A Porsche that is much more than a sport-ute

This review first appeared in the May 2020 edition of the Northern & Central California Cruisin’ News published out of Folsom, California – mg

  

Sacramento, California – The Porsche Cayenne is, by definition, a sport-utility vehicle, but that's sort of like calling a tire-shredding Ferrari "a sporty car."

The fact that the Cayenne is a Porsche and has a Porsche engine under the hood really propels it beyond the SUV crowd.

With this $85,000 model, you wouldn't tell you friends: "I have an SUV."  You would say: "I have a Porsche."

Performance separates it from everything else.  My 2020 tester was actually fairly humble with its turbocharged, 3-liter V-6 rated at 335 horsepower.  For the record, a Cayenne can be equipped with a 4-liter, twin-turbo V-8 power plant producing nearly 550 horses.

But rest assured, the 335-horsepower version I handled pressed me deep into the driver's seat.  Better still, the Cayenne firmly held the line when powered into corners or taking on a makeshift slalom course.

Can you get a performance rush from an SUV?  With the Cayenne, the answer is YES. And while one enjoys the benefits of dusting off lagging coupes and other sports cars in a sport-ute, it's important to take time to enjoy the interior amenities stuffed into the Cayenne.

On my ride, those perks included an excellent Bose Surround Sound system, heated front/rear seats, panoramic roof, four-zone climate control and leather surfaces all around.  A spacious, comfortable interior can be enjoyed with very little noise feedback from the V-6 engine.
 

Highway cruising runs were silky smooth, and even aggressive lane changes did little to upset the Porsche's fine balance.  The four-wheel disc brakes performed at a world-class level.

For this segment, fuel mileage was fair at 19 miles per gallon in the city and 23 mpg on the highway.

The Cayenne was redesigned for 2019, but to my eye, the look is not all that different from the previous generation.  It's still a sleek, relatively low riding vehicle, low slung enough for some to call it a hatch -- not that you will ever hear anyone from Porsche call it such a thing.

Looking back, it's hard to believe that Porsche purists objected so strongly when the automaker introduced this SUV to the world for the 2003 model year.  It turned out to be a super-smart move for the manufacturer, with the Cayenne ringing up solid sales over nearly two decades.

The 2020 Cayenne should continue to give Porsche executives -- and performance-minded motorists -- more reasons to smile.