The 2019 Porsche Cayenne S Is a Sports Sedan on Stilts

The line separating cars and SUVs grows blurrier each day. Whether you make an effort to split today's auto market by ground clearance, roof height, body-on-frame vs. unibody construction, or the distinction between driveline components, almost always there is an exception towards the rule. Even deferring to subjective judgment-"I understand an SUV once i see one"-isn't foolproof. While its proportions are unmistakable being an SUV's, the 2019 Porsche Cayenne S accelerates, brakes, and turns as though this is a sports sedan.

The 434-hp Cayenne S bolts to 60 mph in 4.2 seconds. Its twin-turbocharged 2.9-liter V-6 crashes the quarter-mile in 12.8 seconds at 109 mph. Around the optional 21-inch Pirelli P Zero summer tires, the Porsche latches towards the pavement with 0.93 g of cornering grip. Stand on the left pedal, as well as the S channels that stick right into a 152-foot stop from 70 mph. Those figures place the Cayenne S in exactly the same performance class as middle-rung sports four-doors like the Mercedes-AMG C43 sedan as well as the Audi S5 Sportback. Those cars are lighter and less than the Cayenne S, but fall into line this group in a drag strip or perhaps a road course, and any race you dream up will be too near predict.

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Brad FickCar and Driver

Feelin' Fine

Needless to say, Porsche is hardly the only real automaker to conjure carlike performance from the modern utility vehicle. BMW M and Mercedes-AMG utes are equally with the capacity of chest-compressing acceleration, neck-straining deceleration, and gut-churning lateral grip. But while other automakers can replicate the Cayenne's performance, none comes near imitating the knowledge. There's something special within the control feel, the chassis responses, and what sort of driver connects using the Cayenne S.

Porsche delivers steering that's much better when compared to a vehicle this tall, large, and heavy deserves. Alert on center and naturally weighted throughout its full flexibility, the steering responds to inputs predictably sufficient reason for the most precision. Cinched-down body control produces unflappable cornering behavior whether or not the street is smooth or lumpy. We find comfort for the reason that control, using the Cayenne's suspension dismissing events in one stroke. We also acknowledge that this Porsche SUV isn't for everybody. The Cayenne S is rarely harsh, but its short, quick, and firm suspension could be an excessive amount of for drivers seeking to tiptoe over America's buckled and broken roads. Those that fondly remember American cars from the 1960s should look for something having a softer, more isolating ride.

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Brad FickCar and Driver

At 4802 pounds, the Cayenne S is hardly svelte, nonetheless it does weigh roughly 200 pounds significantly less than its next-lightest competitors. This weight advantage helps atlanta divorce attorneys facet of performance, allowing the engine, brakes, and tires to help make the the majority of what they’ve got. Regarding the twin-turbo V-6, the effortless shove of 405 lb-ft of torque covers a lot of the rev range, from 1800 to 5500 rpm. The quick-witted eight-speed automatic transmission makes certain that torque-rich punch is never greater than a single downshift along with a fraction of another from slugging your backside. The engine, also found in the Porsche Panamera 4S as well as the Audi RS5, is energetic when you wish it to become and genteel once you cool off the accelerator. It's suitable towards the Cayenne, a car that'll be driven in parking lots and 25-mph neighborhoods a lot more than meandering county back roads yet also wears the Porsche crest on its hood.

The Cayenne's dynamic excellence is the fact that a lot more impressive as the third-generation model shares more parts than ever before using its Volkswagen Group cousins and also its competitors. It rides around the MLB Evo platform that also underpins the Audi Q7, the Bentley Bentayga, the Lamborghini Urus, along with a bevy of mid-size and large cars. The Audi-developed 2.9-liter V-6 delivers its torque towards the ZF 8HP eight-speed automatic transmission that's found in from the Dodge Charger towards the Aston Martin Vantage. That pedigree appears like maybe it's cobbled together by any engineering student, yet the Cayenne S evinces the practiced craft of truly masterful engineering. Its greatest virtues are buried deep in the program, the bushings, as well as the damping rates.

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Only inside a Porsche

You'll purchase that world-class tuning. Starting at $84,150, the Cayenne S carries the most common Porsche pricing premium that means it is more costly than its closest peer. In cases like this, that's $15,005 a lot more than the 2019 Mercedes-AMG GLC43. The Cayenne S also comes with only the smallest amount of standard equipment. Passive entry, heated seats, and driver-assist systems such as for example adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitoring, and lane-keeping assistance are simply some of the many extra-cost add-ons. Our test car added nearly $15K towards the sticker with only eight options but still were able to feel relatively spartan. Those options included the leather interior ($3750), the 21-inch wheels ($3830), a Bose stereo ($1200), and the activity Chrono package ($1130), which adds an activity Plus driving mode, an activity stability-control setting, and launch-control features. The window sticker also listed $400 for ambient lighting, $530 for heated front seats, and $490 for auto-dimming mirrors.

Finally, our Cayenne S wore the brand new Porsche Surface Coated Brakes, a $3490 extra. Also called PSCB, this program adds larger front and rear iron brake rotors plated having a razor-thin layer of tungsten carbide, a compound that's nearly as hard as diamond, in addition to sizable 10-piston front calipers. The coating reduces the quantity of brake dust that accumulates around the wheels. In addition, it provides discs a mirror-like finish that simply looks cool and increases brake life by way of a claimed 30 %. However, quite a few drivers complained that the top Coated Brakes are touchy and difficult to modulate when negotiating city streets. Additionally it is worth noting that this 16.3-inch front rotors necessitate upgrading from the typical 19-inch wheel to at the very least a 20-incher, probably the most affordable which runs $1720.

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Brad FickCar and Driver

Porsche's latest interior scheme, first seen around the second-generation Panamera, trades the homely but functional selection of buttons for large, unbroken swaths of glossy black plastic with touch-sensitive icons glowing through. In addition, it bundles and buries deep in to the 12.3-inch touchscreen lots of the controls which were always accessible within the old model. That screen is of interest, but it is also an excellent exemplory case of the difference between styling and design. Porsche's arrangement is simpler to utilize than systems that depend on a laptop-esque touchpad, such as for example those within the most recent Mercedes-Benz and Lexus models. Still, it's nowhere near as intuitive because the rotary controller still well-liked by BMW.

While it is a stylish and luxurious thing, the Porsche Cayenne S greatest virtue is its remarkable performance and unique driving qualities-both those implied from the badge around the hood and the ones verified by our testing. Even while the marketplace for hot-rod SUVs grows with new entries, the Porsche Cayenne holds its place like a sporty four-door that also ıs definitely an SUV.

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Brad FickCar and Driver

Specifications

Specifications

2019 Porsche Cayenne S

VEHICLE TYPE

front-engine, all-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door hatchback

PRICE AS TESTED

$98,970 (base price: $84,150)

ENGINE TYPE

twin-turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 24-valve V-6, aluminum block and heads, direct fuel injection

Displacement

177 cu in, 2894 cc

Power

434 hp @ 6600 rpm

Torque

405 lb-ft @ 1800 rpm

TRANSMISSION

8-speed automatic with manual shifting mode

CHASSIS

Suspension (F/R): multilink/multilink

Brakes (F/R): 16.3-in vented tungsten-carbide-coated disc/14.4-in tungsten-carbide-coated vented disc

Tires: Pirelli P Zero, F: 285/40R-21 (109Y) N0 R: 315/35R-21 (111Y) N0

DIMENSIONS

Wheelbase: 113.9 in

Length: 193.6 in

Width: 78.1 in

Height: 66.8 in

Passenger volume: 107 cu ft

Cargo volume: 27 cu ft

Curb weight: 4802 lb