A Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo Takes On Colorado’s Ophir Pass

It’s easy to take too many pictures when you're traveling, but that never stops anyone from taking one more—especially when your trip is through Colorado's alpine backcountry. The gravel road to the summit of Ophir Pass had just emerged from tree cover, revealing a sweeping view of a vast bowl that was only a winter storm away from being transformed into an epic heli-skiing location. An inviting wide spot fit within the scene perfectly, so I motioned my comrades to pull over, positioned the Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo just so, and grabbed my phone.

A Subaru Outback that had been trailing behind squeezed past as we lingered to take in the view. I was frankly glad because the Subie would be our canary in a coal mine. The other 4x4 drivers we’d met thus far seemed to fall into two camps: those who grimaced and thought we were just plain stupid, others who probably also thought we were nuts but grinned and said it was the coolest thing they ever saw. To be honest, I might have held both views simultaneously. What was I doing out here in a $132,760 Taycan Cross Turismo 4S on a narrow, rock-strewn trail where, at various spots, the wrong move could send us into a 2000-foot death plunge on the driver’s side?

On the one hand, I could understand what the folks in the trickle of Toyota 4Runner and Jeep Wrangler drivers were probably thinking. They were coming from the direction I was going, and they weren’t at all sure I'd make it where they'd been. Not without damage. Not without potentially creating a hopeless bottleneck on the side of a cliff while awaiting rescue from a very expensive recovery truck whose driver would see the word Porsche emblazoned on my rig and elevate the price accordingly.

But I knew a few things they probably didn’t. My Porsche was powered by dual electric motors, which amounts to full-time four-wheel drive. The question of whether or not I had low-range torque was immaterial, because electric motors offer instant torque. EVs are also impervious to thin air, so the Taycan would not suffer the kind of high-altitude power loss they’d likely experienced. The Taycan Cross Turismo starts sitting 0.8 inch higher than the standard Taycan, and I’m sure they didn’t know that my height adjustable air suspension had a Gravel mode that raised the ride height 0.4 inch. The final ace up my sleeve was a set of Falken WildPeak AT tires on 19-inch rims fit for a Cayenne and, as it turns out, a Taycan Cross Turismo that lacks the massive rotors of the Turbo or the 10-piston calipers of the Turbo S.

I selected Gravel mode soon after we got back underway because of the ever-increasing number of sharp, grapefruit-sized rocks littering the uneven road. The air suspension soaked up the lumpy terrain far better than expected, delivering more smoothness and none of the rattling or abrupt top-out banging I’d heard in a Jaguar I-Pace I’d tried on a less aggressive dirt road back home. Still, clearance was going to be the issue. It was necessary to pay close attention to the cobbled surface, be mindful of the Taycan’s Leno-esque chin spoiler and sculpted side skirts, and adjust the line accordingly.

The Subaru that had passed came back our way, having seemingly given up and turned around, which was ominous. But the final climb didn't turn out to be particularly difficult, with the trail retaining the same rocky character all the way to the sticker-covered metal sign proclaiming we’d reached the 11,789-foot summit. It was easy to imagine how impassable the Ophir Pass could become when snow arrives, but wasn't at the moment. Why had the Subaru turned around?

We found out shortly after we began our descent down the western side. A Toyota 4Runner laboring up toward us abruptly stopped, and the driver leaned over her companion to say something out the passenger side window. “There’s a drop-off up ahead. I don’t think you’re going to get through.”

I looked forward, saw nothing of interest, then asked, “How far down the trail is it?”