Think EVs Don’t Need Water Pumps? The Porsche Taycan Has Three Of Them!

Contrary to popular belief, water pumps aren’t just for internal combustion engines. Even the newest and most powerful electric vehicles in the world require water pumps.

Image Credit: Porsche

Take the Porsche Taycan, for instance. It’s a completely modern, innovative, and state-of-the-art luxury EV that produces up to 750 horsepower from dual electric motors. It lives up to Porsche’s high-performance reputation, and it features some of the best components on the market.

Many consider the Porsche Taycan the ultimate electric sports car that blazes the trail for other automakers that aspire to release very high performance full-electric cars.

All that being said, the Taycan still requires not one, not two, but three water pumps. The electric car that’s as futuristic as can be is equipped with three water pumps, which was widely considered a part that would die along with gas vehicles.

The truth is that water pumps are here to stay. Read on to find out why.

EV Components Need to be Cooled

Image Credit: Alexander Migl via Wikipedia

Internal combustion (IC) engines generate a lot of heat, which is why water pumps are needed. A lot of people assume that since full-electric vehicles don’t require gasoline, heat, and tiny explosions, they don’t need to be cooled like IC engines do. Many are under the impression that electric vehicles can just be passively cooled by the air coming in from outside of the vehicle. While that’s true to an extent, it’s not 100% true.

Some parts in electric vehicles are passively cooled. Many electric vehicles like the Taycan come with openings in the front that allow cool air to come in and help heat dissipate from under the hood. The airflow also helps cool the brakes. However, there are many different parts within an electric vehicle that run hot and need to be cooled more thoroughly.

That’s where water pumps come in. Water pumps circulate coolant throughout the vehicle. Some parts require coolant, and they include:

• The battery pack
• Electric motors
• Inverter
• Converter
• A/C system

Why Some EVs Like the Taycan Have Multiple Water Pumps

Some EVs like the Porsche Taycan have multiple water pumps. Why is that?

It’s basically because the parts that require coolant are situated across the vehicle. Some parts are in the front of the vehicle, some are in the middle, and some are in the back. Multiple water pumps are required to constantly circulate coolant all over the vehicle.

How Electric Water Pumps are Different From Mechanical Water Pumps

Electric water pumps are used in EVs and some newer IC engines. Mechanical water pumps are only found in cars with IC engines, especially older ones.

A big difference between the pumps is how they operate. Mechanical water pumps are powered by a belt. Electric water pumps each have their own motor and are controlled by the ECU. The latter does not require belts or shafts. Because of that, electric water pumps typically last much longer than mechanical water pumps do.

Another difference between the two types of water pumps is number of components being cooled. As listed above, electric cars have a lot more parts that require cooling as opposed to gas cars. In gasoline powered cars, only the engine is cooled utilizing the water pump. If anything, electric cars rely more on water pumps than cars with IC engines.

In a nutshell, water pumps aren’t going to be phased out. Instead, they’re simply evolving. At the rate we’re going, water pumps will always be found in EVs.