Question

if a tertiary carbocation is stable, then why is it more reactive?

Answer 1

First, it is true that tertiary carbocations are generally more stable than primary carbocations (and secondary carbocations) due to having more inductively donating alkyl groups. The hyperconjugative effect can also be invoked to explain the relative stabilities of primary, secondary, and tertiary carbocations.

Second, transition states involving tertiary carbocations as opposed to primary carbocations are more favorable precisely because tertiary carbocations are more stable than primary carbocations.

Note that this does not mean that tertiary carbocations are more reactive. We don't generally say that something which exists in a transition state is reactive/unreactive. One reason is that the transition state complex cannot be directly captured or observed. Another reason is that it is the transition state ... of course it's going to be reactive - of course it'll change very rapidly!

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