The 2025 Porsche Taycan 4S Cross Turismo is one of the most impressive and enjoyable cars I’ve driven this year. As a prestigious, practical, performance car, it felt perfect to me. But sadly, as a dog hauler, it has a few significant drawbacks.
Bramble (my Australian shepherd /golden retriever mutt) and her larger brother Silas fit OK in the back seat. But critically, snout access to the rear window was severely limited, making it challenging to fit most kennels due to the vehicle’s low roof. You can carry a sub-70-pound dog in a Cross Turismo, but it’s not a particularly dog-friendly vehicle. Here’s a breakdown of how it performed in a few different dog-focused tests.
The Taycan benefits from a low passenger compartment, and our agility-trained animals had no trouble leaping onto the back seat from the ground. However, the car is quite wide, which means the door sill is thick and the seat bottom is recessed from the side of the vehicle. So creatures that might be a little clumsy or lack good jumping power may struggle to climb aboard without scratching the door jam.
The Taycan wagon’s back seat has a good amount of headroom, but since the rear seats have a lot of bolstering, larger dogs might have trouble getting comfortable sprawling across the rear bench.
Two medium-sized dogs were able to sit next to each other in the back, but even one dog in the 80-pound-plus size range would struggle with seating.
We only allow animals to stick their snoots out of car windows below 45 mph. But such speeds are common here in Ulster County, New York, and I could tell Bramble was frustrated that the Taycan’s rear windows don’t completely retract. She was able to get her nose into the wind with a little stretching, but it’s nowhere near optimal.
The Taycan Cross Turismo’s cargo area is generous, but it’s low and long. Some dog breeds would fit in the way-back, but Bramble wasn’t too enthusiastic about it. Very large breeds might be best accommodated by dropping the seat and letting them lie across the whole back area, though they might have trouble getting in and out.
Due to the low roofline, once again, most common hard-sided kennels will be really tough to fit into this car. Small sizes will work for Pomeranian-sized pups, but even our standard medium-sized upright kennel for a sub-50-pound dog like Bramble would be too tall, which limits your dog containment options.
The loosest nut in the Taycan’s comfort is the one behind the wheel, as in—whoever’s driving. The car can be driven with elite chauffeur smoothness, but its quick responsiveness and regenerative braking take some getting used to. Bramble struggled to get her footing a few times as I got the hang of the car’s inputs.
Porsche does make some handsome dog accessories, like a really cool compact pooch-carrying crate, a branded towel, and even an impressive fitted rear cargo crate, though the latter looks like it’s meant to fit in a Macan or Cayenne rather than a Taycan. (Aftermarket Taycan Turismo kennels do exist, however.)
I’m sure you’d have no trouble finding dog-sized Porsche shirts, bowls, collars, and anything else—though I’m not sure if all of it would be licensed.
The Taycan Cross Turismo is a spectacular car, and driving one doesn’t preclude you from dog ownership. But as far as being animal-optimized, this wagon just ain’t it. It’s too low and squished, and the window thing is a dealbreaker for wind enthusiasts (which dogs always are).
If you do want to drive some dogs around in one of these, my main pieces of advice would be to get a rear seat cover that has wide flaps to cover the door sills, and put your dog in a harness connected to the seatbelt so they stay put during any Porsche-pace maneuvers or sudden regenerative brake interventions.
Got a dog/car recommendation? Drop me a line at andrew.collins@thedrive.com. Find more stories about Bramble and her friends in our dog review section.
Automotive journalist since 2013, Andrew primarily coordinates features, sponsored content, and multi-departmental initiatives at The Drive.
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