The Porsche 911 might be the heart of the brand, but the Cayenne SUV is its most important vehicle, and now there’s a new one.
The first-generation Cayenne launched in 2002 to save the company’s finances from impending doom, and it worked drawing in customers from a completely new demographic. It also helped that luxury SUVs were gaining popularity and brought big profit margins for automakers. The Cayenne was a veritable Swiss army knife of SUVs able to whisk you to the shops in comfort but also tackle a technical off-road trail, or hold its own on a race track, all in the same day.
It’s no secret that Porsche didn’t have the best year, citing “extraordinary expenses” resulting in pressure from tariffs and the Chinese auto industry, reduced sales, and a switch from a pure electric strategy to one that will see more hybrids and gas vehicles.
Powertrain & Performance
- Power: 1,139 hp (with launch control)
- Torque: 1,106 lb-ft
- Powertrain: Dual-motor AWD (fully electric)
- Battery: 107.5 kWh
- 0–60 mph (0–96 km/h): 2.4 seconds
Dual-Motor Power and Formula E Tech
The new fourth-generation Cayenne will be the first one to get a fully electric powertrain. With dual electric motors and a 107.5 kWh battery pack, the Turbo version becomes the most powerful Porsche ever produced with a massive 1139 hp and 1106 lb-ft of torque when using the launch control function.
This insane amount of power from just two motors is made possible by new innovations that come directly from Formula E, like direct oil cooling for the motors, which flows oil over the copper hairpin windings where most of the heat is generated. These motors are more power dense but also up to 98 per cent efficient.
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An 800-volt electrical system enables charging speeds up to 400 kW, which means up to 325 km in just 10 minutes if using a powerful enough charger. Up to 600 kW can be recovered from braking, which is equivalent to a Formula E car. In the real world it means up to 97 per cent of braking can be done without ever using the actual brakes. Kinda makes the optional carbon ceramic brakes with 10-piston front rotors seem like overkill. Range hasn’t been sorted for the EPA cycle but the company rates the Turbo at 623 km (WLTP).
Related – 2024 Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid & Turbo E-Hybrid First Drive Review: Uncompromised Balance
Acceleration That Defies Its Size
Even the battery is new with reduced complexity, less modules, and more powerful cooling. Engaging launch control is easy: drive mode selector in sport plus, hold down the brake with your left foot, mat the e-pedal with your right, wait for the visual and auditory prompt, and release the brakes. There is no hesitation as all four Pirellis claw into the tarmac and catapult you down the road like you’ve been released from a giant slingshot.
Sixty miles per hour (96 km/h) comes up in just 2.4 seconds, but even crazier is 124 mph (200 km/h) takes just 7.4. These figures seem otherworldly when you consider the Cayenne is a 2.7-ton vehicle.
Driving Impressions
Sports Car Feel, SUV Capability
It’s not just speed. Like the first Cayenne, it’s just at home in the mud, clambering over rocks, or bombing down a dirt path at 150 km/h, all of which we did. With a standard air suspension system, the new Cayenne also rides beautifully on pavement with sports car levels of steering feel and the confident handling you’d expect from a Porsche, even as we threaded our way through narrow mountain roads near Barcelona. You never once feel the weight, thanks to rear wheel steering but also the optional active ride system that eliminates all body roll but can absorb a speed bump like it isn’t there at 50 km/h.
Related – 2024 Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT First Drive Review
Interior & Technology
Porsche hasn’t skimped on the luxury either with soft-close doors and a powered rear seat being standard options as well a gorgeous new curved display that flows down the centre console like a waterfall. Materials and build quality are as good as it gets in the industry, and so is the driving experience. The optional passenger screen is a bit much but there’s little else to fault here. In fact, I’d even go out on a limb and say that this is the best SUV I’ve ever driven.
Expect the new Cayenne Electric and Turbo Electric to arrive at dealers in the summer.
