Road test: Porsche Cayenne E-Hybrid
The Cayenne is a big vehicle for Porsche. Not just physically, but also financially. It saved the company when it debuted in the early 2000s, allowing us two more decades (and counting) of the 911 sports car, while also playing a huge part in the rise in luxury SUV popularity.
Obviously, Porsche wants to keep this ball rolling, and so last year it gave the Cayenne a refresh, consisting of a smattering of exterior tweaks, a Taycan-inspired cabin with more digital screens, and base kit upgrades. Powertrains continue to span pure-petrol V6s, plug-in hybrids and V8s.
An electric Cayenne? Certainly in the future, but not quite yet. If you want an electric Porsche SUV, look to the Macan.
This one is the E-Hybrid, the entry point to the Cayenne’s electrified options, and so gets a 3.0-litre petrol V6 along with a beefedup electric motor and a larger battery than before.
This one is important because it’s the one most people buy. So it’s the one Porsche needs to get right, and, thankfully, all the tweaks and changes are improvements.
Starting with what’s under the bonnet, the E-Hybrid produces a combined 346kW/650Nm from its V6-plus-motor powertrain. It’s a similar set-up to the Volkswagen Touareg R PHEV, but has 6kW more power at the expense of torque.
Which is a bit weird, considering the motor went from 100kW to 130kW ... You might have thought torque would push above the Volkswagen, even just to make a point about branding.
More importantly, the Cayenne gets a bigger battery than the Touareg, 25.9kWh to 17.9kWh. That means it offers quite a lot more electric driving range, north of 70km in the real world. Previously, the E-Hybrid was able to drive only around 40km.
While it’s unsurprisingly smooth and quiet in electric mode, Porsche has also got the brakes sorted, which remains a point of contention in plug-in vehicles. Apparently the new Cayenne can claw back 30% more power using regen as well. When the V6 does chime in, it’s quiet and dignified.
There are three modes for hybrid driving: Auto, E-Hold and E-Charge. E-Hold maintains the current charge level while E-Charge boosts the battery to a certain percentage, both using the petrol engine to do so. Auto is best for most situations.
Click the drive mode dial across to Sport or even Sport Plus to keep the V6 spinning and the Cayenne sheds its SUV clothes and shows its Porsche DNA.
For a vehicle weighing 2.5 tonnes it handles extremely well, helped in this case by the $4430 optional air suspension set-up. I’d imagine the standard steel springs still do a bang-up job though.
Porsche’s active chassis and suspension tech is fantastic at keeping everything level and keeping understeer well away, while fat 285 tyres up front ensure a high degree of mechanical grip. The steering is brilliant, as usual. You’d be hard pressed to find a better drive from a large SUV without spending quite a lot more money, at least outside the Cayenne range.
Though, to be fair, that gap has diminished with the new generation. The E-Hybrid now starts at $182,500, about $7k more than before. This one has a few options ticked, like the aforementioned air suspension (standard on the S E-Hybrid), 22-inch wheels ($7940), panoramic roof ($3800), Bose audio system ($2650) and more. All in, this specific Cayenne costs $210,800, which is a lot. At least active cruise control is finally standard kit now ... though rear-wheel steering is a further $3340.
The cabin improvements are quite substantial, with the Taycan screens adding more digitisation and a cleaning up of the centre console. The gear selector has been moved next to the infotainment screen (also like the Taycan), while the touch buttons in the console all have a satisfying haptic click.
There’s also an air-conditioned wireless phone charger, which is brilliant because wireless charging and running Android Auto/Apple CarPlay at the same time can turn a phone into a little hot plate.
It’s all very comfortable too, with plenty of leather and soft-touch bits. The front seats are both electrically adjustable and heated, while the rears will hold three adults without much trouble. The middle seat does lose a bit of leg room due to the transmission tunnel, however.
Exterior tweaks are extremely subtle but look good. The Matrix LED headlights look slightly narrower and meaner, while the grille now has a three-strake design. Meanwhile, the full-width LED rear light has been simplified slightly, for the better.
Everything comes together nicely, then. Decent electric driving range means your tanks of fuel last longer and now that RUC charges for PHEVs have been reduced, plug-in hybrids are back on the menu. It’s disarmingly quick and looks as good as ever.
But now its physics-defying driving characteristics aren’t as unique as they once were, and the Cayenne is no longer playing within a niche segment. Plus, there’s the whole optional-extras thing which quickly adds even more to the cost...
It’s tricky. There’s no doubt the Cayenne is a brilliant vehicle, and there’s also little doubt it’ll continue to rake in money for Porsche. But, shop around and you’ll see the likes of BMW’s X5 xDrive 50e for less ($174,990) with more power, better standard kit and a drive experience that’s close enough to the Cayenne for most people.