Porsche Cayenne Coupe Test Drive Review – What An SUV!

Porsche Cayenne Coupe Review

Car Tested: Porsche Cayenne Turbo Coupe; Road Test No. 1138; Test Location: France

Price OTR Mumbai: Rs. 1.80 – 2.00 Crores (est.)

This Porsche Cayenne Coupe offers amazing performance, has great driving feel and looks the part too!

Stuttgart based Porsche is famous for its focussed and singular approach to building cars. The company has kept its reputation high as the makers of some of the most involving cars on the road today. Porsche is still best known for its range of two-door sports cars. The brand started diversifying only recently, exploring SUVs, fastback and all-electric segments. In all its ventures Porsche never seemed to have diverted from its core characteristic of delivering cars that are high on quality and driving pleasure. Now, Porsche is yet again taking a more trending route. Meet the Cayenne Coupe – a sportier and more stylish alternative to the regular Cayenne. We want to find out if the Cayenne Coupe is just another attempt in going with the flow or is it truly a more driver-oriented alternative to the regular SUV?

Motor Quest: The concept of SUV-Coupes was pioneered by BMW with its X6. The idea was to have a stylish SUV that was good to drive. The X6 landed in a bit of a controversy over its design but the increasing number of buyers flocking to the dealership was a sign that there was a market for such a car. Over the years Mercedes and Audi have entered the segment with more than one SUV-Coupes in their line-up. Other brands like Land Rover also have more rakish SUVs in their portfolio. Given Cayenne’s colossal global success, Porsche has upped the ante of their most popular car by giving buyers a distinctly sporty Cayenne Coupe.

Exteriors – The Cayenne Coupe looks like any other SUV-Coupe. Meaning the front is the similar to the regular Cayenne save for redesigned bumper and air dams. It is a confident-looking front with a hint of sportiness. Like with Porsche SUVs, it does not give an impression of being bold, but rather, of being athletic. The headlights come built-in with Porsche’s now-signature quad-LED setup and there are well-shaped contours on the bonnet. Turbo models get more aggressive treatments to the front. 

Move on to the side and this is where you realise that Porsche designers have done a fantastic job. It does not look awkward like the X6, thanks to the subtle curve at the rear. Porsche has cleverly chopped 20 mm from the regular Cayenne and made changes to the length. The result is the SUV-Coupe looks like a larger Macan from the side. Factor in the well-designed alloys, the Cayenne Coupe leaves little room for controversy. From the back, it is a typical Porsche. You also get an active spoiler but we think Porsche should’ve added the Panamera-style deployment mechanism to make it really cool.

Interiors – The Cayenne Coupe’s interior is, naturally a carbon copy, of the Cayenne SUV. We have said this earlier about Porsche cabins and we will say it again – the cabin sets a high standard for build quality, luxury and the general sense of fineness. The large touch screen is the highlight followed by the beautifully executed central tunnel that houses the haptic controls. The stopwatch with Sport Chrono package and those signature 5 dial instrument cluster are all the other highlights.

We loved the seating comfort at the front which was nothing short of exceptional. The seats are extremely supportive and offer a variety of adjustments to please all kinds of drivers. The chunky and well-shaped steering also does the trick. It is also a very ergonomically designed cabin. Everything falls to your hands easily and practical elements like cup holders and a large glovebox are all there.

The cabin of the Cayenne Coupe sure feels like a very special place to be in

Equipment levels are as strong as any other car in the segment with Porsche offering more standard equipment in the Coupe form. Dual-zone climate control, electrically adjustable front seats, a premium audio system are all a part of the standard equipment. There is a whole lot more that you can add, but being a Porsche, all come at a price, like the Light Weight Package which adds an interesting textured fabric on the seats amongst other weight effective elements.

The front seats are amply spacious but the shorter height does minutely eat into the rear-seat headroom. It is not cramped or claustrophobic but you may feel the lack of headspace in comparison to the Cayenne. Porsche offers the Cayenne Coupe with either a bench seat layout or an individual two-seat layout. What is also noticeable is the restricted rear view visibility, thanks to the coupe shape.

Performance – The Porsche Cayenne Coupe will be launched in India with 2 engine options – a V6 and a V8 (better known as the Turbo), we drove the latter which is powered by a 4.0-litre twin-turbo motor that pumps out an impressive 550 PS and 770 Nm, enough to take the Cayenne Turbo Coupe from 0-100 km/hr in just 3.9 seconds, the top speed being 286 km/hr. The engine is extremely refined, turbo lag is well contained and thus drivability is great. In fact, you can barely hear the engine in the low-end and at idle, it’s inaudible. However, as you push it post the mid-range to the top-end of the rev band, it becomes vocal, in a sporty way. The mid-range is the strongest part of this powertrain but there is just no flat spot whatsoever, with a proper shove when the revs climb past 2000 RPM.

Performance is astonishing and the V8 mill leaves you spell-bound

The Porsche Cayenne Turbo Coupe comes with the Sports Chrono package as standard, you can flick through the 4 modes on the steering mounted rotary knob with Normal, Individual, Sport and Sport+ settings that alter the engine, gearbox, suspension and also the steering wheel. There is also a Sports Response button which gives additional punch for 20 seconds, it’s an OverBoost function, there is launch control too which Porsche aptly dubs as ‘Performance Start’. The 8-speed gearbox is quick with shifts and one can manually take control of the cogs using either the tiptronic function on the gear lever or the steering mounted paddles. The exhaust does brrraaap on upshifts and cracks and pops on downshifts, it also blips the throttle in manual mode while giving the driver complete control of the transmission. Fuel efficiency is between 5-8 km/l.

Driving Dynamics – The Cayenne Coupe is more aerodynamic than the regular Cayenne thanks to the revisions made to the pillars, it also gets an active rear spoiler which raises by 135 mm at 90 km/hr (it can also be manually engaged). Tyre options range between standard 20s to 21s or 22s with extremely wide rubber, power being channelled to all four wheels. The immediate feeling on the driver seat is of a high riding sports car and less SUV because of the sporty driving position although you do get a good view of what’s around. The steering feels light at low speeds but weighs up astonishingly well at high speeds, offering great feel and feedback.

Porsche offers a slew of electronics on the Cayenne Coupe including PSM, PTM, PASM, PTV Plus, PSCB, PCCB, PDCC to name a few but let’s not get lost in the acronyms here because what all of them do is make the S in SUV really show. The Cayenne is a very sporty car, it might be high riding but handles beautifully well, body roll being kept at a minimum with tight body control, you really can’t feel the 2-tonne weight. If the weight bothers you, you can opt for the optional carbon roof that sheds 21 kgs of weight and robs away the cabin’s airy feeling (as the standard roof is a large panoramic unit), now the weight doesn’t bother you so much and it shouldn’t because the engineering excellence on the Cayenne is nothing short of extraordinary.

I say that because in spite of the sportiness, the ride quality is absolutely brilliant, even on the low profile rubber equipped on our test car. It glides over the worst of roads although there is the inherent stiffness that can be felt at low speeds over big bumps. The brakes are very surefooted offering the right feel at the pedal. This SUV remains glued to the road at all speeds. The Cayenne Coupe also gets the option of rear axle steering which makes the handling even better, an option buyers should definitely tick. But it’s not just smooth riding on the road, this Porsche is also very capable off it, having a slew of off-road modes with adjustable ride height thanks to the air suspension. The Cayenne manages to offer an excellent dynamic balance, making it one of the best handling SUVs in the market right now.

Safety and After Sales Service – Because it is based on the Cayenne, safety is a strong point. Remember, the Cayenne gets a full five-star crash test rating and comes with more than enough safety kit. The same goes for the Coupe. Whether Porsche brings the radar-guided safety tech remains to be seen. While Porsche’s service network in India isn’t as widespread as other luxury brands, the company does have presence in most major cities in the country.

Verdict – To a great extent, Porsche has succeeded in their objective of making one of the sharpest driving SUVs in the world even better. The Coupe is slightly more agile and we think it looks pretty good. The Turbo models offer blistering performance and fantastic dynamics. The Coupe model also offers more standard equipment than the standard Cayenne. While the standard Cayenne does everything well, if SUV-Coupes are your taste, the Cayenne Coupe is one of the best out there, both dynamically and aesthetically.

What’s Cool

* Snazzy and attractive design
* Well-appointed interior with more features
* Bomb of a V8 engine
* Splendid ride and handling dynamics

What’s Not So Cool

* Less headroom than the standard Cayenne
* Gearbox not the quickest

Alternatives: – BMW X6, Audi Q8, Mercedes GLE-Coupe

Porsche Cayenne Turbo Coupe Specifications

* Engine: 3996cc, V8, Petrol
* Power: 550 PS @ 5750-6000 RPM
* Torque: 770 Nm @ 2000-4500 RPM
* Transmission: 8-Speed Tiptronic S
* 0-100 km/hr: 3.9 seconds (with Sport Chrono pack)
* Top Speed: 286 km/hr
* Fuel Consumption: 5-8 km/l
* Fuel Type: Petrol
* Tyre Size: 275/45/20 (Front), 305/40/20 (Rear)
* Suspension: Aluminium Multi-Link Front & Rear Axles
* Brakes: 415 mm disc (Front), 365 mm disc (Rear), Internally Vented
* Safety: Airbags, VSC, Porsche Stability Management with ABS, ASR, ABD, MSR, TSM

Porsche Cayenne Turbo Coupe Dimensions

* Overall length x width x height: 4939 mm X 2194 mm X 1653 mm
* Wheelbase: 2895 mm
* Ground Clearance: 190 – 245 mm
* Fuel Tank Capacity: 90-litres
* Boot Space: 531 – 1513-litres
* Kerb Weight: 2200 kgs

Further Reading –

Porsche Cayenne Turbo Review

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