'Not possible and not planned': Porsche has just made its biggest gamble ever, but will it pay off?

Porsche might have just made its biggest gamble ever, vowing its new and all-electric Macan will remain its best-selling vehicle in Australia and around the world, despite it consigning its internal combustion engines to the history books.

The decision to shift the Macan, which has now launched in Australia, to a dedicated EV platform also essentially locks Porsche into the decision, with the company's executives suggesting its "impossible" to revert to ICE engines if the electric version's sales slow.

“Not possible and not planned," was vice-president of the Porsche Macan product line, Jörg Kerner's response when asked whether the brand would revert to ICE powertrains if sales slow.

Read More About Porsche Macan

'There's a clear trend': Electric cars struggle to gain traction as premium carmakers like Porsche, Mercedes-Benz and Fiat pivot to hybrid and combustion engine development 2024 Porsche Macan electric car pricing and specs: Porsche's most popular model looks to rattle the Tesla Model Y and Polestar 4 with new EV version Best electric cars arriving in 2024

"I've driven this car now for one year, every day, for more than 100,000 kilometres and I think it will be a best-seller, because I think it's the best car in the segment," Mr Kerner said.

"It's the sportiest car in the segment, and in every segment, in every point, we are much better than the combustion car."

The stakes couldn't be higher for the Macan Electric. Just this year, Porsche has shifted 2614 examples of the ICE Macan in our market. That’s not just more than it has managed with the 911, Boxster, Cayman, Taycan and Panamera combined, but also almost double the volume of the brand’s only other SUV, the Cayenne.

Add to that global sales figures that point to a 50 per cent drop in sales for the brand's only other all-electric offering, the Taycan.

In fact, Porsche's global CFO Lutz Meschke recently suggested the brand would offer ICE versions alongside electric models in its lineup, citing a "clear trend" of customers looking for traditional powertrains.

“A lot of customers in the premium and luxury segment are looking in the direction of combustion-engined cars, there’s a clear trend,” Meschke said.

“As for our electrified line-up, we are very flexible when it comes to our production footprint. We can produce combustion engine, plug-in hybrids and electrified cars in one production line in Leipzig.

"When it comes to research and development, you’ll see more flexibility in the upcoming years. We will develop new combustion-engined derivatives [of the EV models] in order to give the right answer to customer demand.”

But that clearly won't include the Macan, with Porsche in Australia adamant that, when ICE stocks run dry by Q2 next year, its most popular model will be exclusively electrified.

"In the Macan at the moment, (ICE) is not possible and it's not planned," Mr Kerner said.

It's a view echoed by Porsche Australia chief Daniel Schmollinger, who told CarsGuide he sees the Macan as a trend-setter that will help the rest of the county warm to electric vehicles quickly.

"That's the task Porsche –and all car brands globally – has, because...everyone is moving into electric at one point in time. There is an educational piece we all have to do. And for us, this is really the 'bums in seats' strategy," he said.