Cayenne - first impressions
Discussion
Sorry I've taken a little longer than I expected to get back here - I've been busy for a change.
OK so what do I think.
Picked the car up from Camtune in Godalming Friday afternoon and spent the next 2 hours sitting in the 6 lane car park known as the M25 trying to get home, BUT this proved a couple things to me immediately. (a) the Cayenne is an extremely comfortable place to spend long periods of time, (b) the Bose sound system is probably the best factory fit in-car hifi I have ever heard, (c) Porsche SatNav (PCM) is the best in the business and (d) I love the high driving position in traffic.
OK so that was a very dull drive, since then I spent the weekend helping a friend to move house - proved huge carrying capacity of Cayenne, oh and I'm having an enormous amount of fun driving it. Everything you may have read about it doesn't prepare you for the really fantastic handling of this thing. And that isn't just fantastic handling "for a 4x4" it handles - period. And its fast - although the sheer size of it is very good at disguising the speed you're moving at.
OK some niggles -
1. I have had 2 constant warnings from the on-board computer one telling me that the PSM (stability management) is not working and one saying that the oil level monitoring isn't working. Camtune have picked the car up this afternoon to take it to be checked by Porsche in Guildford.
2. The throttle is way too sensitive at slow speeds. It wouldn't be such an issue but the firm suspension means that over rough surfaces at slow speeds its very hard to be smooth on the throttle. That is a serious issue IF (big if) I ever wanted to take it off road.
3. Build quality is patchy - some parts are well up to Porsche standards - other parts would annoy you in a Proton. In general the cabin is a great place to spend time, the seats are excellent, the wheel and dash and most of the frequently touched controls feel good, but things such as the sunglasses holder and a/c controls are made of brittle plastic that feels like it won't last a month. Already the cover for one of the latching points for the rear luggage net snapped in my hand.
4. oh and fuel consumption is frightening!! (but if you have to worry about that you shouldn't be buying the car.
5. There are options missing on my car which should be standard on a car at this price - mainly cruise control and heated seats.
So, my overall impression is for a first attempt Porsche has done a fantastic job. I wanted a car which would allow me to transport people and things over long distances in comfort and with a degree of style without sacrificing driving fun. Having had the car for nearly a week I can fully understand Porsche's decision to build it. If they had gone the Maserati route and built a 4 door saloon it would have appealed to a much older audience but it probably wouldn't have been on my list. This way they have a car in their line up which still has a more youthful appeal but which also has the carrying capacity which means they don't lose customers when they need more space.
OK that's all for now. I'll give you an update when the car comes back tomorrow evening.
Full Specs
Porsche Cayenne S
Bassalt Black
Full Black leather
19" Cayenne design wheels
6spd tiptronic
PCM (satnav)
Bose
Tinted side windows
Park distance control
Comfort seats (memory)
6 disc CD changer
rain-sensing wipers - dipping mirrors
auto headlights
OK so what do I think.
Picked the car up from Camtune in Godalming Friday afternoon and spent the next 2 hours sitting in the 6 lane car park known as the M25 trying to get home, BUT this proved a couple things to me immediately. (a) the Cayenne is an extremely comfortable place to spend long periods of time, (b) the Bose sound system is probably the best factory fit in-car hifi I have ever heard, (c) Porsche SatNav (PCM) is the best in the business and (d) I love the high driving position in traffic.
OK so that was a very dull drive, since then I spent the weekend helping a friend to move house - proved huge carrying capacity of Cayenne, oh and I'm having an enormous amount of fun driving it. Everything you may have read about it doesn't prepare you for the really fantastic handling of this thing. And that isn't just fantastic handling "for a 4x4" it handles - period. And its fast - although the sheer size of it is very good at disguising the speed you're moving at.
OK some niggles -
1. I have had 2 constant warnings from the on-board computer one telling me that the PSM (stability management) is not working and one saying that the oil level monitoring isn't working. Camtune have picked the car up this afternoon to take it to be checked by Porsche in Guildford.
2. The throttle is way too sensitive at slow speeds. It wouldn't be such an issue but the firm suspension means that over rough surfaces at slow speeds its very hard to be smooth on the throttle. That is a serious issue IF (big if) I ever wanted to take it off road.
3. Build quality is patchy - some parts are well up to Porsche standards - other parts would annoy you in a Proton. In general the cabin is a great place to spend time, the seats are excellent, the wheel and dash and most of the frequently touched controls feel good, but things such as the sunglasses holder and a/c controls are made of brittle plastic that feels like it won't last a month. Already the cover for one of the latching points for the rear luggage net snapped in my hand.
4. oh and fuel consumption is frightening!! (but if you have to worry about that you shouldn't be buying the car.
5. There are options missing on my car which should be standard on a car at this price - mainly cruise control and heated seats.
So, my overall impression is for a first attempt Porsche has done a fantastic job. I wanted a car which would allow me to transport people and things over long distances in comfort and with a degree of style without sacrificing driving fun. Having had the car for nearly a week I can fully understand Porsche's decision to build it. If they had gone the Maserati route and built a 4 door saloon it would have appealed to a much older audience but it probably wouldn't have been on my list. This way they have a car in their line up which still has a more youthful appeal but which also has the carrying capacity which means they don't lose customers when they need more space.
OK that's all for now. I'll give you an update when the car comes back tomorrow evening.
Full Specs
Porsche Cayenne S
Bassalt Black
Full Black leather
19" Cayenne design wheels
6spd tiptronic
PCM (satnav)
Bose
Tinted side windows
Park distance control
Comfort seats (memory)
6 disc CD changer
rain-sensing wipers - dipping mirrors
auto headlights
I just couldn't live with the Cayenne's "ugly duck" styling so I took a test drive last week in the much more attractive Touareg V10. Same build quality and good economy but the real gem is that twin-turbo V10 diesel engine. I can't begin to explain how fantastic 550ft/lbs of torque feels in the air-suspension equipped Touareg, but suffice to say I was so impressed I ordered one that day. It arrives 1st week in Jan. As for the styling issue, I think this says it all :-
Running a C4 right now, but I still miss the X5 I had a year or so ago.
A totally together car the X5 IMO. So I can support the fact that driving a big 4x4 can be fun..
Good luck with the Cayenne. You get used to towering over hedges and seeing the line through corners from on high !
A totally together car the X5 IMO. So I can support the fact that driving a big 4x4 can be fun..
Good luck with the Cayenne. You get used to towering over hedges and seeing the line through corners from on high !
Senator, interesting read, and I'm pleased you like it - but you failed to sell it to me.
Just one question - would you buy a first generation 170+ supercar from Range Rover or Toyota?? - if not then why buy a 1st generation 4x4 softrover from Porsche. I'm still struggling to get it.
Anyway please keep us updated, especially any off-road experiences.
Just one question - would you buy a first generation 170+ supercar from Range Rover or Toyota?? - if not then why buy a 1st generation 4x4 softrover from Porsche. I'm still struggling to get it.
Anyway please keep us updated, especially any off-road experiences.
When I went to Porsche West London (AFN`s) to take an "S" out for a test, I had to wait, as someone had overrun their time. Whilst I waited, I watched a superb video about the "Ing" thing (on their nice B&O plasma) it featured a "Turbo" being driven through an Arizona-like desert landscape at high speed - It really got me thinking about what this car was designed to do!
When I went out into the West London traffic and pootled around Kensington and Knightsbridge (the privicy glass option at £288.00 + VAT would have been appreciated)I enjoyed the high driving position and the short sprints between the traffic lights.
After half an hour, I really thought that to enjoy the "Ing" thing, is what this vehicle is all about. Just like the track with your 911`s, 968`s, etc. You need to get this thing really flying on surfaces other than the old black top.
This is absolutly not a town car! And he very thought of these beasts doing the school run and and accoustic parking in Tesco`s, fills me with despair!
When I went out into the West London traffic and pootled around Kensington and Knightsbridge (the privicy glass option at £288.00 + VAT would have been appreciated)I enjoyed the high driving position and the short sprints between the traffic lights.
After half an hour, I really thought that to enjoy the "Ing" thing, is what this vehicle is all about. Just like the track with your 911`s, 968`s, etc. You need to get this thing really flying on surfaces other than the old black top.
This is absolutly not a town car! And he very thought of these beasts doing the school run and and accoustic parking in Tesco`s, fills me with despair!
and may be even some 4x4 smiles 
If nothing else I'm glad to see I've provoked some thought!
I will be taking the car down to the French Alps at Christmas so I'll let you know how it handles some white stuff.
As for the Touareg, I drove both the V8 and the V10 - the V10 felt very nose heavy to me and frankly I just couldn't justify spending £55k on a VW. It genuinely wasn't the badge that put me off but the thought of the depreciating being far steeper. Time will tell. I agree that the VW is easier on the eye but I have to say the KN is growing on me - if they can sort out the electrical gremlins (not sounding good at the moment but more on that later).
I will be taking the car down to the French Alps at Christmas so I'll let you know how it handles some white stuff.
As for the Touareg, I drove both the V8 and the V10 - the V10 felt very nose heavy to me and frankly I just couldn't justify spending £55k on a VW. It genuinely wasn't the badge that put me off but the thought of the depreciating being far steeper. Time will tell. I agree that the VW is easier on the eye but I have to say the KN is growing on me - if they can sort out the electrical gremlins (not sounding good at the moment but more on that later).
Hi Senator,
Nice thread, but failed to sell it to me too. As soon as I'm over 60-years old, then I may be able to see myself in a SUV. Until then, I'm in something low, fast, and preferrably with a drop top in the down position.
When I want to haul around the kitchen sink with me, I'll get a truck without the Porsche crest. My true opinion of the Cayenne is, "I hope it's not the investment Porsche made, out of greed, that eventually brings an independent car company down and vulnerable to acquisition by the likes of Ford or BMW".
My question to Porsche is "why"?
Why would the world's most profitable car company, with the reputation they have, spend money building and developing a SUV, when the market was so competitive, and when they did "what they do" so well anyway. Sheesh, they must have some new blood on the board of directors, (some dangerous blood).
Dogsharks
Dogsharks
Nice thread, but failed to sell it to me too. As soon as I'm over 60-years old, then I may be able to see myself in a SUV. Until then, I'm in something low, fast, and preferrably with a drop top in the down position.
When I want to haul around the kitchen sink with me, I'll get a truck without the Porsche crest. My true opinion of the Cayenne is, "I hope it's not the investment Porsche made, out of greed, that eventually brings an independent car company down and vulnerable to acquisition by the likes of Ford or BMW".
My question to Porsche is "why"?
Why would the world's most profitable car company, with the reputation they have, spend money building and developing a SUV, when the market was so competitive, and when they did "what they do" so well anyway. Sheesh, they must have some new blood on the board of directors, (some dangerous blood).
Dogsharks
Dogsharks
Senator said:
2. The throttle is way too sensitive at slow speeds.
Interesting.
After my test drive of the Turbo the other day, I was also mulling over the combination of such a fabulous engine with all the extra kit, in an off road package (particularly the air suspension). I wouldn't want all that power off road - and I do go off road quite a lot, so the air suspension and everything else would get used. But the turbo charged V8 doesn't quite fit for me, nice as it is to unleash on the black stuff.
Senator, have you used the low ratio settings? I'd be interested to know if that sorts the throttle concerns. I assume that, as you haven't chosen the air suspension option, you don't go off road?
I think the comments, particularly in the UK about how ugly the car is and how it doesn't fit the Porsche image etc, miss the point IMHO
. This car should be taken on its own merits - it is an SUV vehicle, and it does that fabulously, from what I have seen. I would love a 996 or a 993, but I have two kids and need to transport all sorts of toys (skis in winter, bikes, windsurfers, paragliders, sea kayaks etc). Having a KN as an option is just great. My current car (a Series II Disco) is tremendous offroad and fine on road, but suffers from English build quality and in performance terms, lethargic would be the best description. On 0-60 times, it should just say "yes" 
Looks like top of this market segment to me. Can't agree on the Tuareg - looks boxy to me from the photos below (high waist, flat sides and in the flesh, looks like another VW).
John
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