the electric 718, we came to the conclusion that we will build the model – because it is the best solution economically and will be a fantastic car,” Leiters told German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (via Google Translate). The 718 has traditionally helped bring new buyers to the Porsche brand, providing a entry-level sports car that slots below the more expensive 911.

Even as many automakers scale back their electric plans—and despite its own ongoing struggles, including with navigating the choppy transition to EVs—Porsche says it's moving ahead with the 718. 

Porsche delivered just under 280,000 cars globally in 2025, of which 22.2% were fully electric, and an additional 12.1% were plug-in hybrids. Last year was the first year when Porsche delivered more electrified vehicles in Europe (57.9%) than pure combustion cars; every third car it sold on the continent in 2025 was fully electric.

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Porsche currently offers three EVs: the Taycan, Macan Electric, and newly launched Cayenne Electric. Together, they should lift the brand’s EV sales through 2026 and 2027, while the electric 718 will add a fourth model line and give Porsche one of the industry’s broadest premium EV portfolios.

Production of the combustion-powered 718 Boxster and Cayman ended in October of last year, but the models still sold a combined 18,612 units despite the early cutoff; sales were down only 21% from 2024. Porsche hasn’t revealed its sales target for the electric 718. For context, Porsche sold 16,339 Taycans in 2025.

Porsche has disclosed almost nothing about the electric 718’s power, range, or technical specifications. Its design is less mysterious, though, thanks to lightly camouflaged prototypes tested on public roads and at the Nurburgring. They reveal the model’s familiar shape, which appears to be an evolution of the outgoing model’s design.

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The prototypes point to a compact, low-slung sports car with proportions that remain recognizably Boxster and Cayman, despite the switch to electric power. Thanks to a dedicated electric sports car architecture rather than adapting the Taycan or Macan EV platforms (whose batteries are in the floor, raising the seats), the combustion models’ low seating position should be preserved.

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Audi is also working on an electric sports car built on the same underpinnings, which should undercut the Porsche model. Journalists have already driven a prototype of the Audi sports car—the Concept C—and it reportedly drives great thanks to its relatively low weight for an EV, which gives it surprisingly nimble handling.

But it remains to be seen whether the electric 718 can fulfill the same role within Porsche’s lineup as the outgoing combustion models, and pricing will be especially important. The Boxster and Cayman were never cheap, but they offered buyers the most attainable route to get behind the wheel of a new Porsche sports car. The price will determine whether it still attracts new customers or becomes another very expensive Porsche aimed primarily at existing owners. 

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