| Road Test Porsche Cayenne Turbo |
||
 |
||
|
What's The Appeal?
You could say that the Cayenne is not a "proper" Porsche, since it shares its platform with the Volkswagen Touareg and the Audi Q7. But, as we've found so often in the past, the same platform can be used to produce two or more quite different cars, and in this case there is no doubt which model has been developed by the company with the most robust sporting heritage. Of the "new" Cayennes introduced for 2007, there is no doubt about which is the sportiest. The Turbo tested here benefits, like all the others, from a range of improvements, including a most welcome rethink of the previously rather alarming body design. Mechanically, its V8 petrol engine has been enlarged from 4.5 to 4.8 litres, with a corresponding increase in maximum power to 500bhp. That's a chunky 50bhp up on what the old Turbo achieved, though it's still shy of the 521bhp provided by last year's Turbo S. But remember - say it after me, class - maximum power isn't everything. Despite the shortfall, the new car is pretty much as quick as the Turbo S was (well, slightly quicker, in fact, but by such a small margin that you'd hardly notice), and it's also marginally more economical than both that car and the previous Turbo. That's a good thing, as long as you're prepared to accept that combined fuel consumption of 19mpg is anything to be proud of.
If you find the idea of a 500bhp SUV alarming in a driving sense, there's nothing to be worried about. The Turbo is so docile in normal driving conditions that you might easily believe you had been given the wrong car. There is no fuss at all, largely because the accelerator pedal doesn't do much in the first few inches of its travel. You have to send it a lot closer to the carpet before the real action starts.
|
